Philadelphia 76ers shooting guard Furkan Korkmaz will be entering his third year as a pro this coming season. In his mind, this will be the most important year of his young career, and he fully understands that he must do everything in his power to ensure that it turns out to be a memorable one.

The 22-year-old knows that there is still a lot of room for him to grow, and that it is necessary for him to take his game to the next level.

“I will just keep doing what I’m doing – try to get better in every part of the game,” Korkmaz said at the team’s exit interviews earlier this past season, via Lauren Rosen of NBA.com.

Last season, in his second year with the Sixers, Korkmaz averaged 5.8 points, 2.2 rebounds, 1.1 assists, and 0.6 steals in just 14.1 minutes of action.

Korkmaz added how he fully appreciates the implications of his performance next season, especially considering the fact that he might end up as a free agent next summer if Philadelphia decides to decline the team option on the final year of his rookie-scale deal.

“I think next year is going to be the most important year of my career. It’s going to show me how my career is going to be,” Korkmaz said.

Finally, Korkmaz expressed how much gratitude he has for the Sixers organization as well as his teammates for helping him mature as a player and as a person for the past couple of years.

“I learned how to be a pro here,” Korkmaz said, adding that players like Tobias Harris have set an example of how to be a pro.

Korkmaz, a Turkish national, was selected by the Sixers 26th overall in the 2016 NBA Draft. He saw a slight uptick in his production last season, but it could be argued that he has yet to meet the expectations most people had on him when he entered the league.