On Friday, Turner Sports announced that the company would be airing The Pathway, a two-part feature about prospects from G League Ignite.
Kenny Smith serves as the host and an executive producer of The Pathway, which is directed by James D. Stern, an EP on Last Chance U.
Four players are featured in the series: Jalen Green, Jonathan Kuminga, Daishen Nix, and Isaiah Todd. Green and Kuminga were top ten picks in last summer’s NBA Draft, while Todd was a second rounder and Nix went undrafted.
Here’s a blurb about the series.
The Pathway chronicles each player’s dream of reaching the NBA, documenting the extraordinary sacrifices they and their families make, along with the hard work they put in and immense pressure they face to beat the incredible odds and succeed: Kuminga moved from the Congo when he was just 14 years old; Green, the former No. 1 high school player in the nation from Fresno, California, has been in the headlines since 7th grade; and top high school recruits, Todd and Nix, de-committed from storied NCAA programs to join G League Ignite.
Questions abound as they vie to become the next NBA great who skipped college to reach NBA glory. The road is not easy, from competing against older, stronger, more experienced professional NBA players and other talented prospects to impress NBA scouts and General Managers during the NBA Draft Combine, to the anxiety of Draft Night and the added pressure of shining in the NBA Summer League, fans witness what it takes for four young ballers to make their wildest dream of playing in the NBA a reality.
Given how much attention has been paid to NBA Draft prospects bypassing college to play in the G League, this series seems like it could be an interesting look at four players who made that decision with four different outcomes. But with just a pair of hour-long episodes, it might be tough to get as deep a dive as desired.
The Pathway will air following TNT’s NBA coverage on Monday, April 18th and Tuesday, April 19th. Streaming distribution was not announced.
