NBA: Future Prospect Learns From CJ McCollum, Carmelo Anthony And JR Smith

A future NBA prospect got the opportunity to learn from NBA stars CJ McCollum, Carmelo Anthony and J.R. Smith.

Wichita State freshman Tyson Etienne hasn’t played a minute of collegiate basketball yet, However, he got the opportunity to run with the best in the world when he became part of NBA trainer Chris Brickley’s Black Ops open gym runs.

Portland Trail Blazers’ superstar CJ McCollum also took part in the said NBA run and even played against Etienne last August. McCollum was reportedly in a Twitter-famous Manhattan gym and showed off some basketball skills during a friendly game. Sources claim that the Blazers scorer took one step back and rose over Etienne, the 6-foot-1 player who was in front of him.

A few possessions later, McCollum had the ball again. Etienne stepped forward but the superstar backed him down into the paint before turning around and draining a fadeaway shot.

Etienne expressed his thoughts about getting the opportunity to play with McCollum. After the game, the freshman said that he took the experience with McCollum as one of the things he’s about to learn in basketball, The Sunflower reported.

“You can’t let anything get to you. I mean, basketball is a game. This game, it’s all about the life experiences it teaches you,” Etienne said.

Etienne wasn’t just in Manhattan for late August. He was actually there for almost whole summer. And during the stint of his NBA runs which lasted over several months, Etienne also showed out in front of Utah Jazz guard Donovan Mitchell, Orlando Magic center Mo Bamba and Suns guard Kelly Oubre.

More importantly, the young player got the chance to also learn from more established NBA stars Carmelo Anthony and J.R. Smith.

“It was a boost because I saw in my game that I belonged. I belonged and hung around with those guys, and just to play with them and learn from them was mind-blowing,” Etienne said about playing with NBA stars.

The opportunity for Etienne to participate in these runs arose from his EYBL summer teammate Cole Anthony, who is now a point guard for North Carolina. According to ESPN, Anthony was the no. 2 high school prospect in the country and is the son of former 11-year NBA veteran Greg Anthony.

“We just kind of know the same people, Cole (Anthony), he’s my boy. I was able to go to a couple of workouts with him, and from that, me and Chris (Brickley) formed a relationship. That’s how I was invited to play in his NBA runs,” Etienne revealed.