The NBA G League presents a different goal than most professional sports leagues.
As the Austin Spurs meet for training camp, players on the official roster are already looking to leave the team. The G League, the NBA’s official minor league, works as a developmental process for players trying to reach the NBA.
Austin Spurs guard Jon Elmore’s path toward the NBA has given him a patient and appreciative perspective on an all-too-familiar step in the process.
“There’s so many aspects to it that are unique,” Elmore said. “One, guys are getting paid to play basketball, so that’s a heck of a thing in itself. But two, you’re chasing the NBA, that’s another crazy journey.”
Elmore will go into his fifth season in the G League after spending time with Stockton and Sioux Falls. He had a four year stint at Marshall University from 2015-2019 before going undrafted in the 2019 NBA Draft, followed by three years playing for various teams overseas.
The veteran guard will be one of many new faces for Austin this season. In the NBA’s premier development league, rosters see a high level of turnover nearly every year. Austin holds only two returning members from last season, with guard Jayden Nunn being the only returner who was healthy and played last season.
At the helm of the Austin Spurs will be Chris Kent, first-year head coach. Kent spent last year as an assistant coach for Florida State University’s men’s basketball as the director of player development. Now stepping into his first head coaching gig, Kent is tasked with applying his skills on a larger scale.
So far, Kent’s strategy has been to let the players take a vocal lead during post-practice huddles.
“We all circle up, and I let the players talk,” Kent said. “We want to know how they feel and what they saw, because at the end of the day, they’re the ones out there doing it and helping us win games.”
Austin has been one of the premier teams in the G League over the past few seasons after finishing last year with a 23–13 record under head coach Jacob Chance. However, Chance is no longer there and neither are the majority of those core players.
When players’ identities aren’t connected to any particular franchise, Kent’s strategy of a player-to-player connection could be an advantage in a league where chemistry is not an embedded factor.
“Obviously, we’ll talk about offense and defense and the schemes and the coverages,” Kent said. “But we want to hang our hats on being the hardest playing team and the most connected team.”
Elmore already feels the connection, to the point where he trusts his teammates with his family.
“There’s not a guy on this team that I would say, ‘Hey, I don’t feel comfortable with you babysitting my kids, ’” Elmore said. “Every one of them, I think if I put the call in, I’d be totally cool with them being there for my family. So, that’s the type of group we have.”
The Austin Spurs will open their season on Friday, Nov. 6 at 7:30 p.m CT against the Rio Grande Valley Vipers.
