The Adorable Internet Romance of an NBA Player and a Nickelodeon Star

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By Sam Laird2013-09-04 01:25:26 UTC

We don't always delve into the love lives of the sports stars we cover here at Mashable. But when we do, it's for good reason.

In this social-media romance between a budding NBA star and a Nickelodeon actress, for example, the lovey-dovey vibes are just too perfect — and too public — to pass up.

See also: The 17 Types of Pickup Basketball Player

To start, here is our dramatis personæ for this digital-age update to the timeless tale of boy meets girl:

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  Andre Drummond. 20-year-old center for the NBA's Detroit Pistons. Last season named to the league's All-Rookie Second Team.

  
  


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  Jennette McCurdy. 21-year-old actress and singer. Best known for playing the starring role in Nickelodeon's hit series iCarly.

  
  

That's Drummond and McCurdy in the photo, above. Now, here's how they met (like any tale of modern romance, it starts with a hashtag):

One particular hashtag that's popular with the kids these days is #WCW. That stands for "Woman Crush Wednesday." The fairly straightforward idea is to post a photo of a woman you have a crush on to Instagram or Twitter. Drummond posted this #WCW shot of McCurdy two months ago.

A couple of weeks later, he posted this one with the caption, "Yes lord!!!":

Then, a week later, this one:

Finally after all those #WCWs, Drummond's dogged — if indirect — digital courtship paid off. But not on Instagram. The relationship took its next step over on Twitter, back on Aug. 7:

To which Drummond hastily replied:

And the conversation continued:

Drummond's Pistons aren't scheduled to play in L.A. until Nov. 17 — which, it turns out, was just too long for the young enamorados to wait.

Three weeks ago, the 5-foot-3 McCurdy wished the 6-foot-10 Drummond a happy birthday with this Instagram photo, signing it "from a very small, questionable creature."

Then Drummond got her a teddy bear, which she named "Drummy" and naturally shared with her 1 million Instagram followers:

Then — finally! — their Internet courtship came full circle when McCurdy posted a photo of this familiar-looking fellow as her "Man Crush Monday" (#MCM for you noobs):

But online romance can only last for so long, right? Drummond and McCurdy bridged their digital divide for apparently the first time last Thursday. Here's McCurdy's Twitter post from the historic meet up:

And Drummond's equally joyous Instagram pic, including the caption, "Words can't explain!":

The twosome were still hanging out the next day, chilling poolside among other activities. They switched things up, though, this time documenting their love connection via Vine:

Then Sunday, it was on to Disneyland for a double date, which everyone knows you only visit if things are getting serious:

Drummond was even kind enough to document some of the young couple's greatest hits in one handy Instagram:

So there you have it, America. Andre Drummond: Number one in the Pistons program, and also number one in Jennette McCurdy's heart.

[via For The Win ]

Homepage image: Instagram, Jennette McCurdy

Topics: Entertainment, NBA, Sports