DEERFIELD, Ill. (CBS 58) - Just off to the side at a Chicago Sky practice, you will find Jon Özbalkan, one of the longest tenured members of the staff.
Özbalkan serves in one of the team's most vital roles, that of the team's video coordinator.
"Now, it's year four; it goes by fast," he told us.
David Simon, Director of Player Development, says the team has an appropriate nickname for Özbalkan. "We kinda call him 'Mr. Everywhere' because he's kinda got everything we need."
Özbalkan and David Simon have worked together for four seasons as part of the player development team, as the video coordinator makes sure every coach and player can look clip-by-clip at what happens in practice and games, helping execute the vision of first year head coach Tyler Marsh.
Marsh says Özbalkan comes prepared. "There’s a lot of times where he already has things in place prior to me asking for them. He’s got a good feel and read on me and what I look for."
Özbalkan first joined the sky before the 2022 season as an assistant video coordinator, though coaching changes pushed him into head role quickly.
"[I] got thrown into the fire. I was, like, 'hey, maybe deep, dig deep, go home, watch stuff, watch people that does the job.' That's the biggest thing. Even with coaching, like, even with as video, if someone's doing it well and they share their wisdom, you gotta go watch and see what happens and you get better."
Adapting isn't new for him. At 16, he left his home of Istanbul to land in Beaver Dam to attend Wayland Academy. While it was tough to be so far from family, the small community of the school made the adjustment easier.
"Two-hundred people that were in our community helped a lot and the sports also," said Özbalkan.
Whether it was soccer, basketball or track, Özbalkan found a stride athletically, eventually playing at UW-Fond Du Lac before finishing school at UW-Green Bay. He thought he would go to school and be a journalist in sports, but instead his time as a manager for the Phoenix basketball team. That gave him the itch to coach.
"I guess it's full circle because I graduated from Green Bay was like, 'hey I want to be a coach. Where can I go?' The only place I know to start in America is Wayland."
From his one season at his alma mater, Özbalkan could not have predicted he would be in a professional league as a video coordinator, but his contributions have not gone unnoticed.
Coach Marsh said, "Our team recognizes the value that he brings and he’s someone that won’t be a video coordinator for long, so I'm going to enjoy him while he’s here ... He’s got bigger and better things destined for his coaching career."
Özbalkan was asked if coaching is his ultimate goal for his career.
"Yes, I don’t have any timeline on it. I don't; I don't say, like, in five years I have to do this to this, because if you asked me five years ago, I didn't imagine being here. If you told me I'll be in the gym with Candice Parker, Courtney Vandersloot, Allie Quigley, Kaleah Copper, Angel Reese. I'd be like 'nah, probably not.' But life works in different mysterious ways, I would say."
The Sky's the limit for Jon Özbalkan.