Sam Cassell was a wily veteran presence throughout his 15 seasons in the NBA. However, like any other veteran, he was once a rookie, prone to mistakes and overthinking.
In a recent appearance on The Draymond Green Show , the three-time NBA champion recalled how devastated he was by his performances in the 1993 preseason games, coupled with the fact that the Houston Rockets were often getting blown out in these losses.
“Our first couple preseason games, I was terrible,” Cassell said. ” Hakeem Olajuwon had five points and five rebounds, and I was like, ‘Man, this team won 54 games last year.’ I know we ain’t this bad. I know it’s preseason basketball, but I don’t really understand preseason basketball because in college, when he had exhibition games, we go hard.”
“So I never understood, so I asked him, ‘Hakeem, what’s going on, man?’ After the fourth game, we were 0 and 4, we were gettin’ blown out by 20 points every preseason game… He said, ‘Sam, they don’t send these stat sheets to New York,'” the retired guard added.