“It wasnāt like I was sitting at a table or anything,ā Darius Bazley says. Heās talking to SLAM on a Friday afternoon at the end of his senior year of high school, looking back on the moment that he knew he wanted to buck tradition and find a unique route to the NBA.
āI donāt really remember the exact date,ā he continues. āIt was a big decision, but it wasnāt a big announcement, you know what I mean? Nothing crazy. The idea was already in my head.ā
A few weeks before our conversation, Bazley sent shockwaves through the basketball world by switching things up. He announced his intention to decommit from Syracuse to travel down a road no one else ever had. He wants to become the first player to ever jump straight to the G League from high school.
The path from Princeton High School (OH) to the League seemed to already be perfectly plotted out for Bazley. The 6-9 forward is a five-star recruit who had caught the eye of Cuseās legendary Jim Boeheim. On the strength of 15 points, 10 rebounds and 2 blocks per game as a senior, he secured invitations to the McDonaldās All-American Game, the Jordan Brand Classic and the Nike Hoop Summit, games reserved for only the nationās top talent.
He earned his spot in those showcases by displaying a versatile array of finesse and power. Sometimes heās flying down the lane on the fast break, other times heās playmaking from below the foul line. He can rise up from the weak side to swat shots and heās got touch from the middle. His finishing around the rim stands out. He can throw down with either hand or put the backspin off the glass with his lays.
āA lot of people at his size now in the game of basketball canāt do what he can do,ā Steve Wright, his high school and AAU coach, tells us. āHis skill set, being able to come off ball-screens, I know a lot of people didnāt see that during the McDonaldās and Jordan Brand game and Hoops Summit, but he has the ability to do that, and I think he will be able to showcase that once he gets to his next destination.ā
His next destination is the G League, a league full of professional players with years of college, overseas and NBA experience. And the hunger to earn a paycheck.
Both Bazley and Wright fully acknowledge that this uncharted journey to the Association is going to be difficult. Wright says theyāve looked at how Terrance Ferguson and Brandon Jennings went overseas before hitting the NBA and adapted to those situations. And Bazley doesnāt have any illusions. He says he doesnāt expect to immediately get his in the G League.
āI mean, if weāre being honest, no one is just going to go in there and dominate,ā he says. āMy goal is to get better. I think dominating the G League is pointless. Iām not saying Iām not going in there with the right mind-set, but Iām just saying, going in there with the mind-set of I need to average 30 and have a triple-double every night is pointless because Iām not looking to be a G League hero or a G League legend. My goal is to get to the NBA, so Iām using this as a development for me. This is just me getting better, getting ready for the NBA.ā
Now that heās 18, Bazley can officially enter his name in the G League draft, which takes place in October. Though Coach Wright says Bazleyās decision was initially āshocking,ā he has confidence that heāll find his way.
āDarius is his own person,ā Wright says. āHe has his own different thoughts and he has people around him, especially myself, his mom, other coaches. We support our kids and the decisions that they make. It was something that he thought about and he came to me about it, came to his mom about it and, of course, we showed our support.ā
āMy end goal is to get into the NBA,ā Bazley says, āand I felt this is my best bet at getting there.ā
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Max Resetar is an Associate Editor at SLAM. Follow him onĀ TwitterĀ andĀ Instagram.Ā
Photos via Getty.Ā