CBB: Daniel Orton discusses his career
Daniel Orton was a five-star recruit coming out of Bishop McGuinness Catholic High School in Oklahoma City in 2009, and he signed with the University of Kentucky, along with John Wall, DeMarcus Cousins, Eric Bledsoe, Jon Hood, and Darnell Dodson. The recruiting class is regarded as one of the best in college basketball history, as four players went on to be selected in the 2010 NBA Draft, while Wall and Cousins became NBA All-Stars. However, the team had to deal with a coaching change before they even started classes as Billy Gillispie was fired and former Memphis coach John Calipari was hired. Orton, who averaged 3.4 points and 3.3 rebounds in 13.2 minutes per game, helped the Wildcats win the SEC regular season and tournament title, and earn a 35-3 record.
“Kentucky is where I wanted to be all along. I fell in love with Kentucky after my first visit there and it just felt like it was the place for me. It was a true blessing and a gift to play for Cal. Memories I’ll cherish for the rest of my life,” Orton said. “The hype behind our recruiting class was as exciting to us the players as it was the fans. We knew also that ‘with great power, comes great responsibility.’ One thing that a lot of people didn’t know and wouldn’t know is how serious we took that. We knew we had to succeed, we knew what was at stake and that we had to do whatever we could to be successful.” The Wildcats reached the Elite Eight before losing to West Virginia. Wall (#1), Cousins (#5), Patrick Patterson (#14), Bledsoe (#18), and Orton (#29) were all selected in the first round of the NBA Draft.
It was the first time in league history that five players from the same school were taken in the opening round of the draft. “To hear my name called, like many others, was a dream come true,” Orton said. “It was euphoric that I was able to experience it was my fellow brothers in that moment. Basketball is amazingly beautiful all across the globe.” Unfortunately, injuries are a huge part of the game of basketball. Orton dealt with injuries during his senior year of high school and then again his rookie season in the NBA. After being selected by the Orlando Magic, Orton went down with a season-ending injury in his second game in the D-League. He wouldn’t make his NBA debut until 2012. Approximately seven months later, he decided to sign with the Oklahoma City Thunder.
“Being hurt my rookie season in the place that I was at was tough. I say it specifically like that because I felt so alone with little support from management or anyone on the team. I was hurt and none of my teammates called or texted. It’s just a realization as to I’m new on the team with little to no respect,” Orton said. “It took me getting to Oklahoma City to feel even cared about. Then at that point I was so guarded in everything that I did I couldn’t fully embrace the opportunity that was in front of me with OKC. I was angry there for essentially no reason because of the fact that I had many people in Orlando who didn’t believe in me and I wanted to prove them wrong so bad, yet never had the chance. Didn’t even stop to think about the opportunity with Oklahoma City. All apart of growth though.”
Orton was signed by the Philadelphia 76ers in 2014, but only played with the team for a few months. He recorded his first double-double, compiling 10 points and 10 rebounds against the Indiana Pacers. In the years since, Orton has played overseas, including stops in the Philippine Basketball Association, Greek League, China National Basketball League, and more. He most recently played in Turkey, prior to competing in The Basketball Tournament. “Playing overseas has its ups and its downs. You have so many other things to worry about. It’s hard missing family,” he said. “It’s been an absolute blessing to get paid (most of the time) to travel the world. I’ve loved getting to see so many parts of the world and it has opened my eyes to many things and completely changed my perspective on life.”
Photo Credit: Unsplash.
