How Aaron Harrison defeated disappointment on his journey to EuroLeague stardom

by Zach Mason, director of communications

As Aaron Harrison stepped off the plane in Istanbul, the uncomfortable realization that his basketball career had completely changed trajectory from what he’d envisioned his whole life began to set in.

“That was the toughest thing about coming overseas, that first day,” he said. “After the draft, that was probably the toughest part of my basketball career. Just transitioning, it actually hit me that I had to go overseas and play.” 

The No. 5-ranked player in the country coming out of high school, Harrison signed with the Kentucky Wildcats to play for John Calipari as part of the nation’s top recruiting class. After two seasons of averaging 11-plus points per game, the San Antonio native and six of his teammates including Karl Anthony-Towns, Devin Booker, Willie Cauley-Stein and Trey Lyles declared for the NBA Draft. 

Then everything changed.

Fans and experts alike were shocked when Harrison went undrafted, and even after signing with the Charlotte Hornets, the 6’6 guard received very few opportunities to prove himself on the court, averaging just four minutes of playing time per game in two seasons. After several months in the G League and a brief stint with the Dallas Mavericks, Harrison had to make a decision about his future in the game of basketball.

If he was going to rekindle his career, the best option seemed to be dropping everything and moving halfway across the world to play in Europe. 

“It was pretty tough,” he said. “I even thought about not playing anymore. I never imagined myself having to go play overseas. But obviously, a lot of things didn’t go as planned.” 

Adjusting to a new reality

The psychological impact of going from one of the most heralded basketball prospects in America to playing overseas in the span of four years paired with the substantial culture shock of a being a Houstonian living in Turkey was not something Harrison—or anyone, for that matter—could prepare for. A week after he arrived in Istanbul, Harrison’s father flew in to help his son adjust to this unprecedented new reality.

“He knew how hard it was for me,” Harrison said, “transitioning and trying to adjust to being overseas and how much I was disappointed, so my dad really helped with that. That was the biggest help that I had, getting through that stage.”

Harrison led the loaded Kentucky Wildcats to a Final Four appearance in his sophomore year.

But the most potent antidote to Harrison’s struggles was a return to the environment he’s always been most comfortable with, regardless of the city or country it’s located—the basketball court. When he first suited up for Galatasaray, his worries faded away at the piercing sound of the first whistle.

“I was excited because I felt like it was another chance to prove myself,” Harrison said. “And once the game started, everything was great. The games made everything much better. The basketball part was something I was always comfortable with.”

A different kind of basketball

After he began playing against European competition, Harrison discovered the talent drop-off between the NBA and EuroLeague isn’t as significant as American media and fans make it out to be. Not only are rosters loaded with former NBA players and college stars, but teams play a much more aggressive brand of basketball.

“Winning is way more important here than back in the States, for sure,” Harrison said. “People play to win every single possession here and that’s really the best part about it. From a basketball lover myself, that’s pretty cool. In America, basketball’s a business and it’s about scoring a lot of points and having an All-Star on your team, draft picks, stuff like that. But over here, it’s more about winning. The highest-paid player on the team, if he’s not doing well, the coach will sit him.” 

As far as criticism for the NBA goes, the prioritizing of money over winning is usually near the top of the list of grudges for most fans. Harrison said European players in the NBA are likely sickened by the culture where losing is tolerated as long as the cash is flowing in, leading to scenarios where players like Nikola Mirotic pass up millions of dollars to return to play basketball in Spain.

“Obviously, he’s from Europe, so he grew up wanting to win every single possession,” Harrison said. “And I’m not sure, but I think he was on some bad teams in the NBA. And I can’t imagine a European player that grew up here living through that. That’s probably torture for him, to go lose and everybody be okay with it.”

In this elevated competitive environment, Harrison thrived. After averaging an impressive 13.1 points per game in his first season at Galatasaray, Harrison became the star player in his second, scoring 15.9 points per game and earning an offer to play in the EuroLeague for the prestigious Olympiacos Piraeus. 

A RISING star in the EuroLeague

Now a couple of months into his first season in the Athens suburb, Harrison continues to impress as he’s carved out a prominent role in the Olympiacos offense. In seven EuroLeague games, he’s averaging 7.2 points and two rebounds per game and already has achieved hero-status after a monumental game-winning 3-pointer against Maccabi Tel-Aviv.

As Harrison continues his journey back to the NBA, his experience overseas has helped him grow as both a player and a human being. The travel, exposure to different cultures, and competition against quality European opposition all have contributed to his overall development. 

“That’s definitely the best part about it all,” he said. “I feel like I’ve been to 15-20 different countries and I know I would have never done that if I didn’t play in Europe. I really enjoy traveling and seeing other places and the chance to experience those different cultures. Even when I came home from my first year in Turkey, a lot of people could just tell that I had matured. I really started to appreciate the smaller things.”

Harrison could’ve called it quits at the end of his NBA tenure. He could’ve hopped on the first flight back to the United States after his initial struggle to assimilate to life in Europe. But ultimately, his love for the game, which provided him so many opportunities and valuable relationships, carried him through his darkest days. 

“I never would’ve met more than half of the people that I know if it wasn’t for basketball,” Harrison said. “I never would’ve had a friend from Turkey or Greece or anything like that. You go through your career and some people stick. You have to appreciate that. You have to know that you wouldn’t have had those relationships if it wasn’t for basketball.”