Kevin Durant inspired Damion James in his return to Nets

By all accounts, Damion James is very happy to be back with the Nets, back in the NBA. After two disappointing seasons in New Jersey --and two foot surgeries, the #24 pick out of Texas was a bit down on his luck this summer After the Nets declined to offer him a new contract, he thought about going overseas but instead signed a training camp contract with the Hawks. He was among the last players cut. He turned to a college buddy for advice.

"Me and Kevin [Durant] talked a lot, we are good friends, like bros,” James told Alex Raskin, writing for HoopsWorld. “He just told me, you will be back, you are a first-round talent and that’s something you can’t look over. I just kept faith and he kept my focus and I’m back."

Raskin recounts the detours James took on the journey from Newark to Brooklyn. He hopes the move, like those of his five remaining teammates, will be permanent.

"If I was on another team on a ten-day I would feel nervous, but this is the team that drafted me so they really believe in me and for them to bring me back it shows me a good sign," he told Raskin.