MUSCLE SHOALS (AP) — Former Muscle Shoals star basketball player Ralston Turner never thought that as an adult, he would be back in the Shoals.

But Turner, who played at both LSU and N.C. State in college as well as professionally in Europe and the NBA’s G-League, said that after leaving the game on his own accord, he felt led to come back just two years ago when the opportunity came up.

Now, Turner is a financial advisor at Merrill Lynch in Florence. He’s also an assistant for Muscle Shoals boys basketball, along with leading the junior varsity team.

“I felt like that point in time, that was the way God was leading me,” Turner said. “That was a lot of things that I never saw coming and it just worked out that way.”

Turner’s road back to the Shoals happened rather quickly. He walked off the court for his last game as a professional in April 2017. A few months later, he was working at Merrill Lynch in July at a company in Raleigh, North Carolina.

The opportunity to come work at the Trapp group in Florence became available. After some time to decide, Turner made the move. He hoped to spend more time with family, something he didn’t get to do for several years.

Upon coming back, Turner had his life almost come full circle. Neal Barker, the head basketball coach at Muscle Shoals, offered him the job as JV coach. At first, he wasn’t sure if he had the time with his current job, but gave it some thought and even consulted with his parents.

“I told my dad, ‘I’d be lying if I didn’t have this strong tug to do it,'” Turner said. “I followed my heart on that one.”

In the two years since, Turner has worked with the staff in what has turned out to be a great experience, noting that he has “so much to give” when it comes to the game of basketball and helping kids.

It’s not limited to just basketball. Last summer, Turner was asked to come to the Michael Community Center for a speaking engagement. While there, he got to meet with some kids. At the time, he was informed that there were a large percentage of kids dropping out and not finishing school.

So Turner spoke to them from his experiences.

“The main thing I wanted them to know is, basketball, it’s a past time, but no one can ever take an education away from you,” Turner said. “There’s no messed up ankle, bad knee, screwed up back, none of that takes away your education.”

Working at Muscle Shoals has opened Turner’s eyes to some of the changes taking place on the basketball scene in the Shoals. He’s noticed, primarily with the Trojans but also others, that coaches are scheduling tougher games, a step to prepare their teams for playoff success.

But also just for life in general, saying he thinks it’s a “progressive approach.”

“It’s kind of crazy being a coach now just because of the simple fact that it feels like I was literally there,” Turner said. “I walk in the gym and it’s like all these memories from the past pop up and I can remember certain games that I had. But I’ve definitely enjoyed the experience and I definitely love giving back.”

Turner left Muscle Shoals in 2010 after scoring 2,502 career points, helping lead his team to a 27-3 record his senior year. He signed with LSU, where he averaged 12.3 points a game as a freshman, making the SEC’s All-Freshman team.

After his sophomore year, however, he transferred to N.C. State, which he noted was an eye-opening experience coming from Alabama, a football-focused state.

“The same way people go crazy over ‘Roll Tide’, that’s the same way people go crazy over basketball over there,” Turner said. “I get to the ACC, N.C. State, where basketball is king. I played with good players, I played against good players, I played in nice venues (with) hostile crowds. That’s what you want out of your experience.”

That’s not to say his experience at LSU was bad, he just appreciated what N.C. State had to offer.

He played in NCAA tournament games, even against the Tigers. The Wolfpack beat LSU 66-65 in 2015 on its way to the Sweet 16. He averaged 12.8 points per game that season.

“As a kid growing up, you always watch the tournament,” Turner said. “Like it’s March, you associate March with the tournament. Everybody is filling out their bracket, I definitely wanted to participate.”

Now, Turner is comfortable back in the place where he grew up. When he’s not busy with Merrill Lynch or coaching the Trojans, he does basketball training with kids to help their skills.

Turner said he often gets asked why he stopped playing basketball. He wasn’t injured and nothing was wrong. His answer is simple, and his experiences in the time since has left him validated.

“God told me to do it, Gold told me to go serve the people in a different way,” Turner said. “It’s actually been really really fun. I enjoy the game and I want to be able to give that back to the kids.”