Okay, so I was messing around the other day, just thinking about basketball players from back when. And Hedo Turkoglu popped into my head. Remember him? Big dude from Turkey, played point guard sometimes. Wild.
I got thinking about how he actually played. It wasn’t like your standard forward. He’d bring the ball up the court, make passes, run the offense. For a guy his size, back then especially, it was pretty different. Most bigs were just told to get in the paint.
So, I decided to kinda dive back into it. Not like super serious research, you know? More like, let’s pull up some old games, some highlights. I spent an afternoon just watching clips. Mostly from his time with the Magic, when they went to the Finals.
Watching How He Moved
It was interesting to just watch how he operated. He wasn’t the fastest guy, not the highest jumper. But he had this herky-jerky style, kinda crafty. He knew how to use his body to create space. And his passing vision was really something for a forward.
I started trying to break down simple stuff he did. Like how he’d use a screen, or the little hesitation moves he used to get his shot off. He had that slow-release jumper, but man, it could be clutch.
- Watching his ball handling – looked awkward but effective.
- Noticing his court vision – always seemed aware of cutters.
- Seeing how he directed teammates even without the ball sometimes.
Then I thought, okay, let me see if I can even feel what that’s like. Obviously, I’m not playing pro ball. But I went out to the driveway court, just dribbling around. Trying to picture handling the ball under pressure like a point guard, but being, well, taller and slower than a point guard.
It felt weird. Really awkward trying to dribble low when you’re not used to it, trying to see the whole court while protecting the ball. Gave me a bit more appreciation for the skill involved. It wasn’t just about being tall and able to shoot. It was a whole different mindset he had to have.
It really made me think about playing to your unique strengths. He wasn’t trying to be LeBron or Kobe. He was Hedo. He found his own way to be effective, using his size and passing in a way that wasn’t common.
So yeah, that was my little Hedo Turkoglu practice session. Just watching, thinking, and trying a few clumsy dribbles in the driveway. Didn’t make me a better player, haha, but it was a fun trip down memory lane, remembering a pretty unique guy in the league.
