NBA Rumors: Former No. 2 Pick Hasheem Thabeet Signs G League Contract

Former NBA player Hasheem Thabeet has reportedly signed a G League contract, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic and Stadium.

Thabeet, 32, was the No. 2 overall pick by the Memphis Grizzlies in the 2009 NBA draft. He never lived up to those lofty expectations, however, averaging just 2.2 points and 2.7 rebounds per game in a five-year career that saw him play for Memphis, the Houston Rockets, Portland Trail Blazers and Oklahoma City Thunder.

He last played in the NBA for the Thunder in the 2013-14 season, averaging 1.2 points and 1.7 rebounds in 23 games.

Since his NBA career came to a close, Thabeet has played in the G League and with the Yokohama B-Corsairs of the Basketball Japan League.

But Thabeet is now attempting to make a return to the NBA. Over the summer, he could be found hooping in various gyms around the Washington D.C. area, and part of his comeback is letting go of his past failures at the NBA level.

"I go and look at it and I think, 'Wow, why did you go the way you went?'" he told Reid Forgrave of CBS Sports in July. "But I can't focus on that. I have to focus on the now."

So, what will Thabeet have to do differently this time around if he earns his way back into the NBA? Work even harder and continue to modernize his games. Those two facets were issues in his first go-around, as a scout told Forgrave:

"A scout gave me two reasons why Thabeet never made it in the NBA. One was that the effort wasn't always there. He always worked hard while he was in the gym, but he wasn't someone who put in the extra work. The other reason is that soon after Thabeet entered the league, the NBA changed in a major way—and no role changed more than the role of the big man. There are essentially two types of big successful men in today's NBA: The Marc Gasol/Nikola Jokic-type skilled big man, who can pass, hit 3s, pick and pop. Or the Clint Capela-type explosive big man, who can run to the rim, catch lobs, protect the rim and switch onto smaller players on defense. Thabeet didn't fit either mold, since he was never the switchy-type of big man that excels in today's NBA that values versatility."

And since his NBA failures, Thabeet has said he's matured.

"No matter what's being said about me or what's passed behind me, I've grown from it," he said. "All the stereotypes about me—I'm not the same person I was a few years ago. I'm ready for whatever. The big key is that I'm a team player. I'm ready to be on a team. That's what I'm looking forward to. I hope it happens. I have the will. I have the power. Now I just have to have the opportunity."

NBA teams have taken notice. Over the summer he worked out for the the Philadelphia 76ers, the Toronto Raptors and the Milwaukee Bucks, per Forgrave, while he also worked out for the New York Knicks in September and the Golden State Warriors in October.

For now, the G League beckons. But Thabeet is at least on the NBA radar once again.