He then left college for the NBA, dreaming of better, brighter days. Needless to say, things haven't exactly gone that way.
His NBA career started off in a promising manner when he was drafted third overall, ahead of Brandon Roy, Tyrus Thomas, Rudy Gay, Rajon Rondo and J.J. Redick, among others. Morrison was handpicked by Michael Jordan. Things were certainly looking up.
Then, well, Morrison proved to be not very good. Instead of improving upon his rookie numbers of 11.8 points, 2.9 rebounds and 2.1 assists per game, Morrison tore his ACL and missed the entire 2007-08 season.
"To come back and get hurt and not get the chance to prove myself was probably the worst," Morrison recently told the L.A. Times.
His return to the floor for the Bobcats was even more disappointing, as Morrison struggled to earn playing time on a team that finished 35-47. By February, Morrison had averaged just 4.5 points, 1.6 rebounds and 0.9 assists in 15.2 minutes per game before being shipped to the Lakers with Shannon Brown for Vladimir Radmonovic.
On his way out of town, Morrison didn't exactly get words of praise from his head coach, Larry Brown.
“I was happy Adam got to leave because he was never comfortable here," Brown told the Charlotte Observer at the time.
Ouch.
With the Lakers, Morrison was mostly invisible, averaging just 5.5 minutes in eight games and wearing street clothes in the playoffs.
After an encouraging showing in the summer league, Morrison is hopeful his worst days are behind him.
"A lot of people left me for dead," Morrison told the Times after averaging 20.8 points, five rebounds and two assists per game in the summer league. "A lot of people said I couldn't play. And [the Lakers] gave me a chance to get healthy, and I'll get a chance hopefully to prove I can play."
Now in his contract year, Morrison has his final chance to prove he can hang in the NBA.
"Yeah, it's my contract year," he told the Times. "If I don't perform well, I might not be in the league. It's definitely a big year."
