Former FSU basketball standout details success overseas, experiencing depression in NBA
Former Florida State Men’s Basketball guard Dwayne Bacon isn’t hesitant to open up about what he’s learned about himself through his basketball journey.
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The Lakeland, Florida, native appeared on “The Role Player Podcast” presented by Swish Cultures on May 23 and discussed his NBA career, transition to the Euroleague, the business side of professional basketball, and more.
“My first two years [in the NBA], I dealt with depression,” Bacon said. “Not playing, in my head like, ‘Am I good enough?’ Coming [overseas] and being a factor, one of the main guys...that made me feel so good.”
After two seasons in Tallahassee, Bacon was selected No. 40 in the 2017 NBA Draft by the New Orleans Pelicans and was traded to the Charlotte Hornets.
From 2017-21, Bacon appeared in 207 career games with 80 starts between the Hornets and Orlando Magic. He averaged a career-high 10.9 points per game in 2020-21 with the Magic.
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After his stint with Orlando, Bacon joined AS Monaco Basket in the French LNB Pro A. In 16 games, Bacon is averaging 13.1 points per game and 4.2 rebounds. He scored a season-high 24 points against Strasbourg March 16 and has led his club to a 14-2 record.
Bacon is shooting 43.5% from the field and just under 27% from the 3-point line. The former 'Nole said he hasn’t felt the current freedom within his game since his playing days at Florida State under head coach Leonard Hamilton.
“I definitely could have stayed in the league and sat there, but I came over here and opened up my whole talent like this was actually my first time I got a chance to really open up my game since college,” Bacon said. “This was a blessing for me.”
In his Florida State tenure, Bacon averaged 16.5 points per contest and earned All-ACC second-team honors in 2016-17. He also helped lead the Seminoles to a 2017 NCAA Tournament berth, their first appearance since 2012.
Bacon also detailed a pre-draft workout story which he thinks might have led to his slip to the second round of the draft.
"I'm warming up, I'm getting ready to go into court to do my work, I just end up passing out," Bacon said. "I ended up having to sit out for like two weeks. It like backtracked me a little bit and it was all because I had changed my diet. I had just wanted to change my diet, so when I actually got to the draft, the rumor had spread like the day before the draft. People [are] calling my agent like, 'D*** he got a heart problem?' I feel like if I don't pass out and I go through that workout, and I get a chance to finish all my workouts then I won't even go in the second round honestly."
All statistics for this story were collected from ProBallers and Pro Basketball-Reference.
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