Although the San Antonio Spurs ' playoff run last season ended in heartbreak, the Spurs have displayed the potential to be contenders for years to come . While this could be attributed to the core of Victor Wembanyama , Stephon Castle , and Dylan Harper , the role of young players like Carter Bryant cannot be overlooked.
Carter Bryant was one of San Antonio's lottery picks last year, earning himself a spot on the Spurs' roster after being selected with the No. 14 pick. Entering his rookie season alongside Dylan Harper, there were great expectations for Bryant to become a solid rotation piece. Although he delivered, it was evident that there was a lot of room for improvement .
The forward's rookie season served as a valuable learning experience. But as he eyes a larger role in the rotation this season, Carter Bryant provided some insight into his offseason workouts during a recent press conference . He shared:
"I was making a thousand [shots] a day, yeah. I mean, I was going out at four- my first workout was at four in the morning. Then I was going at seven, coming back home, and then going back to workout at three or four o'clock, and then I would just go shoot in the evening. That last one would be just straight shots, and I would make about five hundred there. So the total of my day was for sure over a thousand shots."
It goes without saying that being a professional athlete demands a certain degree of dedication and commitment to one's conditioning and the craft. In this regard, the Spurs will be immensely pleased with Carter Bryant's offseason efforts. However, it raises questions about what motivates him. To this, the 20-year-old responded:
"I was a Kobe Bryant guy. I mean, my last name is Bryant, obviously. But being from Southern California, seeing him, hearing all the stories, coming across people in the basketball world that have seen him coming into Long Beach State, going to Pepperdine to work out, and working out at American Sports Center, where the men's volleyball team works out, just hearing those stories."
"All of my favorite players growing up were all Kobe disciples," he continued. "Like, they all loved Kobe. And you hear their stories and pick people's brains. I've always been wired. Like, the only way to get better than people is to outwork them, and you kind of hear Kobe talk about the idea of compound interest. You just keep working and working and working, and over time you're just going to be too far for guys to catch you."
The mention of Kobe Bryant almost makes Carter Bryant's approach to his offseason workouts make perfect sense. Given how obsessively driven Bryant was toward perfecting his craft every single day, he served as an inspiration for people across different walks of life.
With the "Mamba Mentality" becoming synonymous with the pursuit of perfection, drawing inspiration from such a figure is impressive, but following through is the real challenge.
In this regard, Carter Bryant's commitment to his improving over the summer is quite commendable. Although he was quite impactful on the defensive end last season, the 20-year-old clearly aims to improve upon his averages of 4.2 points and 2.7 rebounds per game while shooting 40.8% from the field and 33.5% from three-point range.
To some extent, Carter Bryant has shown positive signs of development. In three preseason appearances, the forward has posted 9.0 points, 3.3 rebounds, and 1.3 blocks per game on 46.7% shooting from the field and 50.0% shooting from beyond the arc.
Although his eventual production during the regular season will also depend on how much playing time he receives, he is certainly making a strong case to earn more minutes in his sophomore campaign.
