Jabari Parker And An Amazon River Turtle Are Best Friends

It’s been a rough adjustment for the Milwaukee Bucks’ Jabari Parker. Last year’s #2 pick tore his ACL early in his rookie season, and he’s still working on finding his stride. Every young player needs some time to get used to NBA life, and OnMilwaukee.com caught up with him and found out that a near century-old Amazon river turtle named Onassis has helped Parker work his way back from his devastating injury:

Parker says he did get to see the giraffes and felines and elephants and others, but there was something enchanting – especially to him – about Onassis.

The No. 2 pick in the 2014 NBA draft, Parker suffered a devastating knee injury 368 days ago that ended his rookie season. This year, he’s averaging 10.8 points and 4.3 rebounds for the 10-17 Bucks and says he goes to the zoo often, occasionally before games to relax.

“It’s therapeutic,” says Parker, whose family has a dog in Chicago. “Animals are something I enjoy; it’s one of my passions. I’m just amazed at how long (Onassis) lives. I love it.”

Here is a photo of Onassis, who is a rather beautiful critter.

Hopefully Onassis bequeathed some aging secrets onto Parker and his fragile knee joints.

Photo via Getty; h/t CBS