Spencer Jones On His NBA Journey And Winning On And Off The Court | EssentiallySports Exclusive

This year is kind of incredible. I actually remember where I was on draft night. I was in a barbershop getting a haircut. My welcome to the NBA moment didn't really come in a game. I had a personal meeting with Adam Silver. It was just crazy. And so, jam, and I was like, "All right, this thing might end a lot faster than I thought." You know, especially when you're coming in a place where, you know, you're working your way from the bottom, you're gonna have to do things differently. You know, I've missed like 4 shots in a row. He's still feeding me the ball and like literally yelling to me as I'm shooting 'cause he knows I'm thinking. Um, I had— there was a thought that I would go undrafted. I knew I was going to be at the tail end of the draft. And, you know, when you're at the tail end, you kind of know you're on similar contract, that two-way contract, pretty much. You know, if you're picked after 45, you're more than likely on that, uh, on that two-way deal. So then you're in a unique position where you can kind of choose your fit of, of a team. I actually remember where I was on draft night. I was in a barbershop getting a haircut, um, as it was going on. Um, and Yeah, you know, you hear the names get called, you're kind of bummed as it gets to 60 and your name's not called, but then your agent calls and like, all right, here, look, we're going to be fielding offers on two-way deals and stuff like that. And so we didn't get an immediate deal. We got kind of one that was going to be like how well I played in summer league. So I went with Portland. They're like, yeah, we'll give him a two-way deal if he plays well in summer league. We're really looking at him and stuff like that. And so I played like one or two games with Portland and then out of the blue, kind of Denver Nuggets. Come in and say like, hey, we want him on a two-way. And so we signed that. And that was my quick little first summer league experience. And then, you know, go to Denver, you know, obviously get re-signed for the two-way and, you know, take it, take it from there. Yeah. Even, even before I got here, um, a week, a week before, um, you know, I was in New York, the kind of full circle moment was, you know, it was funny. I had a personal meeting with, with Adam Silver, um, just, you know, based off of the things I've been doing, um, in, in the NBA. And, you know, obviously the, a lot of the different sectors of, you know, growth and strategy and more importantly player health and biomechanics, um, those, those fields within the NBA league office kind of wanted to have meetings and like, hey, you should go meet Silver as well. Um, you know, for a full circle moment was like getting that kind of, you know, draft night picture where you're shaking his hand. We kind of did a make-do one in the office and stuff like that because he knew I was undrafted. And so that was, that was kind of the full circle moment there. But then yes, to piggyback from that, to hear. And obviously going to that NBA Launchpad moment where it's the NBA's companies that they're personally invested in, kind of getting my insight on where things are going, what other kind of avenues or innovations we should be looking at from a player's perspective, giving my own perspective in the companies that they've invested in that I'm also invested in and giving them my own perspective on, on, you know, what they're doing well and, you know, maybe what's missing in there. And so, you know, and also kind of talking to the PA about, you know, there's potential there of them wanting to start a and kind of getting my ideas about it. And so, you know, all these big projects that are, you know, bound to have a bunch of money thrown at them, having an opinion at the table there, you know, at this early stage is incredible for me. My welcome to the NBA moment didn't really come in a game. It came in, like, practice in the summer. It was, like, the first— it was the first practice we had for training camp. And one, I got ripped by Russell Westbrook, like, twice in the game. And then— And then the practice pretty much ended with, uh, me getting dunked on by A.G. on an alley-oop jam. And I was like, all right, dude, this, this thing might not— this thing might end a lot faster than I thought. Uh, you know, that's, that's how it goes. Like, you know, you're just, you're getting used to the pace and the physicality and everything like that. Uh, it was, it was just crazy. And so, um, you know, yeah, to go from that to, uh, you know, starting, um, for most of the season so far, um, this year is kind of incredible. I mean, it's just a crazy turnaround. Obviously, you know, part of it's due to, you know, injuries, but then also, you know, having sustained, um, you know, excellent, you know, games through that to, you know, stay in the starting lineup and, you know, show that I have a proven role. And, you know, to be up for the ability to negotiate a contract right now is, uh, kind of crazy, you know, in such a small time period. The biggest adjustment from college to NBA technically is, uh, pace and space. Um, college, you could definitely shrink it up. There's no defensive 3 in the key, and, you know, just less possessions. Um, But you definitely do. I remember definitely feeling it, um, on my body. You know, I wrote about a little bit in terms of like around games 35 to 50, you know, there's a little lull, um, for sure. Cause you know, you're, you've played enough NBA games and novelty kind of wears off. Um, and then you've also realized like, shoot, I've never played more than like 33 games in a season, you know, cause that's as long as college goes. And so kind of dealing with that, um, mentally of like that period of like, You know, how much do these games really matter? Because there's so many. And, you know, trying to find ways to psych yourself up, like, you know, when you're, when you're going to play a team that might be at the bottom of the conference and, you know, there's not going to be any energy in the arena versus college where it's always like, feels like it's a, it's a big game. There's a, there's something to prove. They're much more important. So it's, that's where the professionalism kind of kicks in where, you know, it can definitely feel like a job a little bit when it's like, you know, you're on a back-to-back and, you know, you, you know, It may not seem like this game really matters this much right now because it's your 40th game and, you know, it's, it's, it's whatever, but you got to figure out how to, how to pump yourself up and stuff like that. And so those are, I think, the brilliant— the main difference. The biggest thing, um, for my growth, um, off the court that I'm trying to, trying to focus on is, um, the main, main— the main stuff is really efficiently— efficient— being very efficient in my movement, one, defensively, in terms of like how quick I can open my hips and, uh, how quick I can kind of shuffle my feet and stuff like that. And that's why I look at a lot of my biomechanics in in terms of where can I, um, what muscles can I build and what muscles would be the most effective in building those kind of, uh, efficient movements. Because that's, I mean, that's a big part of defense is the angles you take, how quickly you take them, um, while also, you know, also being strong enough to take bumps and hits and not get bumped off your spot. Um, and, you know, that's part of the reason why I'm getting paid is for my defense. So obviously keeping the strengths, the strengths. Um, you know, beyond that, you know, the general stuff of, uh, ball handling, um, you know, making sure my shooting mechanics stay, um, very similar. That's one thing the biomechanics kind of helped me realize is when I get tired, what kind of muscles are getting tired, whether it's issues in my shoulders or more so my core, or if it is like some lower body stuff, not putting, you know, if the force that I'm putting in the ground does dissipate and you know what, you know, what time or how long does it take for it to dissipate. So it lets me know, you know, is it conditioning issue? Is it a strength issue? To, to what, to what extent? And so, yeah, just really kind of perfecting more of that kind of 3 and D. Um, kind of role. A lot of the guys, um, as they were out, um, especially through this season, have all helped me just like a little bit. I mean, AG, Aaron Gordon, when I slipped into kind of his role as he was out, uh, was really helping me figure out like the dunker spot, like how to move, because I've never played that position, because it's like, it's like right on the baseline, right under the rim, and it's prioritized on like, you know, you're moving around how the offensive moves, especially it's really around Jokic. So where he posts up, when they double him, where do you want to be? And if you learn it, you get very easy baskets off it because Yoke's a very good passer. But you also have to learn when to move, when to cut, you know, and where to be, where he expects you to be. Um, he was great at kind of helping me learn that. Uh, Christian Braun was great in terms of, um, you know, kind of how to navigate being a young player trying to build your confidence on a team that's kind of already got things set. And, you know, you're like, you know, especially being thrusted into the starting lineup with, you know, guys who have already played together for a long time and have that chemistry, everything like that. Like, how do you fit in there, you know, without messing up what is a generational offense that we have and stuff like that. So that's been great. And then Mal is— Jamal Murray's been great with, um, confidence building, stuff like that. I remember in games where, like, you know, I've missed like 4 shots in a row, he's still feeding me the ball and, like, literally yelling to me as I'm shooting because he knows I'm thinking of trying not to shoot. He's like, shoot that, shoot it, like, every time. Um, because, you know, that's the only way you get out of it. Because, like, the biggest thing about being on a, uh— the hardest thing, I think, was, um, when you're on a team that that's that, that is that good and that good on offense as well, their other teams are looking for a weak spot. So when they don't know, they don't know me, they don't know that I've shot 40% throughout college and stuff like that. So they're like leaving me wide open, which because then kind of psych you out because I've never had that happen really in my career where they're just like staying in the paint, stuff like that. And you start to think about it, puts a lot more pressure on it and everything like that. And you know, like, and it took a long time for teams to just like do that and test me even, even through shooting well in games because it's like they're just looking for a weak spot in terms of, you know, because we were just that good of a team. So yeah, no, absolutely. There are definitely like specific, um, places you want to be, uh, to one, give, yeah, Jokic and Moll the opportunity to have as much space as they can to do their pick and roll and be able to stretch out the defense to be able to get those easy baskets. And if you're in the way, it definitely restricts, um, you know, how much space Jokic has to operate and stuff like that. And that then restricts our offense. Um, and so there are different patterns you have to learn. Contextually where, where they expect you to be. Because if you aren't there, you know, like I said, it might be easier to double them and now they're taking a harder shot. Or, you know, they might pass it, you're not there, and it's a turnover. And, you know, you don't want to add to their turnover totals because then they might not pass it to you again. Yeah, a lot of it is learning that. But once you do, um, and you get kind of that confidence there, like, you'll find out there are easy baskets all over the floor and why that's what makes our offense so good. For my game days, I'm not, I'm not super ritualistic, but I do have with, with the companies that I pair with, I do have some, um, things I like, I like to keep consistent. I mean, obviously, um, I am a big napper, uh, before the game, but I guess I'll start a little bit earlier where, you know, you'll, you'll wake up, you'll get a quick little shooting workout in, um, with my coaches, just spot shooting to keep it light, just wake up the body. Then you'll have a, uh, shoot around with the whole team. We'll just go over concepts of, uh, you know, team we're playing, obviously personnel, and then, you know, a couple plays. And then after that, you're on your own for about, for me, about like 4, 4 and a half hours. You know, I'll do some off-the-court stuff. Who knows, maybe write a LinkedIn post. We'll see. Besides that, then I'll take a, I'll take a nap. I'll do one. I get in my like red light therapy bed that I have in my place. Kind of helps with inflammation. And then I'll do Python, which is a company that kind of helps me kind of measure where my focus is at, where my mental readiness is at. That kind of helps me kind of figure out, all right, do I need to psych myself up for the day? Do I need to? Calm myself down. And then, yeah, before I leave, I'll do a, like, a 10-minute meditation after that. And then once I get to the gym, it's, uh, then you have your pregame kind of workout. You know, you get to all the spots you think you typically, you know, shoot all your shots in a game. That's a quick workout. And then, yeah, eat, uh, you know, do some light stuff recovery-wise, just like getting, you know, some contrast therapy in the tub or some Normatex. And then get ready to play. Biggest thing is like obviously discipline. I mean, really, time management is the only reason I'm able to, to do these kind of things. I mean, the time is there, but if you're not managing it well, you can't do it. And then I think the biggest thing is like not trying to fit in so much. You know, I've seen a lot of players like, you know, make bad financial decisions just simply because they're trying to do what they're— what other players on the team who make far more, far much more money than they do. And a lot of what I've built on this court has been from not fitting in. I mean, obviously I wear different shoes than what people expect me to do. I, um, post on LinkedIn, which is not that not that expected. Um, and so like, yeah, I'm not, not afraid to do those things like differently. And that's kind of, that's kind of helped. Um, you know, especially when you're coming in a place where, you know, you're working your way from the bottom, you're going to have to do things differently from, from other people. And then, you know, another thing is, I think the biggest thing that's helped me in my career is role recognition. Always. Um, you know, my role is actually, my basketball role has changed at almost every stage of my career. Like high school, I was more of a mid-post, post player. Didn't really shoot that many threes, although I shot at a good percentage. Go to college, um, became Stanford's all-time 3-point leading, uh, all-time 3-point, uh, shooter. Um, and so like, you know, threes were a big part of my game. And then now, like, obviously I still shoot threes and stuff like that, but defense has been the main thing to get me on the court. So having that role recognition and the ability to adapt to it has been the reason to succeed, because first you have to, you know, get your playing time and let the coach get confidence in you to then expand your role initially. And so I think that's the biggest thing for me. Um, you know, I've never been a stats guy, uh, but win a championship, I mean, you're on, you're on one of the best teams in the league. And contribute that way and then, you know, have a, have a long career. I don't really have any personal accolades I'm really achieving there, but it is, I mean, the championship is number one, you know, and always making sure I'm on a competitive team and keeping in a big reason why that, why that team's competitive. That's, that's kind of a big reason there. I don't have much tangible goals there off the court, maybe a bit more tangible is, you know, I want to build a successful venture fund. That's, you know, is, is done and has certain metrics for when I'm, for when I'm finished to then, you know, be able to show people like, look, I was in the NBA, I was able to invest in these companies. It was a success. It was a successful round. And that makes it much more easier for me to then raise another one and, you know, garner even more attention and more money to be able to invest in certain things. And then, you know, I would hope by the end of everything, I'll have an idea to be able to, you know, build a company of my own. Through entrepreneurship and through what I've been learning and stuff like that. So, you know, not super concrete stuff. You know, I'm very early in my career, don't want to pigeonhole myself. So just kind of excited to where everything leads.