On Friday, Fred VanVleet agreed to a three-year, $130 million deal with the Houston Rockets. It was the first max contract of the summer and the largest-ever contract for an undrafted player.
Following news of the deal, a famous VanVleet tweet from 2016 immediately went viral once again.
Bet on yourself
— Fred VanVleet (@FredVanVleet) June 24, 2016
The original “bet on yourself” tweet came after VanVleet unexpectedly went undrafted, leaving a house full of his family and friends in stunned silence. But he wasn’t dismayed and knew better things were on the horizon. It was a message he delivered to the partygoers as well as those on social media that night.
Four years after that tweet, VanVleet had already picked up an NBA Championship and was then signed to a four-year, $85 million contract by the Toronto Raptors. As it was then just as it is now, that was the largest contract for an undrafted player in NBA history.
VanVleet had bet on himself and he had won. And now he’s won again.
The manta is something all young athletes should take to heart, particularly those who recently went unselected during the 2023 NBA Draft. The future is still out there to be had and VanVleet is proof of that.
Meanwhile, that 2016 tweet continues to age like a fine wine.
