Today's news is a lament. The Hawks officially signed Jarrett Culver on a two-way contract. 3 years ago, Culver was also the first round of the No. 6 show, the starting point is not low, and now he is only 23 years old, but he has become a marginal person in the NBA. If you count the most surprising players in recent years, Culver estimates that he can't get around it.
Back in 2019, if someone had foreseen that Culver would fall into the field it is today, it is estimated that most people would have regarded it as crazy. That year, Culver was selected by the Suns in a pick behind Garland and was then replaced by the Timberwolves. Behind him, players such as P.J. Washington, Hiro, Sable, Grant Williams, Poole, Kevin Potter Jr., Clarkston and Terrance Mann have emerged, although there are no big names, but in today's NBA are also considered to have a foothold, is an important rotation player of the team, at least does not give people a "draft pick" feeling.
In fact, Culver's pick could have been higher. DeAndre Hunter was selected by the Lakers with the 4th pick in the first round, and after several turns, he came to the Eagles. But it was reported that Culver was also expected to be selected with the 4th pick.
To have such a high starting point, Culver is naturally not an ordinary person. Born in Dallas on February 20, 1999, Culver moved to Lubok, Texas, at the age of 3. Culver's mother was a board member of a business, while his father, Shiawassa Culver, was a pastor at a local church and befriended basketball. Before each game, the Texas Polytechnic men's basketball team will see the elder Culver praying for the whole team.
It is reported that Culver Jr. was initially obsessed with rugby and football, but after high school, he still embarked on the road of basketball with his second brother. According to legend, the second brother JJ-Culver later studied at Welland Baptist University and once scored 100 points in a single game. His eldest brother, Trey Culver, was a member of the Texas Tech varsity track and field team and tied the 4th highest jump in varsity history in 2018. Although he did not choose basketball, Trey also maintained a love of basketball, and the three brothers often practiced their skills at home.
In his early years, Culver attended Coronado High School in his hometown, where the coach of the school basketball team, Randy Dean, was his basketball mentor. By his senior year, Culver averaged 20 points per game and led his team to the semifinals of the state high school league. By his senior year, he averaged nearly 30 points per game, while also winning the team's rebounding and assists. Despite a recurring shoulder injury, he led the team to the playoffs and was named a three-star high school student.
After rejecting invitations from Baylor University, the University of Texas, and the University of Illinois, Culver chose Texas Tech, which has a strong relationship with him.
In the NCAA arena, Culver's ability to adapt is also amazing. After scoring just two points on his debut, he had 18 points and seven assists in game two before being named the Freshman of the Week in the Big 12 Division two days later. In his freshman year, Culver scored 229 points, breaking the Texas Tech men's basketball team's record for freshman total scoring.
In his sophomore season, Culver was given the status of the top player in the Texas Polytechnic men's basketball team and continued to set a new single-game scoring record. On March 9, 2019, he scored 31 points against Iowa University, setting a career record for the NCAA. At the end of the regular season, he led the Texas Tech men's basketball team to the top of the Big 12 division.
The 2019 NCAA Championship made Culver and the Texas Tech men's basketball team legendary. They picked out the No. 14 seed (Northern Kentucky University), no. 6 seed (Buffalo University), no. 2 seed (University of Michigan) and no. 1 seed (Gonzaga University) until the final, when they lost to the University of Virginia 77-85 in overtime.
During this period, Culver made many achievements, his value continued to rise, and various honors also came. He was selected for the 1st and 2nd National 12th Division and was voted the Best Player in the 12th Division. Although the 2019 draft, "Duke Sanjie" attracted the attention of most people, but Culver, a three-star high school student of the year, also grew into one of the hottest new stars.
Needless to say, with such an aura to join the NBA, Culver's current development has opened up a huge gap with the leaders of the same level (Zion, Morant, Garland), which is somewhat lamentable.
In the rookie season, Culver played in 63 games for the Timberwolves, got 35 starts, averaged 23.9 minutes per game, and had 9.2 points and 3.4 rebounds. His problem is inefficiency, shooting 40.4 percent overall and just 29.9 percent from three-point range. What everyone did not expect at the time was that this was the highest three-point shooting rate in a single season of Culver's NBA career, and his three-point average shot per game did not rise but fell, which can be described as a typical example of "shooting less, not accurate".
Culver is physically strong and has a good defensive background, but he is a "D no 3" player. In addition, he was accustomed to holding the ball and did not develop a no-ball, but the lack of efficiency made his ball holding no threat. At the same time, Culver is a "forward-guard swingman", but his position on the field is always uncertain. Coupled with injuries and illnesses, his career attendance rate is only in the early 60%, which makes his career quickly lose its luster; Even when he was sent to the Grizzlies by the Timberwolves, he didn't make any progress, and was once thought to disappear in the NBA.
It's hard to say that signing the Hawks will be a turning point in Culver's NBA career, and he will also have more time to make a living in the development league. In mid-August this year, Auden said sadly: "The knee injury made me confess, and the best time of my career was left in the university years." Culver may now make the same exclamation. Perhaps, his NBA career can still be continued; Perhaps, soon we will never see him again. (Supine Braces/Hairy)