Sometimes players express frustration. They can find themselves in a tough situation and they will make decisions based on that frustration.
For Philadelphia 76ers guard Furkan Korkmaz, he found himself in a tough one. The Sixers decided not to pick up his option for the 2019-20 season and he was annoyed enough to where he requested a trade in the fall of 2018. Philadelphia did not trade him and he then had a deal in place to return to Turkey before a change of heart and a return to the Sixers.
After a career-high 24 point night in a win over the Chicago Bulls, Korkmaz is happy to still be in a Sixers uniform.
“This is why they call it the NBA,” he said. “There’s a lot of stuff going on here, some of them you can control, some of them you cannot control. Right now, I’m happy to be here. I’m happy to be a part of this team. I’m just trying to give my best on the court.”
Korkmaz has found his role as the team’s 3-point sniper off the bench. It’s a role the team has really needed to fill after losing JJ Redick in the offseason and in fact, coach Brett Brown said he saw a little Redick in Korkmaz on Friday.
Ben Simmons has played with Korkmaz for all of his NBA career and he is excited to see him improve, especially on the defensive end.
“He stayed locked in,” said Simmons. “He hasn’t gone off track if he’s not playing as many minutes. When he gets the opportunity, he’s ready. And defense, he stepped up a lot. He’s had a lot of guys go at him and he’s taken those challenges upon himself to get better and be a better defensive player.”
The good thing is that Korkmaz understands that there are ups and downs throughout the season. It’s little things like that that will help him in his career. It’s all about understanding life as an NBA player.
“Every player has ups and downs in their career, but right now I think I’ve found my role on the team and I just go out there and try to help my teammates get the win.”
The Sixers could use a lot more of this as the season progresses and they continue on their path of winning an NBA title for 2020. [lawrence-related id=23743,23720,23719]