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Ryan Turell, a 23-year-old religious Jewish basketball player, made his debut on Tuesday in the NBA's G league, formerly known as the development league.
After being passed over in the summer NBA draft, Turell was picked in the G league draft at 27th place by the Motor City Cruise, an affiliate team of the Detroit Pistons.
Turell played for 3:40 minutes and did not score. His team lost the game 125:109 to the Windy City Bulls, the Chicago Bulls affiliate team.
Until recently the star of "Yeshiva University", Turell, who stands at 2 meters (6'7",) ended four years in the college 3rd division, in which he averaged 27.1 points a game last year.
As far back as Highschool league, Turell was considered a prodigy. A averaged a Triple-Double all throughout his time at the Los Angeles "Valley Torah" Highschool. Multiple colleges were interested in his services, but he made it a point to go to a college that is observant of his faith. He said he was worried about going to a college that does not serve Kosher food and that the experience would be in contradiction of his religious lifestyle.
Yeshiva University was a great fit. He felt at home from Day one. The ability he displayed in the two previous years was enough to make him a starter for his new team and earned him a spot in the season's opening five, as well as the Conference Player of The Season award for two successive seasons.
It was reported last year that several NBA scouts have Turell on their radar and would like to see him try out for their teams. While eventually not becoming the NBA's first Orthodox Jew player, the nickname "Jewish Jordan 2" stuck.
"I can't control what people call me or what they said," Turell said. "I really don't think about it much. Obviously it's a nice nickname, but what truly matters is how I perform on the court."