Charlotte Hornets: Tyrell Corbin be the surprise of the summer league
After making his mark on the Indonesian Basketball League, Tyrell Corbin is looking to prove himself with the Charlotte Hornets’ summer league team.
Despite only averaging 5.6 points per game during his senior year at Cal-State Bakersfield, Tyrell Corbin has really taken his game to the next level playing professionally overseas. Now he will be joining the Charlotte Hornets to play for their summer league team down in Orlando.
The 6’0 guard has a chance to impress NBA scouts and possibly earn a training camp invite if he plays well enough for Charlotte in their five summer league games. Tyrell has a link to the NBA as he is the son of former Utah Jazz head coach and current Phoenix Suns‘ assistant coach, Tyrone Corbin. Although it is a longshot for him to make an NBA roster, Corbin’s play in the IBL makes him at least an intriguing prospect.
Tyrell was the sixth leading scorer in the IBL averaging 24.9 points per game while also putting up 6.8 rebounds per game. That’s nearly a 20 point jump from the 5.6 PPG he put up in college. The summer league might not be filled with the highest level of NBA talents but it is surely a big step up from playing in Indonesia. Corbin will be put to the test against some stiff competition but if he can showcase his scoring ability, he could at the very least earn a D-League contract.
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In one game against the defending champions, the Salt Lake City native put up a league record 50 points. Not only did he drop a 50-piece but he nearly recorded a triple-double with 11 rebounds and nine assists. During his time in the IBL, the guard only won two of the 14 games he appeared in. While he didn’t find team success, Tyrell did expand his reputation with his individual performances.
He was even named the IBL Defensive Player of the Year and was on the IBL All-Third Team.
Back in 2011, Corbin was named Utah’s Mr. Basketball. His professional basketball career has been quite the journey as Tyrell has played in Montenegro, Mongolia and Indonesia after spending time at three different schools (UC Davis, Salt Lake CC and Cal-State Bakersfield) during his four-year college career.
All of those stops have led him to the Queen City where he is set to begin a new challenge in the Orlando Pro Summer League with the Charlotte Hornets. Even if he never makes the league, Corbin will continue to live out his dream and play professionally overseas or anywhere that calls.
He said that “I knew I would play basketball for a living,” said Corbin. “I just didn’t know where. It’s a blessing that this game has taken me around the world in such a short time.” (DesertNews.com)
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Keep an eye on Tyrell. He may raise a few eyebrows with his scoring ability and he could end up being the surprise of the summer league this year. There’s always one player that breaks out, this could be his opportunity to do just that with the Charlotte Hornets.