Jimmer Fredette, Former BYU Basketball Star, Working Hard to get Back to the NBA

Before Steph Curry became the superstar player that he is today, there was Jimmer Fredette. OK, that may be a bit of a stretch, but during 2010-11, there might not have been a more popular basketball player. He was the college player of the year at BYU, he made the absurd look routine, and he enjoyed a pretty healthy YouTube following. However, Fredette has fallen a long way from that stardom. He now plies his trade with the Westchester Knicks, in the NBA's Development League.

In 2011, Fredette was drafted by the Sacramento Kings with the 10th overall pick in the draft. However, he failed to make an impact and was soon let go. From there, he bounced around--rather unsuccessfully--with Chicago, New Orleans and San Antonio (briefly in preseason), before ultimately succumbing to the D-League. And while the D-League is a long way from being the 10th overall pick in the NBA draft, he's finally enjoying the opportunity to have some consistency. This could ultimately help him thrive.

"It wasn't necessarily a letdown because I knew I had to do some things to get onto a team where I can thrive," Fredette said, when he was asked about being relegated to the NBA's D-League.

"It was kind of a breath of fresh air to go out and know you're going to get some playing time, be able to play, do what you do, gain some confidence and get some reps," Fredette told Yahoo! Sports. "That was the biggest thing for me when I talked to my agent and my family, was to get reps, get confidence back and be able to show people what I can do again."

And while he is enjoying some success in the D-League and is thankful for the many opportunities he has been blessed with, his end goal remains the same: get back to the league.

"I've been very blessed to be able to play this game and I try to savor it as much as I can," Fredette said. "But the goal, obviously, is to be able to hopefully get back to the league."

Fredette's high volume scoring could be enticing for some NBA front offices, especially considering the NBA season is at a point in the year where they can now offer 10-day contracts. Until that opportunity comes knocking, he'll continue to work on what he can control.

Now, some vintage Jimmer: