This Rhode Island basketball standout continues to battle for an NBA job; who is he?

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• Jeff Dowtin Jr. is a two-way NBA player with the Philadelphia 76ers, meaning he can play in only 50 games per season.
• Dowtin has only two games remaining on his contract and is unsure whether he will play in them.
• Despite the uncertainty, Dowtin remains focused and prepared for any opportunity to play.

PHILADELPHIA — On the seventh day, Jeff Dowtin Jr. rested.

He didn’t find that out until he arrived at his “office” last Sunday ready to go to work. But that’s what life is like when you’re an NBA player with a two-way contract. It means you’re allowed to suit up for only 50 games — even if you don’t play as Dowtin has not nine times — in an 82-game season.

So, even though the Philadelphia 76ers have six games remaining in what’s turned into a disastrous, injury-plagued season, Dowtin’s time is almost up. The 27-year-old has just two games remaining and has no idea whether he’ll play in either of them.

But the former University of Rhode Island standout, who averaged 11 points and 3.7 assists during his time in Kingston from 2016 to 2020, has learned to take it all in stride.

“Every game day, it’s the same routine,” said Dowtin, who’s averaging a career-best 6.5 points in 39 games for the 23-52 Sixers, his fifth NBA team. “You may be playing. May not. But you know you just always stay ready. Always stay locked in because you never know when your opportunity is going to come.”

That’s been the norm for the kid who grew up just outside Washington, D.C., whose URI career came to a sudden halt when college basketball — not to mention the rest of the world — shut down because of COVID. Undrafted that summer, Dowtin wound up being shuffled around the league over the next few years.

Four games with the Golden State Warriors, one with the Milwaukee Bucks, four with the Orlando Magic, the team that originally signed him for $40,000 in 2020 to what’s called an Exhibit 10 contract, then released him that same day.

As frustrating as it must have been, Dowtin kept plugging away, confident he would eventually catch a break. That’s the kind of persistence and determination he learned from Danny Hurley, his first coach at URI.

“His passion brings out your energy, your aggressiveness for basketball,” said Dowtin, who averaged 7.6 points and 3.9 assists for the Rams in his two years under Hurley. “The main thing is he loved winning, no matter what.

“Seeing that made me love the game even more. He was exactly how he is now. Always that energetic coach. You’d see his emotions throughout the game.

“That’s the kind of coach that you’d love to play for.”

These days, Dowtin is playing for Nick Nurse, the same coach he had in Toronto in 2022-23, when Dowtin averaged 2.4 points over 25 games.

“He’s shooting the ball a lot better,” said Nurse, who brought Dowtin — who was hampered by injuries — to Philadelphia for 12 games after taking over as Sixers coach last season. “His 3-ball is much improved over the years.

“That’s the biggest thing. He’s a real threat from out there.”

After a sporadic start to the season in which he played sparingly and reached double figures just once in 2024, the 6-foot-3-inch Dowtin has been on a roll. In March, he averaged 12.8 points, shooting at a blistering 57.4% clip, including 50% from 3-point range.

While injuries to veteran guards Tyrese Maxey, Kyle Lowry and Eric Gordon opened the door for increased playing time for Dowtin and others, he’s made the most of it.

“I’ve grown throughout the year,” said Dowtin, who posted a career-high 24 points on March 14 against Indiana. “My game has expanded in the ways I can be a leader; be a point guard.

“As a point guard, you’re able to control the pace, control the tempo. You learn from each other so you’re better able to communicate.”

Speaking of communication, that’s been a constant as Dowtin’s playing limit nears its expiration. It’s why they told him this past Friday he’d be returning to the G-League Delaware Blue Coats, where he scored 27 points in Saturdays’ season finale win. Then, despite returning to the parent club for Sunday’s game against his old team, the Raptors, he was scratched from the lineup.

“Obviously, he’s had some good games here recently and played very well for us and for the Coats,” Nurse said prior to his club’s 127-109 loss. “The trick is he’s only got two games left, so when we have enough guys he’s going to have to sit out.

“We’ve been tracking this for several weeks now and it’s a hot topic of discussion every day because things start shifting and moving. But when we do have him, I want to play him.”

In a similar vein late last season, the Sixers converted Dowtin’s two-way contract into a regular contract, which enabled them to keep his rights. While they’re unlikely to do so now, they’ll still retain his rights as a restricted free agent. That would enable them to match another team’s offer should they choose.

Longtime agent Bill Neff isn’t sure what to expect.

“He’s a delight of a kid who deserves better,” said Neff, who originally got connected to Dowtin through Hurley. “It’s refreshing because he’s played well and has had a good career.

“But there comes a point where a player has to make a decision. You’ve been around the league four years, so two-ways are over. What do you do?

“It’s every kid’s dream to play in the NBA. But what if he gets a guarantee to go play in Europe? So this is a pivotal year for Jeff.”

At least for now, though, Dowtin is not looking that far ahead.

“I kind of knew the road I’d have to take to make it to the NBA,” said Dowtin, who’ll make $579,000 this season — half the rookie minimum — while splitting time between the Sixers and Blue Coats. “That’s kind of how it’s been my whole life.

“You know you had to sneak through the back door at this point and just put in the work. You only get maybe one or two chances and, when those chances come, you’ve got to make the most of them and just showcase your abilities. Prove to everybody you belong there, and once you knock down that door, just keep at it. “

So, Jeff Dowtin will cross his fingers each night the lineup comes out hoping he’s on it, though it might not be until they play the Wizards in his hometown on April 9, then the April 13 season finale against Chicago. That means he’ll go through the same workout and stretching routine, eat at the same time, even play the same music.

“Whenever your name is called, just be ready,” he emphasized. “That’s the best advice I can give.”

Because as Jeff Dowtin has learned through all the ups and downs of life in the NBA, that’s the name of the game.

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