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I know it's Halloween, but Tre Mann is taking this Allen Iverson cosplay thing too seriously. Not only is the Hornets' Sixth Man rocking baggy gear and a headband over his braids, but during the season opener against the Rockets, Mann was hitting floaters, mid-range fadeaways, and crossing defenders like Bubba Chuck.
If the viral video clips of his appearance and impressive performance weren't enough to add some new members to the Mann Fan Club, his postgame comments while wearing a Dirty South FUBU shirt might do it.
"Next game, I mean, we're 0-0 after we leave Houston," Mann said. "We're still 0-0 every day, just getting better. And then going into Atlanta, 0-0 in every game. After that, 0-0."
“We were down and needed somebody to bring that spark, I changed my mindset to getting something on defense like bringing energy whatever way I could,” Mann said. “I just wanted to win really bad.”
His clutch performance also had social media buzzing about the Hornets possibly having a Sixth Man Of The Year candidate. I never get too excited or down about anything I see after a single game. And I definitely don't make award predictions after a single game (or week and sometimes month).
But his game fits this team, and considering he didn't receive a contract extension this week, I'm expecting him to play like his life depends on it, just like the guy he's reminding people of. Then, his agent can call President of Basketball Operations Jeff Peterson and say, "Pay that Mann his money (in his best John Malkovich in ROUNDERS voice)."
Curious about how Tre Mann’s odds stack up against favorites like Malik Monk and Naz Reid? Check out the latest NBA Sixth Man of the Year odds article.
I'm not just pulling for Mann to have a breakout season because he's a throwback player; I'm pulling for Mann because he and Ballislife go back to his high school days.
Years before he was breaking ankles in the NBA, he was a five-star recruit who played in the 2019 McDonald's All-American game, Jordan Brand Classic, Iverson Classic and Ballislife All-American game.
Mann, playing alongside Anthony Edwards, Niven Glover and Onyaka Okongwu, scored 14 on the winning Blue team in our game. The opposing team had future NBA players Tyrese Maxey, Isaac Okoro, Precious Achiuwa, Jaime Jaquez, Isaiah Mobley, and Scotty Pippen Jr.
Mann didn't just play hard in our game; he went hard at every player during practice and King of the Court session.
It made perfect sense for him to play his college ball for the Florida Gators because his hometown is Gainesville. Still, as an alumnus of Florida State University, I selfishly wanted him to take his talents to Tallahassee. Anyways, he played for the Gators. He played well enough to make First Team All-SEC.
After two seasons with the Gators, he declared for the draft, where the Oklahoma City Thunder selected him with one of their 500 draft picks. After two and half seasons of seeing his minutes dwindle with the Thunder, OKC traded him and a few other players to Charlotte for Gordon Hayward, who retired from basketball earlier this year.
So, here we are in October, watching a Mann dressed like Allen Iverson make his case for NBA Sixth Man Of The Year. I'm obviously kidding about him trying to be AI, but you must admit it's amusing.
Believe it or not, Tre Mann wasn't the first Tre(y) in the NBA to remind us of AI. Former NBA player Trey Burke said he modeled his game after Iverson, and you can't watch this video of Burke playing at Dyckman without thinking about his favorite player.
Burke went on to play 9 seasons in the NBA with 6 teams, including the 76ers. His most productive one was actually his rookie season in Utah, where he averaged career-highs of 12.8 points and 5.7 assists.
It wouldn't be right for me to end this post without bringing up the starting point guard on the Hornets. LaMelo Ball was exceptional in the season opener, with 34 points (12 in the 4th, 11 assists, 8 rebounds, 4 threes and this postgame interview on live television.
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