Jimmer Fredette during his stay with the Sacramento Kings in the NBA. (Photo : NB/YouTube)
After his stellar performance in the Chinese Basketball League, former Brigham Young University star Jimmer Fredette may be coming back home to the NBA.
Sending signals
Fredette, who currently plays for the Shanghai Sharks in the CBA, has reportedly expressed the desire to return to the NBA after his current international stint. He is said to have already reached out to several teams for a possible re-entry this March, The New York Post reported.
The 28-year-old point guard was a standout during his stay with the BYU Cougars, breaking the team's career scoring records.
However, his debut in 2011 on the professional scene turned out less fruitful, moving to and from several teams, including the Milwaukee Bucks, the Sacramento Kings, the Chicago Bulls, and the New Orleans Pelicans.
His last NBA appearance was with the New Your Knicks, where he only managed to play two games for the rest of the 2015-26 season.
Fredette saw new light after moving to the CBA and joining Shanghai in Aug. 2016. During the regular season, he averaged 37.4 points per game, with a shooting percentage of 47.7 from the field and an impressive 40.4 from the three-point arc.
He also registered 8.0 rebounds, 4.3 assists, and 1.7 steals. His numbers helped bring the Sharks to the playoffs in the current season and net him the International MVP award.
Finding his role
Fredette, who was dubbed by Chinese fans as the "God of Loneliness," is eligible to be signed up by any NBA team after the end of the current CBA season. However, analysts said that teams still need to find a role for him in their rosters if they decide to pick him up, Bleacher Report reported.
According to Dan Feldman of Pro Basketball Talk, while Fredette has shown that he can truly score, he still has plenty of competition for the scoring position. He also needs to overcome the weaknesses that have put him into a limited role on the court.
But Feldman also said that teams who need a sharpshooter could potentially make use of him in their rosters.
