With a career that has spanned nearly two decades and six different franchises, Kyle Korver is a veteran presence with as much experience as just about anybody on the NBA hardwood in today's game. But the same can't be said for his burgeoning career in media, should he decide to go that route after he eventually announces his retirement. In that sphere, he's still a rookie, and he's got to pay his dues.
Getting pranked by NBA legends Shaquille O'Neal and Dwyane Wade, massive sports media presence Adam Lefkoe, and the rest of the "NBA on TNT" staff, on April Fools' Day no less, is a good way to start.
You can see the subtle wave of realization/humiliation wipe over his face when the teleprompter showed "Dwyane Wade" as his choice — which obviously wouldn't have been his pick — for the worst teammate he's ever had. Because let's face it... we can probably find much worse than a future Hall of Fame guard at a similar stage in his career. Wade and Korver were both in their 14th year of NBA action when they joined forces with LeBron James on the 2017-18 Cavaliers. Wade didn't make it through the full season, heading back to Miami before the deadline, where he'd finish his career.
But we're not going to speculate who Korver's worst teammate is because, quite frankly, he's played with a ton of different people in a lot of different environments (most of them winning ones, for what it's worth). You may think Allen Iverson is worthy of consideration after we heard what AI told Korver and others if they missed — "why would I pass it to you?" — but Korver actually said that this was the encouragement he needed.
"Coming onto the team as a 2nd-round pick, confidence is the biggest factor in whether you're gonna make it or not. You need someone to believe in you. That's what he was for me," Korver said this year in a Bleacher Report AMA. "He was always in my ear telling me to shoot the ball. We didn't have a lot of shooters on the team. If you couldn't make it when he passed it to you, he was like "why would I pass it to you? I'll just shoot it myself." He was always looking for me. His encouragement and how much he helped me, I cannot state how important that was for me as a young player."
And for Korver, if he was fed the ball on the outside — which he was, so long as the team was looking to win — he was satisfied. After all, it doesn't take much to be a good teammate to someone who rained in three pointers at a 42.9 percent rate throughout his career. Feed him the rock, and let the magic happen.
Now the question is whether or not Wade and company will be good teammates behind the TNT desk, and if their April Fools' prank is any indication, it seems as though it'll be a fun time. After all, Charles Barkley's stint has turned out alright, and as one Twitter user noted, they pulled the same type of joke on him.
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