Dallas Turner lists Doc Rivers as most impactful speaker Alabama hosted

Dallas Turner had the benefit of hearing from a bunch of amazing guest speakers as a member of the Alabama football team, but one in particular made the biggest impact on him.

Ahead of the 2023 campaign, Turner is looking for inspiration in all corners. According to the Crimson Tide pass rusher, it was NBA legend Doc Rivers who spoke directly to him the most, and has given him a rallying cry for Alabama’s season.

“I feel like the speaker that stuck most to me was Doc Rivers,” stated Turner. “Because you know, he’s a very famous, very successful NBA coach. So I feel like, you know he’s had a lot of successful teams, and you know, a lot of bad teams that didn’t. So he stuck with me by saying about the Celtics team when they won, and brought in Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen. He said, ‘Everybody had to sacrifice something.’ They had to sacrifice something to get to where everybody wants to go.

“So you know, Paul Pierce being on that Celtics team. You know he was the star player. He had to you know, cut back on the amount of shots and touches he had, because he had guys like KG and Ray Allen and stuff like that. So I feel like if everybody sacrifices one thing, whether it’s on or off the field and you know, everybody just plays their role, the sky is the limit.”

Of course, those Celtics teams dominated year-in and year-out under Rivers, and captured an NBA title. Perhaps Rivers’ advice can get Alabama back to the promise land in 2023.

Time will tell, but the talent is there. Dallas Turner is just looking to put it all together for Alabama this season.

Dallas Turner claims Alabama defense has no limit

Continuing, Alabama did not play the brand of football they wanted to on defense last season. Nick Saban made a move at defensive coordinator, bringing Kevin Steele into the mix. He will replace Pete Golding, who has moved across state lines to work with Ole Miss. Folks in Tuscaloosa are excited to have Steele back in the program and hope to get back to dominant ways.

Just days before kickoff, the players are confident Alabama will get there. Dallas Turnersays there is “no limit” as to how good the Crimson Tide’s defense will be this season — not just because of football reasons either. Turner says everyone is clicking off the field too and at the right time.

“The defense has no limits to it this year,” Turner said. “From everything I am seeing from practice, the type of work we’re putting in. Just unity as one, the togetherness that we’re starting to have, the bond on and off the field. So, there’s no limit to how the defense can be good.”

Turner has been at Alabama for two seasons now and for the most part, he has been a really solid complementarily player. Will Anderson was the star of the show, especially during the 2021 season when he was a near Heisman Trophy finalist. But with Anderson now in Houston with the Texans, Turner has the opportunity to step into the limelight.

From a numbers perspective, Turner will have to play as he did as a true freshman to reach the high-level Alabama wants to play at. Turner recorded 10 tackles for a loss and 8.5 sacks during his debut campaign. Numbers dropped just a tad during the 2022 season, going for 8.0 tackles for a loss and 4.5 sacks.

On3’s Griffin McVeigh contributed to this article.