That same rhythmic clap and subtle horn boomed through the Atlanta Hawks practice facility and signaled to teammates and coaches alike to match that energy. Like his favorite song, “Jerusalema" by South African artists Master KG and Nomcebo Zikode, Bruno Fernando played on repeat. The Hawks heard him and that track over and over and over again.
“His voice carried through the gym … yelling and screaming,” said Matt Hill, a Hawks assistant coach. “You know Bruno's in the building if you have a pulse.”
Fernando challenged everyone around him, especially anyone asking to turn the music down. It usually took three tries.“Walk with me,” the song's refrain translates from the South African isiZulu language. “Do not leave me here.”
Fernando fittingly got on slacking teammates with his consistent energy, even coaches had to arrive and match him, running through the Atlanta suburbs. His ubiquitous smile became as known as his theme song, with a 6’9”, 240-pound presence made even harder to ignore once teammates learned his story. The Hawks understood Fernando -- the first NBA player from Angola, who will now join the Celtics -- would set the energy level in the room and occasionally on the floor.
Few players could sit as long as Fernando did for two seasons with Atlanta and make as much noise without getting tuned out by teammates. They saw and felt authenticity and respected his journey, heard his wider perspective on wanting to help his family and felt him pushing the team physically in scrimmages.
“If you have guys like Bruno who constantly have energy and pop and they are uplifting and loud in a good way. There's life,” Hill said. “It just gives your group some juice.”
Clint Capela, John Collins and Onyeka Okongwu emerged, so the 2019 No. 34 pick from Maryland slid down the depth chart after starting 13 games early as a rookie during the Hawks’ losing 2019-20 season. That and last season’s Hawks turnaround landed Fernando in Boston via the three-team trade this summer that sent Tristan Thompson to Sacramento.
Hill, who coached the Hawks in August’s Summer League, saw Fernando as he awaited the finalization of the trade to join the Celtics during Boston’s opener against Atlanta. Fernando already stood on the sideline yelling at new teammates, before he’d average 9.3 points, 5.3 rebounds and 1.0 blocks per game on 75% shooting in four games.
He made everything louder, smacking his hand off the rim on a block, swinging his arms back on put-backs or barreling through a defender at the rim. Somehow, having just joined the team, he seemed to be calling out the defensive play calls for the Celtics.
“Sometimes I just be talking crazy,” Fernando revealed after. “I just be yelling stuff. Sometimes that's all the guys need. Sometimes your teammates got to hear you, instead of me saying the right things, sometimes you just yell whatever you got to say. As long as they can hear your voice they know you're good for them.”
Fernando’s past coaches all remember the constant noise, the energy and aimed to channel it. His emotions swung between daily highs and lows, turned to 100 either way, dependent on results over process. He played at Montverde Academy, then IMG Academy, in Florida after finding success with Angola’s younger national teams. Fernando missed home beneath the charisma. His mind fixated on making the NBA to provide for his father, mother and seven siblings.
Mistakes and pressure tore at him, despite appearing unbreakable as he and IMG shattered the competition. Trust would play a critical role toward instilling focus and consistency into his preparation, as coaches emphasized finding his internal balance. John Mahoney, who coached Fernando at IMG and now leads the 212 Academy, earned Fernando's trust by inquiring about his family and providing him freedom to play the four. Mahoney took Fernando aside as he took extra shots after a practice where an array of bad possessions caved in on him mentally.
“You're going to have bad days and how you manage those days are going to tell you how successful you're going to be,” Mahoney told Fernando. “Every day, every game, every practice isn't going to be the best one you have.”
He nervously watched Fernando that year take part in a leadership drill for 28 straight hours, where military officials tested the group’s ability to organize and maintain their belongings before entering the turf area they’d stay on. Fernando’s coach didn’t know how he’d respond, still new to the US at that point, especially when the major got in his face and botched Fernando's name amid the disarray of backpacks in the lobby.
“Bruno Mars! You are the leader of this team. Get this room straight.”
Four other teammates failed the challenge prior, but Fernando turned to two teammates immediately and directed them to where they were supposed to be. The soldier approached Mahoney later with a guess regarding who the team’s leader would be, Bruno Fernando.
IMG’s staff, as well as Maryland’s once he committed in 2016, heard Fernando’s aspirations, dedicating time to teach skills that would translate to the NBA. They held him accountable, Mark Turgeon, the Terrapins' head coach, pointed out to Boston Sports Journal that Fernando was not in peak shape during Summer League after a long five-on-five hiatus. Atlanta stressed Fernando needed to stay in game shape through breaks in playing time during his two seasons.
"I'm like Bruno, whenever I don't hear you I know you're tired, because you hear him all the time," said Nate Babcock, who worked closely with Fernando in player development in Atlanta. "The second you stop hearing him you're like yeah, you're tired."
Fernando welcomed aggressive and honest coaching. He watched Kevin Garnett clips starting in high school, the Hall-of-Famer whose towering persona Fernando channeled as his favorite player.
Turgeon discovered Fernando in Florida from Larry Brown’s recruitment of him at SMU. He saw an athlete who he loved, who needed basketball development along with some guidance through the emotional swings, starting with navigating the stressful NCAA eligibility requirements.
“The highs and lows were too drastic,” Turgeon told BSJ. “Something we worked on for two years (was) just trying to stay a little bit more even-keeled.”
Fernando wanted to reach the NBA quickly. He considered making the leap after one year, then stayed two. Turgeon made a commitment to emphasize translatable skills that’d help him get there if Fernando committed to what the program needed to win. Turgeon would draw an NBA three-point line while they practiced shooting. He had bigs like Fernando work on guard skills. Managers met Fernando in the gym late at night.
Bino Ranson, Maryland’s former assistant coach now working at DePaul, worked on Fernando’s hands, shooting and jump stop, so he wouldn’t simply barrel through players in front of him on the roll. Kevin Broadus, now Morgan State’s head coach, helped Fernando move the ball out of the paint in those situations and honed in on his defense as a Maryland assistant under Turgeon.
“(Fernando) would bring (energy) into games ... being excited about the things that made him successful, which was rebounding and defending and finishing at the rim and all those things that excited the crowd,” Ranson said. “He's a pleaser. He wanted to please the coaching staff, he wanted to please the fans.”
Fernando told Broadus during marquee matchups that if the opposing bigs could go professional, “so could I.” Eventually, Broadus would endorse him making the leap, but urged Fernando to eventually return to finish his degree.
Babcock and the Hawks took over his development after Fernando’s sophomore season, and remembered him receiving 13 starts early before being fully acclimated to the pace of the NBA. Babcock, whose father helped draft Garnett to the Timberwolves, told Fernando KG stories. Fernando searched for Garnett while working out in LA with Rasheed Wallace as a freshman, but they never crossed paths. He confided in Babcock his journey, and desire to build a house for his family.
Fernando arrived early at the facility. As the new year approached, the rookie grew more fatigued some mornings. Babcock knew the time difference between Atlanta and Luanda, Angola would keep Fernando up late; teammates didn’t fully realize Natalia David, Fernando’s mother, battled pancreatic cancer in Angola along with other health problems.
She died at the beginning of 2020, as then-head coach Lloyd Pierce gathered the team for a somber goodbye as Fernando prepared to lead funeral arrangements back home in the middle of the season. He and a team security official made the two-day trip, which he makes only around once per year. Pierce and the Hawks kept him present through FaceTime as he missed four games. They could hear the silence.
“He's just such a lively personality most of the time,” Babcock said. “To see him down was really tough.”
Hill saw a different level of commitment upon Fernando’s return to staying in game shape and maintaining his NBA career. He developed better habits into year two, got more comfortable making decisions on the ball. Babcock helped Fernando commit to monotonous work like catching the ball countless times. His playing time didn’t see a bump. Still, Babcock reminded Fernando if Trae Young fires a pass his way and he drops it he may never get a look again.
Despite Fernando’s energy, the combination of running the floor, jumping into pick-and-roll actions all while considering how to best provide space on offense within moments of each other requires a different level of energy and focus than the more singular attacking role he played at Maryland. Babcock sees him doing more by excelling at less. He now coaches with the Nuggets’ G-League affiliate in Grand Rapids and remembers how light Fernando moved on his feet, the potential he flashed in the pick-and-roll and protecting the rim. Nobody who ever met Fernando can forget the noise. He believes Fernando is one of the most physical and powerful players in the league period. Now, conditioning needs to walk with him daily.
“The thing about Bruno is feeling comfortable, finding a coach or two on the staff that he can talk to and relate to,” Turgeon said. “Hopefully the Boston staff will do that, there'll be a coach or two that'll really invest in him X-and-O wise and invest in him as a person. It's different, it sounds different because the NBA's not that way, but he's a different kid.”
Ben Simmons on the move?
The Ben Simmons saga in Philadelphia will take a turning point later this month one way or another when the 76ers star decides whether or not he'll attend training camp. 76ers insider Keith Pompey reported Simmons told Philadelphia's brass he no longer wants to be with the team moving forward, as trade talks continue to make little progress. There appears to be a massive gap in the asking price of Philly president Daryl Morey, who wants to recoup value on Simmons' past status as a No. 1 overall pick, when the most significant reason he's on the trade block period was a playoff disaster sinking his value.
Simmons shot the worst percentage ever from the free-throw line for his volume and refused to shoot in fourth quarters, damaged by his role and also an unwillingness to aggressively seek his shot on offense. That's the balance potential suitors face, pressed by demands for massive amounts of assets while facing the uncertainty of acquiring a player who seems best suited for a narrowly defined passing, defending and rolling emphasis while making over $33-million per season for the next four years. It's not exactly buying low or a flier by any means. You have to still love him as much as you did before to go all-in on a trade for Simmons.
The Warriors make the most sense given their spacing, but can only reasonably match that salary with Andrew Wiggins. The Kings don't seem willing to move De'Aaron Fox and Tyrese Haliburton probably wouldn't meet the Morey threshold. Kevin O'Connor's CJ McCollum swap always made some sense for point guard-starved Philadelphia and defensively-challenged Portland. Morey may hold out for Damian Lillard's potential trade request. Simmons is on the table now though, and with Klutch reportedly pressuring the 76ers with a Tyrese Maxey trade request too, the wheels could be coming off a Sixers franchise that just extended Joel Embiid, who would've won MVP if healthy. We might've seen the best chance at a Sixers title in the Process era pass in 2019 when Jimmy Butler left.
Tweets aside, Embiid and Simmons don't work together on offense and Philadelphia loses significantly on defense by selling low on Simmons. This is a disaster, but a NBA holdout by a star of this caliber is unprecedented. Morey may have time on his side if he's willing to risk some turmoil in 2021-22 for a trade value long play. Remember: Simmons almost got the 76ers James Harden less than one calendar year ago. Now, does Pascal Siakam get it done?
Celtics get a four
The Celtics got down to 15 roster spots by flipping Carsen Edwards and Kris Dunn before he played a game in green to the Grizzlies for Juancho Hernangomez while the teams swapped future seconds. Boston avoids eating dead money to cut down the roster as they're likely keeping Jabari Parker for some portion of his non-guaranteed contract through its fully-guaranteed date in 2022. The Celtics committed to the luxury tax this year though, so releasing either Edwards, who never panned out at all in Boston as the second departure of that year's four so far ill-fated Danny Ainge selections, or Dunn, who had barely played through injuries in recent years, wouldn't have been a problem.
Boston must be at least mildly intrigued by Hernangomez, who makes $6.2-million this season and a fully non-guaranteed $6.6-million in 2022-23. He'll cost the team a minor increase on the luxury tax over what releasing a guaranteed player like Edwards would've. The 6'9" Spaniard plays a physical brand of basketball that hasn't smoothly translated to the NBA and is a career 35.1% three-point shooter. Perhaps Brad Stevens wanted a four with some size to spell Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum's defensive load during the year. Boston only had Grant Williams, Al Horford and Jabari Parker as natural four depth with Horford likely needed at center. As John Karalis wrote, it's a swing.
Lamarcus Aldridge, Paul Millsap in, DeAndre Jordan out in Brooklyn
This was a curious move. DeAndre Jordan, who was reportedly a necessary signing alongside Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant in Brooklyn two years ago, effectively got salary dumped with two seasons left on his contract at $9.9-million annually. The Pistons, who are paying Blake Griffin $29.8-million as part of last season's buyout to play for Brooklyn on the league minimum, make Detroit look like a convenient supplier of resources for Brooklyn. Detroit isn't necessarily trying to win now, has cap space to blow and got some compensation in four second-round picks and nearly $6-million cash. It's still puzzling to see a decent young player in Sekou Doumbouya go back to Brooklyn in the deal.
The Nets also effectively replaced Jeff Green with Paul Millsap committing to Brooklyn as the final free-agent splash and Lamarcus Aldridge stunningly returning from retirement after being cleared medically. Aldridge averaged 12.8 points per game with Brooklyn in five appearances last year on 52.1% shooting. Role players won't dictate Brooklyn's result this season, but adding this many seasoned veterans at little-to-no cost can't hurt.
As for Jordan, he's reportedly Lakers-bound in another curious move on Friday. The Nets needed some size inside late last year, especially into the Bucks series, and kept Jordan out of the rotation. LA may be more comfortable running with him, especially with Anthony Davis usually hesitant to play ample five minutes, and Marc Gasol and Dwight Howard rounding out an aging and uncertain center position behind him.
Nets-Lakers opens up the NBA preseason on Oct. 3, less than one month away.
COVID protocols in place
A third season plagued by COVID-19 appears imminent and the NBA passed strict protocols for unvaccinated players short of mandating the shot for players. Most other league personnel, including referees, in proximity to players will need to get a COVID-19 vaccine or face distancing. The protocols essentially separate unvaccinated players from teammates in most social settings, with lockers needing to be far from other players and daily testing once again. Plane and bus travel will feature separated sections for players without the vaccine. The league and players still need to officially formally agree on the protocols.
