Justin Patton has left Creighton for the NBA after a stellar year in Omaha. Since then, it has been a demanding career in professionals, but Patton said he has grown in more ways than one because of the obstacles he has faced. “Being hurt three times, going back to that and staying resilient and having to find out who I am as a person was a great thing for me because I haven’t had basketball for two years,” he added. Patton broke his left and right foot separately several times, these injuries hampered his development and limited him to a single NBA appearance with the Minnesota Timberwolves in 2018. Paton has bounced around the G League in the past two years, but now he was given a security thread at the NBA after signing a contract with the Detroit Pistons: “Every time you have someone in your corner it’s fantastic,” said Patton. “You also have an obligation to come in and work hard and do your job. I’m coming in, I have someone on my back in my corner. I’m going to come in, do my job and work hard for them.” Patton already has a friend on the Pistons – Former Creighton teammate – and roommate – Khyri Thomas. “We’ve always talked about it, so I guess I talked about it to existence,” said Thomas. “We have played on the field before and hope that chemistry can reconnect or even improve.” Patton expects to come to the field and immediately compete for the role of starting center. “Everyone knows if I will have the chance for something that will make it work,” he added. “With someone in my position, I don’t have much influence, so my job is to get in, get rid of my butt, do everything and do all the little things.” Omaha North’s pupil added fuel to his fire for success after the recent birth of his first child, Kingston Nicholas Patton. “It’s a pressure every single day when you have a baby,” said Patton. “Everything you do is for him – good or bad. You always want to build and build and build. Stack the good days and invest.” Patton said he learned from his past mistakes, plans to make the most of the present with the Pistons and has high hopes for his future in the NBA.
Justin Patton left Creighton for the NBA after a stellar freshman year in Omaha.
Since then, it has been an inspiring career in professionals, but Patton said he has grown in more ways than one because of the obstacles he has faced.
“Being hurt three times, coming back from that and staying resilient and having to find out who I am as a person was a big thing for me because I haven’t had basketball for two years,” he added.
Patton broke his left and right foot at separate times.
These injuries hampered his development and limited him to a single NBA appearance with the Minnesota Timberwolves in 2018.
Patton has rebounded around the G League in the past two years, but has now been returned to the NBA with a lifeline after signing a contract with the Detroit Pistons.
“Every time you have someone in your corner it’s fantastic,” Patton said. “You also have an obligation to come in and work hard and do your job. I’m coming in, I have someone on my back in my corner. I’m going to come in, do my job and work hard for them.”
Patton already has a friend on the Pistons – Creighton’s former teammate – and roommate – Khyri Thomas.
“We’ve always talked about it, so I guess I mentioned it to existence,” said Thomas. “Before, we played on the field and we hope that the chemistry can reconnect or even improve.”
Patton expects to come to the field and immediately compete for the starting center role.
“Everyone knows if I will have the opportunity to do something to make it work,” he added. “With someone in my position, I don’t have much influence, so my job is to get in, get rid of the ass, do everything and do all the little things.”
Omaha North’s pupil added fuel to his fire for success after the recent birth of his first child, Kingston Nicholas Patton.
“There is pressure every single day when you have a baby,” Patton said. “Everything you do is for him – good or bad. You always want to build and build and build. Stack the good days and invest.”
Patton said he learned from his past mistakes, plans to make the most of the present with the Pistons and has high hopes for his future in the NBA.
.
