Enes Kanter wasn’t nervous, but more in awe. There were teammates double his age on that bench, some even older. So he never imagined he’d actually get in the game.

Kanter had been with Fenerbahçe’s junior team since he was 14. He was tall and skilled and really beginning to develop. By 15, he was a major prospect. At 16, he got called up to the senior team to provide an extra body in practice.

Omer Asik and Semih Erden made up Fenerbahçe’s star-studded frontline. Both were 22 at the time and soon to move on to the NBA. But during that 2008-09 season, both got hurt. So Kanter was promoted to the bench for games. And then the replacements got in foul trouble. So Kanter was suddenly in the action, becoming the youngest player in Euroleague history.

“I wasn’t even ready,” he recalled. “I was shocked.”