honestly, the quicker you learn your role in the league, the longer you stay in it

teams need guys that fit, not necessarily always guys that can hoop if that makes any sense

You gotta understand the mentality of a lot of players to even reach that point. A lot of them don’t reach the NBA without that mentality of “I’m the next Kobe, the next superstar, I need to make $300 mil contract”

Irrational confidence is how a lot of these guys got to the league.

How you STAY in the league is by learning your role. It’s a tough transition that not everyone can figure out, and it’s an ever evolving process because a players game changes

Pretty introspective tweet

Knowing your role is important, for every Kobe Bryant there’s gotta be a Derek Fisher that hold everything together

what i like about evan turner comments in general is that he helps fans understand how confident so many of these guys are lol. they are all delusional and its almost like that delusion is required to be good at this level. I played with a guy in college, who was john wall back up in wizard during his peak, and he was adamant he was going to mvp someday (yes he was talking about himself).

It also goes into the idea that you need people around you that actually believe in you. To be a professional athlete, you need a certain amount of delusion and grandeur about yourself. What happens when a player loses confidence? You get Ben Simmons, confidence is a real career killer no matter how great of a player you are

I’m howling lmfao. Evan Turner definitely thought he was Kobe. For those who don’t get it he’s saying he understood why someone would choke their coach because his coach compared him to a mid tier all star

He was a top 3 pick so its not absurd for him to believe that early on

A better coaching move is probably to compare guys to Kawhi. There’s also the obvious one Kerr could have used in Jimmy Butler as a guy who started as a dirty work player and defensive specialist and eventually became a number 1 option. Doesn’t mean Kerr had to believe it that was actually possible but it’s probably easier to sell the idea to a player.

I think better examples of this were Jimmy Butler during his bulls seasons and now Dillon Brooks. Both were regarded as just defensive role players but grew their games into more through hard work and building trust with coaches.

The difference is that Evan Turner was the second overall pick and Kuminga was a lottery pick. So both came in with much higher hopes than just role players. That hurt their careers although Evan certainly got paid. The fact he thought he was Kobe is crazy. He was never a scorer like that and that jumpshot always looked broken.

Who doesnt want to choke PJ Carlesimo?

This reminds me of George Karl telling Melo he viewed him as Dentlef Schrempf during their first ever conversation in Denver. 

“It’s two [guys] on a team that can do what they want to do, and 13 other [guys] that have to play a role.” Draymond Green

So this is who Amin Elhassan was talking about 😂 he has told a story how when he was with the Suns they interviewed a prospect and they asked him who he sees in the league that reflects his game. Dude said Kobe and then double and triple downed saying nope I’m going to be Kobe, while Suns specifically brought up Rich Jefferson as a comp. 

Humility for people that have never confronted it is one of life’s great lessons.

The quote is fine, but which coach said this? Evan Turner played nothing like RJ

Amazing tweet

I need a summary on every player named in this tweet not named kuminga

All these guys have been crazy outliers before entering the NBA, being star at every level. It must be a serious culture shock.

Feel like some people on here are too young to remember how good Turner was coming out of college. Was legit the best player in college and went #2, he wasn’t crazy for thinking he’d have a great career

At first when he said he understood Sprewell, I thought Turner meant when Spree got mad over something and choked his coach.

Definitely stealing “I truly understood Latrell Spreewell”

His SM game would be on fire if he was playing today, but he was miscast as a franchise guy, especially going 2nd. He had a long career at what he’s done best, which is a good glue guy you can plug anywhere and he can help the team.

I used to cover college sports for a local publication. It’s a mid-major school, so we don’t see many athletes go pro, especially in basketball. One day on Twitter a player asks whose game is his most similar to. Thinking I’m being generous to the third scoring option on the team, I comment “Shawn Marion”. I can’t remember exactly what he said, but he let his displeasure with the comparison known. This guy has now spent his career playing overseas while Shawn Marion is a 4x All-Star and 2X All-NBA selection and potentially a future hall of famer. This just reminded me of that.

Yeah they need to believe in themselves because pretty much up to the point they join the NBA they are the Kobe of their teams.

T-Mac is a great example of this. High school prospect. Isiah Thomas was high on him and he was drafted by the Raptors but the coaching staff at that time was bad and didn’t help him at all to develop or grow. He finally was given more playing time under Butch Carter and became an energy athletic Swiss Army knife dude who was versatile defensively.

In T-Mac’s head he saw VC explode onto the nba scene and said that should have or could have been me. I can be that guy. So despite playing with another elite talent in VC he bet on himself to be a franchise guy and given the opportunity in a new organization he immediately became the franchise player that the raps organization didn’t see he could be.

Obviously TMac is the outlier here but I can see why all these guys that make it to the big leagues have to have that mentality

Rashad McCants hilariously still has that mentality today. Stephen Jackson still thinks he was at that level. Gotta be somewhat delusional to get to the highest peak professionally.

Damn, meaning he wanted to choke his coach because he said he viewed him as RJ? That’s pretty unhinged

Ahhh young men being overconfident and emotional irrational with their physical abilities

I always here this quote regarding Delta Force: “They dont always choose the best guys. They choose the right guys.”

Turner played like he thought he was Kobe, it makes sense

The sooner you buy into your role, the more you contribute to winning.

damn. kerr had a great vision for the guy

Even if Kuminga had all of the athleticism and physical gifts that Kobe had, he definitely doesn’t have the Mamba mentality.

I guess this what separate the good players from the all time greats.

Evan Turner is the Richard Jefferson of Latrell Sprewells

I was once in a pizza place in Boston while he was on the Celtics. After a bit the staff all started saying “ET’s coming in” to each other. 

Evan Turner sat in a nearby booth with a couple friends who I could hear kept telling him stuff like “they can’t guard you” and “nobody can guard you man” the whole meal.

The Dada Sprees were dope but my 12yo sneaker budget didn’t allow it at the time

This is the eternal struggle with youth and experience. Every generation thinks they’re better than the ones before tand the ones before them thinks they’re better than the one coming in.

Time will tell who is right.

Honestly Evan Turner is a great example why the NBA is failing. College star, did everything “the right way” and everyone kinda knew he wasnt gonna be good in the NBA. Get rid of the one and done bullshit. Now they have NIL you can force them to stay for 4 years, it’d make college basketball so much better. And the players would be better for it.

“Who, me?” - A guy in his mid 30s when asked about possibly being a sixth man

What is the sprewell connection

I don’t get the spreewell reference. 

Evan Turner also actually played college ball and built himself a resume up to that point.

Richard Jefferson had a 6 season period (2003-04 through 2008-09) where he averaged 19.⁷⁄₅.³⁄₃.3 (with 6.7 FTA per game) on 24.1 USG% in 38.0mpg, in a slower-paced, more defensive era of basketball (the numbers went to 20.⁶⁄₅.⁴⁄₃.6 with 7.2 FTA per 75 possessions over that stretch).

Jefferson was the clear #2 option on the teams he played on during this period. His actual “prime” seems to get overlooked or forgotten when people talk about his career.

Evan Turner was naturally stylistically a bit different to Jefferson, but that wasn’t a bad guy to try to shape your game after, as opposed to “I should be Kobe”. I don’t think even the most optimistic on draft day saw Turner as ever being a high usage lead guy and volume scorer. His value was going to be as a complimentary scorer, secondary ballhandler and playmaker, and versatile defender. The goal really should have been Andre Iguodala with the ball in his hands more.

Probably the funniest time to bring up Spreewell is right now

That Spreewell comment is hilarious.

ET dripping with wisdom

This tweet is a literary work of art

Like Kuminga said, he’ll always bet on himself. Maybe by the end of his career he ends up in a situation similar to Turner but at least he won’t have to live with the “what if” of settling too soon. The next two or three years will likely define his trajectory. If things unfold the way he believes they can, betting on himself will look justified. And if they don’t, if he’s able to pivot into a strong role player it isn’t a bad outcome at all. Still a solid path, just a different version of success.

People in this sub are too young to know who Latrell Sprewell was.

Still one of my favorite players ever (with Karl Malone and Ron Artest).

Evan Turner is the Richard Jefferson of Kobe Bryants