Life as a rookie in the NBA is hard. You spend years being the best player on every court, then suddenly, you arrive at the doorstep of your career. Basketball stops being a hobby or a skill, it becomes your livelihood. And when that happens, the challenge hits fast. You are expected to perform against the best in the world, and every possession feels like a test.
That’s when the questions start to echo in your head. How hard should I set this screen? Which direction do I roll? Should I crash the glass
or stay on the weak side? Wait, we have the ball now? Do I sprint to the corner or flash to the paint? Is this the right shot? Is this even the right decision?
Basketball turns into a storm of second-guessing. What once felt instinctive becomes a maze. The speed of the NBA forces you to think instead of react, and that thinking can suffocate the flow that made you special in the first place. Finding balance between awareness and action becomes everything. When confidence slips, you realize how powerful the mind truly is.
During Summer League and the preseason, there have been moments where you can almost see Rasheer Fleming thinking his way through possessions. He’s a gifted athlete, blessed with a 7’5” wingspan and the ability to stretch the floor. At Saint Joe’s last season, he hit 39% from three, flashing that rare mix of size and touch. He’s raw, but there’s something there. You can feel it. The question isn’t whether he has the physical tools. It’s whether he can master the mental ones.
Tuesday night gave him that test.
In the Suns’ preseason finale against the Lakers, head coach Jordan Ott gave most of his regulars the night off after the long trip home from China. That opened the door for Fleming to start and face real NBA-level competition for the first time.
And he handled it. Fleming finished with 9 points on 3-of-9 shooting (3-of-8 from deep), 5 rebounds, a steal, and a block. It was our first extended look at him going toe-to-toe with legitimate pros, and he didn’t back down. His effort never wavered, his energy never dipped. His arms seem to stretch forever, and his instincts on defense pop off the screen. I’m tempted to give him a nickname. How does “The Camden Condor” sound? Born in Camden, New Jersey, wingspan of a condor. It fits.
We saw it on a play in transition when Fleming unfurled those long arms, snatched a pass out of the air, and tipped it away from the defender. As the ball spun toward the sideline, he launched himself after it, caught it midair, and fired it to a teammate.
The result? A wide-open three that Jared Butler drained with ease.
Fleming played with rhythm and confidence, a flow that had been missing throughout the Summer League and preseason. Head coach Jordan Ott had told him to trust the instincts that brought him here, and it showed.
“Just act, everything else we’ll figure it out,” Suns head coach Jordan Ott informed AZ Sports’ Kellan Olson of what he said to Felming prior to the game. “If he over-works, that’s okay.”
“I feel like he’s done it every time he’s had an extended run,” Ott continued. “He shows flashes of elite athleticism.”
Those were meaningful words from the head coach, the kind that can fuel a young player’s confidence as he fights to make his mark in the NBA. Basketball is a thinking game. You need to know what to do, when to do it, and how to do it. Split-second decisions separate the good from the great. Still, the best players never lose touch with their instincts, the same instincts that carried them to this level. Talent may open the door, but balance and belief keep you inside.
“I like making plays,” Fleming said. “Whether it’s offensively, defensively, or little stuff like that. I like impacting the game in whatever way I can.”
The hope is that Fleming’s career stretches long and bright, that he thrives in purple and orange and grows into a cornerstone for this team. We caught flashes of that potential on Tuesday night. The foundation is taking shape. Now it’s on the Suns to develop and nurture that rare athletic gift that most can only dream of.
With the regular season fast approaching, we don’t yet know how much Fleming we’ll see early on. But for one October night, the Camden Condor soared through the air inside the Mortgage Matchup Center, and his presence was a problem for anyone in his way.
