Guerschon Yabusele on his journey: Three years after being drafted, I had no team

Guerschon Yabusele: After China, when I went back to France, I didn’t even finish that season. It was so crazy that I had to return to France and stay for a while without a club. I remember sitting down with my wife—she was pregnant with our first baby—and thinking, "What am I going to do?" I got drafted in the first round, 16th pick, and three years later, I had no team. I was just sitting there, wondering what was next. Once I realized that, I changed my mindset. I started working out like crazy, fell in love with the process, and committed to working hard. I respect the game. I had to go back to zero to get to where I am now, and I just keep pushing. That’s why I laugh when people say, "Oh, you’ve got so much energy." I tell them, "Listen, I come from a tough place. I had to work hard and not cheat the process."

Source: YouTube

What's the buzz on Twitter?

Adam Aaronson @SixersAdam

The Sixers have eight players not listed on the injury report for tomorrow's game:

Guards/wings: Jared Butler, Jeff Dowtin Jr., Quentin Grimes, Kelly Oubre Jr., Jalen Hood-Schifino, Ricky Council IV

Bigs: Guerschon Yabusele, Adem Bona

Things are bleak:

phillyvoice.com/sixers-news-an… - 4:38 PM

Derek Bodner @DerekBodnerNBA

Sixers injury report for tonight's game against the Raptors:

OUT

- Embiid, George, Maxey, Gordon, Lowry, McCain, Hood-Schifino

Questionable:

- Andre Drummond (illness), Kelly Oubre Jr (right ankle), Guerschon Yabusele (right knee). pic.x.com/6kOMB7Cs7n - 1:49 PM

Adam Aaronson @SixersAdam

The Sixers have made an addition to their injury report for tonight’s game @ Toronto.

Guerschon Yabusele — right knee soreness — QUESTIONABLE - 1:33 PM

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Guerschon Yabusele: I think China, after Boston, was definitely one of the biggest challenges. First of all, we didn’t have a good season that year—lots of problems with the team I was on. The transition from leaving the NBA to going to China was really rough. In my mind, I knew I wasn’t in the NBA anymore, but to really understand that takes time. Everything I was doing, I kept thinking, "Oh my God, this would be different in the NBA." Every situation I went through, I was comparing to the NBA, and that made it really hard for me to move on. -via YouTube / March 14, 2025

It has been five years since that flashpoint moment, which, to sports followers across the spectrum, signaled the seriousness of the global health crisis that would kill millions and bring society to a halt. Seemingly everybody has a personal, visceral story about where they were and how they spent the ensuing days, weeks, and months defined by uncertainty, isolation, and even fear. “It was a crazy time,” said Sixers big man Guerschon Yabusele, who was playing in the China Basketball Association when the pandemic originated in that country. “And we were all part of this.” -via The Philadelphia Inquirer / March 13, 2025

Yabusele signed with ASVEL, a Euroleague club just outside of Lyon, in late February, but played in only five games before the French team also suspended its season. When Yabusele learned that the NBA had done the same, he realized “now this is serious” worldwide. “I was like, ‘What is going on?’” Yabusele said. “Not knowing when it was going to stop. Not knowing when you’re going to be able to go outside. … I’m looking outside of my building and there’s nobody in the street. I’m like, ‘This is the end times.’” -via The Philadelphia Inquirer / March 13, 2025

This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: Guerschon Yabusele on his journey: Three years after being drafted, I had no team

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Guerschon Yabusele on his journey: Three years after being drafted, I had no team

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