Ace Bailey, the Utah Jazz rookie, seems to have always had confidence in his abilities to make it to the NBA. Even when he was only nine years old, he knew in his heart that he would not just make it to the NBA, but also win six rings by the time he was 20 years old.
In a social media post on Instagram, GSE Worldwide did a recap of Ace Bailey’s draft day experience with videos of his past as well. In that compilation, they showed a video from 2016 where a young Ace Bailey made a bold prediction about his NBA career.
“I see myself 20 years old, with six gold rings and myself in the NBA.”
https://www.instagram.com/p/p:DMYDHgtslrM
While one cannot expect an eight or nine-year-old boy to make the most accurate prediction, it shows that Bailey developed a high level of confidence in his abilities from a very young age.
One of the keys to making the NBA is having what one could describe as ‘delusional confidence’ from a young age and faith in your abilities to reach that level. If not you, then a support system in the form of a parent or a coach who pushes you and supports you until you develop that drive.
From LeBron James’ mother getting him a basketball hoop at age two, to Kobe Bryant picking up a basketball at age three, history has more often than not rewarded players for delivering on their confidence. I’m not saying Ace Bailey will end up being at LeBron James or Kobe Bryant’s level.
But even before the NBA Draft, Ace Bailey was confident in his abilities to become a top-five pick in the draft without even working out for a team. He even rejected a workout with the Jazz, who ended up drafting him anyway, nearly leaving him in tears.
Despite all the controversial rumors, like potentially not showing up to training camp, Bailey eventually agreed to play for the Jazz. During the NBA Summer League, he played only two games in the Salt Lake City portion before sitting out the Las Vegas part of the League due to a hip injury. In those two games, he averaged 13 points, seven rebounds, and two assists.
In his college career, Bailey averaged 17.6 points, 7.2 rebounds, and 1.3 assists per game while shooting 46% from the field and 34.6% from three-point range for Rutgers’ Scarlet Knights.
Bailey may be a bit too late to win six gold rings in the NBA by age 20, as he is already 18 years old and the Jazz are not close to being contenders just yet. But where do you think Bailey’s ceiling is? Will he be the star player on a championship-winning team someday? Let alone six of them? It will be interesting to see where Bailey’s career trajectory takes him now.
