San Antonio gives Robinson comeback chance
One-time lottery pick eager to show NBA teams he still has plenty of years left to play
LAS VEGAS — Thomas Robinson couldn’t have seen it coming. Not that night. Not from the vantage point of the stage at the Prudential Center, with NBA commissioner David Stern shaking his hand and a Sacramento Kings cap perched askew on his head.
He was the fifth overall pick in the 2012 draft after an All-American college career at Kansas, and like any player with such a pedigree believed only NBA stardom came next.
He could not have foreseen an itinerant career that saw him play for six teams in five seasons before washing out of the NBA altogether at age 25. He could not have envisioned playing for a living in Russia or China or Maine.
He certainly could not have predicted what he became earlier this month: A 28-year-old at NBA Summer League, out to prove to the basketball world he’s not dead yet.
“I’m not 30, and I’m not about to pass away,” said Robinson, a forward for the Spurs’ Summer League team that began play late Friday night in Las Vegas. “I’m not old. I’m still young. I still got plenty of years left in me.”
Robinson is in Las Vegas this week as a 6-foot-10 job seeker all but begging for work — with the Spurs or any team that will have him.
Seven years ago, he never could have expected to be in this position.
Things began to unravel quickly for Robinson after draft night. He didn’t even make it through his rookie season in Sacramento, traded in February 2013 to Houston in a six-player deal that netted the Kings the vaunted trio of Cole Aldrich, Toney Douglas and Patrick Patterson.
A stop in Portland followed, where Robinson joined the player drafted directly after him at No. 6 — All-Star point guard Damian Lillard. He also had stints in Philadelphia, Brooklyn and with the Los Angeles Lakers.
All Robinson’s stays were short. Only once did he begin a season with the same team with which he finished the previous one.
“I was a young kid in the mix of the NBA, not knowing what to do,” Robinson said. “I kind of got lost in that.”
What Robinson hopes to get out of his time in Las Vegas is simply to be found again.
Once the NBA offers stopped coming, Robinson played a season in Russia and a season in China, finishing the 2018-19 campaign in the G-League with the Maine Red Claws.
The overseas gigs paid well, but weren’t home. He returned stateside with the hope of giving the NBA one more crack.
“I’ve accepted my route,” Robinson said. “I’m fine with how things went. I wouldn’t change anything. It made me more mature. It made me smarter. It made me more grateful.”
Still, Robinson almost didn’t come to summer league. It requires a certain amount of prideswallowing for a player of Robinson’s age and background to show up at summer league and scavenge for a job.
The Spurs talked Robinson into joining their summer team in part because they have a minor history with him. Robinson has participated in free-agent minicamps with the Spurs before.
“Around the league, the Spurs are looked at like Basketball U,” Robinson said. “To even get any type of time under anybody on the staff is helpful for any player.”
In Robinson, the Summer Spurs have a rarity for Las Vegas — a older player with an NBA-ready body who knows what he is doing.
In three games in Utah, Robinson averaged 11.3 points and 6.3 rebounds. He has played like a player hungry to return to the NBA.
“He’s a man that’s been around,” said Spurs assistant Becky Hammon, who is coaching the summer squad in Vegas. “He’s not just coming up from college. Even by his build, you can tell he has been around the league. He knows all the terminology. He knows what the deal is.”
Robinson has been something of a mentor for the younger players on the summer roster, including 19-year-old rookies Luka Samanic and Keldon Johnson.
For his part, Robinson marvels he is now playing with kids born in the year 2000.
“He’s shown me his work ethic is impeccable,” said second-year guard Lonnie Walker IV, who was 13 when Robinson broke into the league. “He’s making me work harder. He’s a true motivation. He’s played in the league for a little bit, and I’m grateful to have a guy like that to talk to.”
This is not the same Thomas Robinson who left for Russia in 2017.
He returned from his two seasons abroad with a bit of innocence lost. He no longer harbors illusions about the NBA.
He also returned with a few feet of range added to his jumper, a must for almost any player hoping to stick in the modern NBA.
Whether Robinson can parlay his work in Las Vegas into another full-time NBA gig remains to be seen.
With 15 guaranteed contracts committed for next season, the Spurs don’t have roster space to add him at this point.
If nothing else, Spurs staffers would be thrilled if Robinson’s work for them this summer lands him with another team in the fall.
“If you’re looking for a backup center, he’s a guy who should be on a lot of team’s radars,” Hammon said.
That’s all Robinson can ask. Though the NBA once gave up on him, Robinson is not yet ready to give up on the NBA.
“I felt like I left on a bad note, and I don’t want that to be the end for me,” Robinson said. “Whatever happens, I’m at peace with my NBA game right now. I’m happy with myself. I know something is going to happen. I’m going to make something happen.”