5,000 Miles from Home, Indiana Great Yogi Ferrell's 'Why' Has Never Been Stronger

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- Yogi Ferrell sees his motivator and his memories every time he opens his phone.

Ferrell sees himself as a 3-year-old putting up shots on a mini hoop and watching basketball highlights on ESPN. He sees himself in the stands at the three-on-three Gus Macker basketball tournament in Indianapolis. He sees camping trips, 2 a.m. workouts and his AAU coach from second through fifth grade.

The photo on the lock screen of Ferrell's phone shows Ferrell and his father, Kevin Duane Ferrell Sr., at an Indiana men's basketball practice over a decade ago. It hasn't changed since Feb. 8, 2024, when Ferrell Sr. passed away at the age of 54.

"I'll probably never change it, either," Yogi Ferrell told Indiana Hoosiers On SI on Thursday.

Yogi Ferrell (left) and his father, Kevin Duane Ferrell Sr., from when Ferrell estimates as his freshman or sophomore year. | Photo Courtesy of Yogi Ferrell

Now 32 years old, Ferrell is entering his fifth professional basketball season overseas and third in Montenegro, a country in the Balkans. He's six hours ahead and over 5,000 miles away from home in Indianapolis. It's a 17-hour one-way flight.

But each morning, he wakes up, checks his lock screen and, as his father often told him, keeps chipping away.

"What keeps me going, man, is that connection I had with my dad," Ferrell said. "We had that special bond with basketball, man. Everything we did -- he taught me the game and he got me where I am to this point today.

"I got to credit a lot of success to him and the time he put in with me to make me a better player, better person. That really still keeps me going."

Ferrell sits on a black couch inside a living room-esque space in Cook Hall. A big-screen TV, deluxe refrigerator and island full of snacks comprise a new-age atmosphere introduced well after Ferrell graduated in 2016.

It's not the house that Ferrell built, but his legacy has a permanent home here.

He's reminded of it each time he enters Cook Hall, where his picture hangs on a wall with fellow Indiana greats. Or when he looks up at the Big Ten Championship banners -- emblazoned with nods to 2013 and 2016 titles Ferrell helped win -- hanging on the North side of Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall.

The Big Ten crowns are validation to Ferrell that he gave it his all from start to finish. He won conference championships as a freshman and senior, appeared in three NCAA Tournaments, still holds the program record with 633 career assists and played more games in a four-year career than anyone in Indiana's illustrious history.

And without his father, Ferrell feels none of it would've happened.

***

As a kid, Ferrell participated in lock-in basketball camps hosted by his father. After a day of competition, players ate and slept in the gym and did it all again the next day.

Perhaps that's why sleeping in Cook Hall came so naturally to Ferrell during his time in Bloomington. Nine years removed from his time as a student-athlete, Ferrell still holds close cream-and-crimson-colored memories.

None are more vivid, more present to his recollection, than the late nights and early mornings that culminated in a legacy now honored on the walls of Cook and Assembly Hall.

"Going to classes, waking up (in Cook Hall), doing workouts at 6 a.m., going on the field, doing conditioning on the football field," Ferrell said of Bloomington memories. "Even just walking down this hallway right here, just to walk to Assembly Hall.

"I remember I used to drag the (shooting) gun all the way down to Assembly Hall just so I could get shots up in the gym the night before the game. So, just being on campus is special, man."

For the second summer in as many years, Ferrell is back in Bloomington to practice with Assembly Ball, the Indiana alumni-based team participating in The Basketball Tournament. Ferrell was the roster's crown jewel in 2024, and his red and white No. 11 jersey was popular in the stands at Butler's Hinkle Fieldhouse.

Ferrell said following the first of a three-game run he didn't think he'd ever get to put on the candy-striped pants and play in front of Indiana fans again. Fittingly, he made his first shot.

The player who often quieted crowds in the Big Ten, experienced NBA arenas and now plays in front of self-proclaimed "crazy" fans overseas felt chills as he scored his first Indiana-adjacent points in eight years.

Ferrell knew he wanted to be part of Indiana's first alumni team. Driven by the turnout from Indiana's fanbase, Ferrell's experience in 2024 exceeded expectations, prompting him to be one of Assembly Ball's first two commitments in 2025.

"I didn't really think we were going to have that much support," Ferrell said. "But it was actually really something special to see, having all those fans show up. I thought it was really cool. It was real fun."

TBT also provides Ferrell the opportunity to return to Bloomington -- and, subsequently, bring his taste buds back home. He participated in meet-and-greets at Upstairs Bar on Kirkwood and at the BuffaLouie's in Carmel that he co-owns.

Ferrell still easily rattles off local hot-spots. BuffaLouie's, naturally, is his favorite. He's fond of Mother Bears Pizza and Z & C Teriyaki & Sushi, the latter of which he didn't try until his senior year. The Sample Gates still excite him.

"Just whenever I come back, man, it always puts a smile on my face," Ferrell said.

***

Life off the court has never been more different for Ferrell, who welcomed a son this spring with his wife, Diana. He lives in a quiet city in Montenegro, where restaurants and bars are the top attractions. Not many residents speak English.

Sometimes, he said, he drives an hour-and-a-half to the seaside and enjoys the beaches. But much of Ferrell's time overseas is spent either on the court or with his family.

"It is nice, though, still getting to play basketball, playing the game I love," Ferrell said. "I can't really complain about anything."

When Ferrell's father passed, he said in a social media tribute post that his dad often told people he'd play in the NBA. Ferrell turned his father's belief into reality. Despite going undrafted in 2016, Ferrell played his way to a spot on the NBA All-Rookie Second Team after an impressive spring with the Dallas Mavericks.

Ferrell's NBA career spanned five seasons, ultimately ending with the Los Angeles Clippers in 2021. He won a pair of championships in 2022 and 2023 in Slovenia, and he won the Montenegrin Cup in 2025.

The level of competition overseas is strong and continues to get better, Ferrell said. He cited a rise in American colleges recruiting more foreign players now than before -- Indiana signed Serbian guard Aleksa Ristic to its 2025-26 roster. In addition to skill level, European basketball is rich in tradition, pays well and has passionate fans.

Ferrell grew accustomed to a similar atmosphere at Indiana, where he feels he became the person who sat in Cook Hall on Thursday. He attributes much of it to then-Indiana coach Tom Crean.

Though Ferrell estimates he hasn't spoken to Crean "in a couple years," he carries with him the lessons Crean -- and his vast group of guests -- instilled over four seasons. Crean brought in speakers, some of whom weren't athletes, to try to help his players become better people. Their advice still sticks with Ferrell.

Now, Ferrell has the resume to pass knowledge down in a similar manner. His first talking point stems from a mentality he embraced while scrapping his way onto an NBA roster: Give it your all, and whatever happens, happens.

"Don't be too hard on yourself," Ferrell said. "Do what you can do, control what you can control and let the chips fall where they may be, but just don't be too hard on yourself. There's always going to be that next day, so you can always try to fix things in 24 hours."

No matter how trying any 24 hours may be, Ferrell's father follows him everywhere. His lock screen doubles as his profile picture on X. His Instagram bio reads, "(Rest in Heaven), Pops." Each time he touches a basketball, he builds on the skill set his father -- and "hero" -- first created on a mini hoop in 1996.

And each day, Ferrell lives to fulfill the final five words he wrote in a tribute to his dad: "I got it from here."