An injury interrupted a Blue Devil star’s career and took him off the path to greatness.
After just one season in the Duke basketball program, Jabari Parker was set to become the next big thing in the NBA. In addition to being on the cover of Sports Illustrated as a senior and winning almost every individual award in high school, he also earned college titles such as ACC Rookie of the Year and National Freshman of the Year.
Before suffering an ACL tear in early December, he went on to become the second overall pick in the 2014 NBA Draft and was tipped to win Rookie of the Year.
It was the first of Parker’s several injuries, some of which he still deals with today.
Following an FC Barcelona match, Jabari Parker was questioned about his year-long international career in both his playing and personal life. He attempted to pause and collect his thoughts, but the feeling was too strong for him to control and he was unable to respond.
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It seemed as though he was reliving his career marred by injuries and how, despite early promise and fanfare, he ended up in Spain.
Parker played in the NBA for eight seasons before to joining the Milwaukee Bucks Summer League team in 2023. A few weeks later, he signed a $2 million, one-year contract with Barcelona in Spain, and the pact was annulled.
Despite averaging 14.1 points per game in the league, Jabari Parker hasn’t played since the 2021–2022 campaign.
This season, the 6-foot-8 forward shot 47.3 percent from the field and 38.7 percent from 3-point range, averaging 10.9 points and 3.5 rebounds per game. What’s more, he managed to play 66 games in the entire season.
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His final-season slam over 7-foot-3 Edy Tavares shocked social media into disbelief. It demonstrated that Parker still possesses the strength to play in the NBA.
With 11 of his 18 shots in the game, he finished with 27 points.
Jabari Parker’s future and possible NBA comeback are still out in the air, but it’s obvious that he wants to play basketball in the United States again.
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