Reputation Matters, Especially Overseas

Your Next Deal Might Come From That Guy You Just Ignored

When I was playing in South Korea, I lived with a teammate named Keena Young. Real solid dude. We got along, shared the same apartment, and had each other's backs on and off the court. Midway through the season, I got injured. The team released me, which if you haven’t been following along by now, happens all the time overseas. But I didn’t make a scene. I stayed professional, helped where I could, and left the right way. Keena was one of the few people who knew the extent of my injuries. I trusted him and he trusted me.

Keena and I kept in touch the way people did in the mid-2000s, through primitive social media apps like MySpace and Facebook. A few months later, he signed with a EuroCup team that had an open import spot. During their usual due diligence, they asked him about me and he vouched. Told them I was reliable, coachable, and solid in the locker room.

That gig turned into a championship run and Keena and I raised that trophy together.

What You Do Stays With You

Overseas hoops is like high school with passports. Everybody talks. Players, agents, coaches, equipment guys, parents, barbers, the driver with absurdly hairy arms anda  permanent musk. They're not only watching the game, they are watching you.

They remember who sulked in practice. Who quit on a team. Who tried to fight the trainer. Who left trash all over the apartment. Who showed up late every day and who bailed on the team events.

You might think it doesn't matter. That you can just ball out and let the numbers speak for themselves. But it doesn't work that way here. Teams don't want talent alone. They want reliability. They want pros. They want guys who won't blow up the locker room after a bad week.

So when your name comes up in some office in France or Romania or Japan, that GM isn't just looking at your stats. He's calling around. And if the feedback is "good player, but kind of a dick," you’re done.

I've seen guys lose jobs because they couldn't stop complaining, or blamed teammates after every loss. Players who talked back to their coach in front of everyone. News flash: that coach might be best friends with the coach in the country you’re trying to get into next.

The Pipeline is Smaller Than You Think.

On the flip side, I’ve also seen guys with average numbers get signed again because they were great teammates. Kept the locker room light. Made the young guys feel included. Took bad games on the chin and bounced back. Positivity travels as well.

And it works both ways. You might not be the one messing up, but if you treat people like they’re beneath you, if you big-time the role player, or ignore the team manager, or only talk to the translator when you need something, that’ll get around too. The guy carrying your bags today might be the assistant GM in five years. The teammate who sat the bench all season might be the guy recommending the next import.

So be solid. Be cool. Don’t be fake. Just don’t be a dick.

Getting buckets overseas will get you noticed. But how you act when things aren’t going your way? That’s what gets you remembered. The quiet teammate, the assistant coach, the guy who barely spoke English…any one of them might be the reason you get your next shot. So stay solid. You never know who’s holding the keys.