While he didn’t end up leaving Las Vegas with an NBA contract, emerging Brisbane Bullets star Josh Bannan did come away from Summer League earlier this year with something.
It wasn’t tangible, a feeling more than anything else.
A feeling that he “belonged” at that level, that he can “contribute to winning” in the NBA — and at just 23 years old, Bannan is confident his time in the bright lights will come.
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The Bullets forward has been on the NBA radar for the past two years, having worked out with seven teams this past offseason ahead of the draft.
There were a total of six players at each workout, since that was the maximum number teams could bring in, and began with physical testing before “short and sharp” one-on-one, two-on-two and then three-on-three games, followed by shooting drills.
“It was an amazing experience,” Bannan told foxsports.com.au.
“You’re interviewing with some of these teams, getting to pick the brains of some incredible basketball minds and just seeing the way they go about their business on that level.”
Bannan went undrafted but signed a contract with the Clippers to play at the Summer League.
The Summer League, which is also the first meaningful chance for rookies to take to the court with their new teams, gives prospects like Bannan and other undrafted players an opportunity to impress enough to either earn a training camp invitation, roster spot or two-way contract.
Jack White, Luke Travers and Duop Reath are among the most recent Australians to get their shot in the NBA after making noise in the Summer League.
While Bannan didn’t end up getting a contract, he did walk away from both the Summer League and the pre-draft workouts more confident in his ability to produce against a higher level of competition.
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“I learned a lot about seeing the day-to-day skill development stuff people are doing at an NBA level,” Bannan said.
“Seeing those high-level NBA players working out, the intensity they work out at, some of the drills and things they’re doing to work on their craft, has been huge for me and definitely picked up things from that.
“Then in the Summer League games I think finding ways to continue to impact the game when it’s a different environment. Summer League basketball is very different to what I’ve experienced in the NBL.
“So I think having had my experience this last year I learned a lot and if I was to have that opportunity I would definitely approach it differently and continue to find ways to be more aggressive to make plays.”
Bannan, who spent time at both the Centre of Excellence and NBA Global Academy before playing college basketball at the University of Montana, signed a three-year deal with the Bullets last year.
The young forward averaged 11.9 points and 7.2 rebounds in a standout first season in the NBL and while he may not have been able to break through to the NBA yet, Bannan knows he still has his entire career ahead of him.
He also knows there are plenty of players to point to as evidence of it, including one Boomers legend and current NBA player.
“Joe Ingles is an example,” Bannan said.
“He didn’t break into the NBA until he was about 27 or 28. I’m 23 years old, I feel like my best basketball is in front of me and I want to have a sustainable career. I want to be upward trending throughout my career and just keep making steps forward and progressing. “Unfortunately it didn’t happen this year but I feel like I left really positive impressions on those who saw me. So I’ll continue to work and continue to improve so that the next time I’m better prepared again and hopefully I can crack in then.”
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But even if Bannan does make it, even if he does finally get that contract and that first crack in the NBA, he also knows it won’t last forever.
In fact, that first game could end up being his last. It is a brutal reality but one the 23-year-old has already come to terms with as he chases his “very fickle” dream.
“The incredible thing and the thing I probably learned this year is a lot of time people can feel like if you make it to the NBA, you’ve made it and that’s kind of how I’d always seen it,” Bannan said.
“But what I realised and saw is as soon as you ‘make it’ into the NBA, you have to fight unbelievably hard just to keep your spot because there are thousands of basketball players around the world who are gunning for what you have.
“… It is unbelievably hard. There’s 30 teams in the NBA, 15 spots a team like that’s 450 basketball players who have a full contract in the NBA.
“You look in Europe, you look in the NBL, there are a lot of incredible basketball players who are very special in their own right who never do have the chance to play in the NBA and it can be very fickle and it’s sometimes a matter of time and situation but I think for me it’s just a matter of I will do everything possible… even outside of the time I’m spending on the court, everything in your day-to day-life to try and achieve that goal of mine and to represent Australia is the other huge one.”
Speaking of which, Bannan made a big impression in his debut for the senior national team earlier this year, scoring 11 points to go with just as many rebounds against South Korea.
It was just a brief taste but enough to only further fuel Bannan’s desire to represent the green and gold at the 2027 World Cup and, potentially, the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles.
Although a frank Bannan admitted that previously he took the opportunity to represent his country “for granted”.
“My experience playing at those qualifiers was a couple of the most fun games I’ve played in my life,” he said.
“Standing there listening to the anthem before the game gives me tingles, that’s something I’ve always dreamed about and since I played for Australia (in the) Under 17s, I’ve always hoped I could do again.
“I 100 per cent took it for granted at that age and I was sort of selfish in the way I viewed that opportunity. I was disappointed about my playing time and I didn’t appreciate how special that opportunity is.
“So having had the chance to do that in February was incredible and that’s why I play basketball. So definitely my eyes look forward to the World Cup and the Olympics, that’s my number one goal — to represent Australia at those events.”
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But in the short-term, Bannan’s full focus is on getting back on the court with the Bullets after an injury-disrupted preseason which saw him miss the NBL Blitz and, more recently, Brisbane’s loss to the New Zealand Breakers at HoopsFest.
Bannan said it has been “tough” being sidelined by the hand injury, having returned from Summer League wanting to get straight back into it only to be forced to sit out a few weeks.
“I was feeling a bit helpless,” he added.
“But it’s definitely getting much better.”
Even before the injury, Bannan said he had already been putting more of a focus into taking care of his body — whether it was stretching, pilates, yoga or nutrition.
“I’ve become much more diligent with that and I think that’s part of being a professional is you realise how important it is taking care of your body, putting the right fuel in,” he said.
“So for me, that’s a big thing. If I want to play in the NBA those are the best athletes in the world and athletically where I stand right now, I’m a fair bit away from where I want to be.”
But even if Bannan isn’t there just yet, he doesn’t have to look far for inspiration.
“Brisbane this past year was huge in my development and sort of learning how to be a pro and I have these guys on my team who are exceptional examples of what a professional looks like,” he said.
“I look back to when I used to train with Melbourne United before I went to college and when I came back and seeing the way David Barlow took care of himself, how methodical he was in his approach, he was someone I definitely looked up to and wanted to be like.
“I think the greatest example of that on my team is like Sam McDaniel is a consummate professional. Some of the other guys, Mitch Norton and Isaac White, are phenomenal in the way they approach basketball and life.
“I think I’ve definitely got great people around me who I can look at and aspire to learn different things off of.”
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