Photo via Washington Athletics

With tryouts approaching for most football teams, it’s important for athletes not to give up if they don’t get the results they want.  

They only need to look to the sport of basketball for a salient reminder that not making the team (or team level) of their choice is hardly the end of the world.

The 2017 NBA Draft draft will take place on Thursday, and Markelle Fultz, a guard from Washington, is expected to be the No. 1 pick by the Philadelphia 76ers.

Unlike some basketball stars who were anointed as prodigies at a young age, Fultz took a different path that more athletes can relate to, regardless of sport.

As a sophomore, Fultz was cut from the varsity basketball team at Washington, D.C.-area powerhouse DeMatha (Hyattsville, Md.).

In a profile in the Washington Post by Kent Babb who spent the evening of the 2017 NBA Draft Lottery with Fultz, Babb describes how being cut motivated Fultz.

“Almost immediately after being cut, Markelle had rededicated himself to on-court skills. At [Fultz's personal coach] Williams’s instruction, he took 700 shots per day, spent hours swimming or boxing, committed to improving his footwork and vision and stretching the limits of his body.”

Basically, Fultz used not making the team as motivation to take his game to a whole new level and make DeMatha coach Mike Jones realize he had made a mistake.

“My goal from then on was to prove him wrong,” Fultz told The Post.

Just three years later, Fultz is on the verge of being the top overall selection in the NBA Draft.

And Jones realizes he probably made a mistake cutting Fultz.

“In hindsight, I’d say I was wrong,” Jones said.

The lesson extends to the football field. If tryouts don’t go as expected, it’s not the end. Take time to improve your skills and prove everyone wrong when next season comes around.

SEE ALSO: Your child didn’t make the all-star team? That’s OK