Nicolo Melli

Nicolo Melli was born in 1991 in Reggio Emilia, a city in northern Italy. He is the son of Julie Vollertsen and Leopoldo Melli. His mom is a former volleyball player and a silver medalist with the United States at the 1984 Olympic Games. Nicolo has a younger brother, Enrico, who has also played professional basketball in Italy. In the fall of 2006, Melli participated in the Italian leg of the Jordan Classic Camp for promising under-16 players. Through the camp, Melli earned a spring 2007 trip to the USA. Later that year as a 16-year-old, he signed his first professional contract with Reggiana, the local professional team in Reggio Emilia. Melli also played on the senior Italian national team from 2011 to 2015. He is now a dual citizen of Italy and the United States. Fans can follow the forward on Twitter (@NikMelli). Prior to coming to the NBA, Melli spent more than 10 years in a variety of European leagues. The native of Italy signed his first professional contract at 16 years old with Pallacenestro Reggiana. He provided 3.4 points and 2.9 rebounds in 10.6 minutes. Melli's second season was cut short by a torn ACL. He returned in 2009-10 and became a starter. The 6-foot-9 forward averaged 10.7 points and 7.1 rebounds, but he missed the playoffs with a shoulder injury. The following season, Melli moved to AX Armani Exchange Milano. His three-point shooting improved while in the top Italian league. In 2013-14, he hit 40.8 percent of his three-pointers. He averaged 7.8 points and 5.6 rebounds in 30 games that season. After five seasons with Armani, Melli moved to Germany to play for Brose Bamberg. He averaged at least 7.5 points and was named EuroLeague Round 11 MVP for scoring 27 points and grabbing 14 rebounds. After two seasons with Brose, he then moved to Turkey to play two seasons for Fenerbahce. Melli has also represented Italy in FIBA and EuroBasket competitions. He went undrafted in the 2013 NBA Draft, but he eventually signed with the New Orleans Pelicans in July 2019.