There's a whole host of former NBA players that fans would surely want to see in the NBA. The likes of Tyreke Evans and O.J. Mayo who have been banned from the league for certain durations are now eligible and will surely bring a lot of value to certain franchises. This also goes for the likes of Nikola Mirotić and Nando de Colo, who are currently EuroLeague standouts but are clearly more than good enough to make an NBA roster. Players like Isaiah Thomas and Kenneth Faried also fall into this category: fan-favorites who failed to gel with their teams for one reason or another. Needless to say, player returns (particularly ones that involve the mentioned players) can cause quite the stir.
These returns can prove to be successful, but they can of course go the opposite route. For this piece, we'll be tackling three failed or unsuccessful NBA returns that occurred recently. These players were given a chance to make their dream returns to the NBA but were swiftly cut and sent back to whichever league they played in prior. For whatever reason, it didn't work out for these players the second time 'round.
Let's get down to it.
Jimmer Fredette
Statistics: 6.0 points, 1.0 rebounds, 1.4 assists
Starting us off is the high school and college basketball legend that is Jimmer Fredette.
Jimmer was most well-known for his sensational amateur career filled with record-breaking scoring performances with Glens Falls High School and the Brigham Young University Cougars, and He was touted as the next Stephen Curry with his seemingly limitless range and confidence from three. This led the Sacramento Kings to draft Fredette with their 10th overall pick in 2011's NBA Draft, ahead of the likes of Klay Thompson and Kawhi Leonard.
However, the combo guard would largely be outshone by the previous year's Rookie of the Year Tyreke Evans and the 60th pick in 2011, Isaiah Thomas. This led the Kings to buy Fredette's contract out only three years into his rookie deal. Underwhelming stints with the Chicago Bulls, New Orleans Pelican, and the New York Knicks followed, after which no other NBA team signed him.
At this point, Fredette decided to take his talents to the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA) to play for the infamous Shanghai Sharks. Here, he was expected to regain some of his confidence and average around 20 points per game, but nobody was ready for what Jimmer would do in China.
Fredette would set the CBA on fire, averaging a whopping 37.2 points per game from 2016-2019 to go along with 6.8 rebounds and 5 assists. He would regularly score 40, 50, 60 points a game with his efficiency from three never dropping below 41%; Jimmer was truly a spectacle to watch in Sharks colors. The man was the modern-day Stephon Marbury, in that they are in the same conversation for being dubbed “the Michael Jordan of China.”
These extraordinary scoring exploits would eventually promo the Phoenix Suns to give Fredette another bite at the apple in the NBA, signing him to a 2-year deal with a team option. However, only after 6 games averaging around 4 points a game, the team declined to pick up the team option and let Fredette go. Jimmer would go back overseas to play for Panathinaikos in Greece and then eventually back to the Sharks in China.
Joe Johnson
Statistics: 16.0 points, 4.0 rebounds, 3.9 assists
Achievements:
7x All-Star
1x All-NBA Third Team
One of the most underrated scorers of recent memory, Iso Joe's NBA return and exit was as muted as the man was.
Joe Johnson was a big crowd favorite in his prime days back in the Atlanta Hawks and the Brooklyn Nets. This was understandable, as Johnson's ability to score from anywhere on the court, particularly in isolation, captured the crowd's imagination. Add to this the fact that he was one of the most clutch players in his time, never shying away from the big occasion and making ice-cold shots time and time again. He was a perennial All-Star from the late 2000s until the early 2010s, averaging around 20 points per game on about 45% from the field and 37% from three.
But what exactly happened to Iso Joe? His scoring, his greatest asset, went downhill ever since his last All-Star appearance in 2014. His PPG dropped from 14.4 all the way down to just a flat 6 in 2018. His game, unfortunately, declined rapidly as he aged. Joe was out of the league by the time that he was 36, with his last team being the Houston Rockets.
However, he made waves outside of the NBA as many out-of-the-NBA players did, but he didn't do it in China, the EuroLeague, or even in the Pro-Am circuit. Rather, he did it in the BIG3 Tournament, a 3×3 basketball league founded by rapper Ice Cube. Even with other NBA alumni, including O.J. Mayo, Stephen Jackson, and Nate Robinson in the BIG3 books, Iso Joe would stand out and be named BIG3 MVP in 2019. Johnson dominated the budding 3×3 league with the Triplets, winning its championship in 2019 with a trademark game-winning 4-point shot.
Iso Joe still got it 🔥 ICYM: Joe Johnson for the win in the Big 3 pic.twitter.com/33HeH74Q8Q
— Per Sources (@PerSources) August 5, 2019
Fans all over rejoiced when the Detroit Pistons announced that they would be signing the grizzled veteran to a partially-guaranteed 1-year deal. However, unlike Jimmer Fredette, Johnson would get cut before playing a game for the Pistons. He last played for Overseas Elite in The Basketball Tournament in 2020, with other former NBA talents Mike Bibby, Greg Oden, and even Brian Scalabrine.
Jeremy Lin
Statistics: 11.6 points, 2.8 rebounds, 4.3 assists
Achievements:
1x NBA Champion
Another fan favorite, Jeremy Lin's NBA story turned from one full of determination and hope to a somber and disappointing tale.
Considering that he was once seen as just an undrafted bench filler, Jeremy Lin has certainly given the NBA a lot of memorable moments. He provided fans with Linsanity, arguably the greatest breakout stretch of games that endeared him to New York Knicks fans worldwide. From being a bench player, Lin broke out with a 25-point bomb against the New Jersey Nets after being given more minutes. He made good on these extra minutes (due to injuries to several key players) to average almost 19 PPG to go along with 4 rebounds, 8 assists, and 2 steals a game. A particular highlight of this stretch would be Lin's career-high of 38 coming in a win against Kobe Bryant's Los Angeles Lakers, wherein Lin surely kept Kobe's pre-game comments in mind.
“I know who he is but I have no idea what he's done. Like, I have no idea what you guys are talking about. I'll take a look at [the tape] tonight, though.” – Kobe Bryant before the game against Jeremy Lin's New York Knicks., wherein Lin would produce his career-high 38 points.
Lin would eventually link up with the Black Mamba in the Los Angeles Lakers, producing another iconic moment: Lin making a clutch fadeaway three on Chris Paul after waving Kobe Bryant off in a game against city rivals Los Angeles Clippers.
After forgettable spells with the Charlotte Hornets, Brooklyn Nets, and the Atlanta Hawks, Lin would not only retain his fanbase, but he would finally reach the pinnacle of the basketball world with the Toronto Raptors; he would take part in the championship-winning Raptors team in the 2018-19 season.
These Jeremy Lin Highlights 👀
HBD NBA Champion @JLin7 pic.twitter.com/5OJYp1tldI— Ballislife.com (@Ballislife) August 24, 2021
However, this would be the last notable thing that Lin would do in the NBA. The Raptors opted not to bring him back, and he ended up in the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA) with the Beijing Ducks.
Lin would try to return to the NBA later on by signing with the Santa Cruz Warriors. However, despite having great stretches of form and a few viral clips, the Golden State Warriors (the NBA affiliate of the Santa Cruz Warriors) still didn't pick him up.
Linsanity hence did not have a late renaissance in the NBA, with Lin going back to the Ducks in the CBA. Truly a sad way to see the first player of Taiwanese descent in the NBA go in such an unceremonious manner.
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