Dekker savors homecoming
Bradley Center pro debut for ex-UW star
Before Monday night, Sam Dekker had visited the BMO Harris Bradley Center once before as a professional basketball player. It wasn’t the storybook debut the Sheboygan native and former Badgers star might have imagined when he jumped to the NBA after his junior season at Wisconsin.
That’s because he didn’t play in that game last February. Instead, it went down as just one of 79 games he missed during a rookie season derailed by back surgery less than a month into the campaign.
The back injury, rehabilitation and grind to get back on the court weren’t at the forefront of Dekker’s mind Monday when, at long last, he made his Wisconsin professional debut during a 127-114 loss to the Bucks at the Bradley Center.
“It’s obviously very cool for me,” Dekker said. “I grew up coming to a lot of Bucks games here, grew up watching the Bucks and spent a lot of time in this arena. To get a chance to be a professional going out here and playing in front of the hometown crowd and a lot of friends and family is very cool. It’s an opportunity I’ll always remember and always cherish.”
Dekker, who spent extra time during pregame filling out ticket envelopes to leave at will call for family and friends, took the floor for the first time with 4:07 left in the first quarter. His entry drew nothing but applause from the crowd, with fans clad in all colors — from Badgers red to Bucks green — welcoming the former Sheboygan Lutheran High School standout and star of Wisconsin’s second consecutive Final Four run back with open arms.
While the reception was positive, the rest of the game didn’t follow suit for Dekker. He got on the board early with a nifty layup in traffic, but finished with just four points on 2-of-7 shooting and one rebound in 16 minutes during the loss.
Still, it beat watching from the sideline, which he did for nearly all of his first year in the NBA after going 18th in the 2015 draft, one spot after the Bucks selected Rashad Vaughn.
Before undergoing back surgery, Dekker played just 6 minutes 9 seconds during 2015-’16. After being cleared to return, he appeared in five D-League games before getting recalled to the Rockets last February. He never entered a game, though, often spending games working out behind the scenes instead of sitting on the bench in order to avoid getting stiff.
“It wasn’t fun at all, that’s the easiest way to put it,” Dekker said of his first season. “When something you love is taken away from you like that it’s a big piece of you that’s missing. I’ve learned how to cherish it even more and put the energy and spark every time I’m out there because any moment it can be taken away again.”
This season has been much more enjoyable for Dekker. His back is no longer an issue and he has worked his way into the Rockets’ regular rotation, averaging 7.3 points, 4.1 rebounds, 47.1% from the field while getting 19.4 minutes per game for the team with the third-best record in the NBA.
Dekker came into his Wisconsin homecoming on the heels of his best game as a pro. With Ryan Anderson sidelined by a stomach virus, Dekker earned his first career start Saturday night in Memphis. He made the most of it, scoring a teamhigh 30 points in 35 minutes and helping the
Rockets to a 119-95 victory over the Grizzlies.
“He’s been a big surprise,” Rockets coach Mike D’Antoni said. “I wasn’t counting on him when I took the job and I didn’t know anything about him. Even when I watched him in summer league I still wasn’t counting on him. He’s come on strong. …
“He won’t surprise me now whatever he does because the sky’s the limit. He’s good.”
Even before knowing the outcome of Monday’s game, Dekker knew it would rank No. 1 among his memories at the Bradley Center. He had played there four times in college, collecting a 3-1 record that included a pair of NCAA Tournament wins.
But playing at the Bradley Center as a professional, that’s on another level entirely and something he looks forward to doing for years.
“Being the first time coming home as a pro and with a big role on a contending team is really cool,” he said. “Last year I came back but obviously I was out and not playing, so I didn’t get a chance to be on this floor and have all my loved ones here watching. … It’s one of those things you kind of check off the list playing in your home state as a pro for the first time. It’s pretty special, pretty sweet.”