Scott Machado: Undrafted Rookie the Next Big Thing?

While most players would have put their heads down and given up right there, Machado simply saw this as motivation to get better. Machado spent the entire summer working on his game overseas, and saw an evident change in his game. However, to Machado’s disappointment, teams around the league didn’t seem to notice that change, as Machado went undrafted in the 2012 NBA Draft.

Once again, Machado was in a situation where it would have been understandable to give up and move on with his life. But, as Machado said in an interview with DraftExpress.com, “I want to make this my life, and I want to make this my job. I love this game, so I want to prove to everybody that I’m capable of being an elite player.”

Shortly after going undrafted, Machado was given a chance to back up his statements and show that he was, indeed “capable of being an elite player.”  On July 29th, the Houston Rockets invited the Machado to their training camp and summer league team, where Machado showed everyone why he was the chosen as the 2o12 MAAC Player of the Year. With a couple of highlight plays and lots of pretty dimes, scouts all over were asking themselves why they passed up on a gem like Machado.

Not long after his impressive stint with the Rockets, Machado found himself signing a contract to play in the NBA. And to think that just a couple of months ago, Machado was sitting at home, no closer to being an NBA player than me or you.

Machado’s journey from a mid-major college (Iona) to the biggest stage in basketball is moving and coincidently, much like the story of his fellow teammate, Jeremy Lin. By never giving up, no matter the obstacles that were placed in front of him, Machado showed that hard work truly does pay off. And never, at any point, did Machado doubt himself. Before training camp even started, Machado said,

“I thought it was a stretch, but I thought I was definitely gonna be able to be here, either working out or trying out for an NBA team. Definitely thought that.”

DraftExpress.com predicts that Machado’s best case scenario is Earl Watson but many think otherwise. With court vision/awareness that is unparalleled to that of anyone else in the rookie class, it wouldn’t be too surprising to see Machado surpass Shaun Livingston and Toney Douglas and earn a spot as the backup point guard for the Rockets this year.

In this league, no one makes it farther than hard workers, and luckily for Rocket fans, that’s exactly was Machado is.