Bret Favachio
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D'Angelo Russell puts together his best week in the NBA
Bret Favachio via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
It was a pretty good week for former Buckeyes in the NBA. Let's check out how the five performed.
Last week, it was former Buckeyes Mike Conley, D'Angelo Russell, and Jared Sullinger who received some sort praise for their efforts on the court. As for Kosta Koufos and Evan Turner, it was certainly a forgettable week and one they hope to put behind them.
Mike Conley, PG, Memphis Grizzlies
Last week wasn't a bad one for Mike Conley but he can undoubtedly perform at a higher-level. He proved that this week, when he obliterated his previous weeks scoring numbers. Conley averaged 24.3 points per game in his last three games. His previous high was 14.3, back in the second week of the season, and he earned those numbers with a not-so-good FG%. This week was a different story as Conley made exactly half of his shot attempts from the floor. After two consecutive weeks of iffiness from the FT line, Conley got back to form, as he missed just one of his 14 freebies. Conley closed out the week with an additional 3.0 rebounds, and 5.3 assists per game.
Best Performance: You just can't go against the night that Conley set his high for points on the season with 26 against the Rockets. Conley was 10-17 on the night ,which is good for 58.8% -- his second most efficient game thus far. While he struggled the rest of the week from three-point land, in this one he nailed three of his six attempts from distance. Conley also dished out five assists while grabbing three rebounds. The superb performance from Conley helped the Grizzlies take down Houston 96-84 in the Grindhouse.
Team Record: 8-7
Upcoming Games: Tonight @ Houston Rockets, 11/27 vs Atlanta Hawks, 11/29 vs Philadelphia 76ers, 12/1 @ New Orleans Pelicans.
Kosta Koufos, C, Sacramento Kings
No other former Buckeye put together a more dreadful week last week than Kosta Koufos did. It was very important that the 7-footer bounced back and put that in his rear-view mirror by giving George Karl and the Kings more quality play and he did. Somewhat inexplicably, Koufos was given more minutes and he promptly delivered by putting together his best scoring week since becoming a member of Sacramento. Koufos failed to reach double digits in just one game this week -- the six point game against Miami -- and sure enough, after mentioning it last week, Koufos was finally able to gather a positive +/- performance. All in all, the Kings big man was much more aggressive as he took the most shots in any previous week and was fairly efficient at the same time.
Best Performance: This is a toss-up, but you have to acknowledge the first positive +/- rating for the 26 year old on the year. That came on Saturday when the Kings snapped a two-game skid by defeating the Magic in Orlando. Koufos dropped 12 points on 4-7 shooting (57.1%) and also a perfect 4-4 from the charity stripe. Yes, he did only secure five rebounds, but the thing that stands out the most is that he only committed one foul, which has been an issue for him this season.
Team Record: 5-10
Upcoming Games: Tonight @ Milwaukee Bucks, 11/27 vs Minnesota Timberwolves, 11/28 @ Golden State Warriors, 11/30 vs Dallas Mavericks.
D'Angelo Russell, SG, Los Angeles Lakers
It was a worrisome and uneventful first two weeks for D'Angelo Russell in the NBA. However, as the first three weeks of the season concluded, Russell was able to make slight improvements each week. That upward trend continued this week and it's likely that Russell received his high in minutes because of it. Russell averaged 32 minutes per contest in the most recent three games and his scoring benefited from having more time on the hardwood. Leading the way for Russell was a 17 point night against the Eastern Conference's Toronto Raptors. The big night surpassed his previous high of 16 points back on November 6th against Brooklyn. The first year man out of Ohio State also reached a season-high in rebounding.
Best Performance: It was a tough pick between Russell's first two outings of the week. However, it's the contest against the Blazers that will get the nod here. Despite turning the ball over three times and having a less than desirable +/- rating, Russell put together a respectable line otherwise. The rookie played a season-high 36 minutes while scoring 13 points as well as grabbing nine rebounds and six assists. Despite the solid output, it wasn't enough to help the Lakers -- nothing is anymore.
Team Record: 2-12
Upcoming Games: 11/28 @ Portland Trail Blazers, 11/29 vs Indiana Pacers, 12/1 @ Philadelphia 76ers.
Jared Sullinger, PF, Boston Celtics
After averaging a double-double last week, Sully was able to grab just one this week but he wasn't able to outperform the lines he gave Boston last week. That's not to say that the 6'9, 260-pounder played poorly. It was an average week for the Ohio State product. Sullinger gave the Celtics a better scoring display but that can be pointed to the very first game of the week. He did slightly regress in the majority of statistical categories but the forward will walk away from this week averaging better than 10 points and close to eight rebounds per game. One thing worth monitoring is that Sullinger has seen a weekly decrease in his field goal percentage. Hopefully he can break that trend next week.
Best Performance: It's never easy to put an inefficient game as someones best performance, but it was mostly that way for Sullinger this week. So, we will look at the bright side of a 7-19 (36.8%) shooting display. It was last Wednesday when Boston squared off against the Mavericks. Sullinger was able to pick up his fourth double-double of the season when he dropped 18 points and pulled down 12 boards. All for nothing however, as Dallas was able to pull away in the fourth quarter and come out on top by four.
Team Record: 7-7
Upcoming Games: Tonight vs Philadelphia 76ers, 11/27 vs Washington Wizards, 11/29 @ Orlando Magic, 11/30 @ Miami Heat.
Evan Turner, SF, Boston Celtics
Turner took a hit in seemingly every major statistical category last week as he struggled in most of his outings. In hopes of turning things around, Turner enhanced his play in the four games the Celtics played this week. The former St. Joseph (IL) star turned in his second best scoring week at about 9.8 points per game. Turner did so by being the most efficient he has all year thus far with his 53.3 FG% and he only had one game in which he shot under 50%. Also, Turner was able to notch his single game season-high in rebounds and assists.
Best Performance: Turner played well in both meetings against the Nets this week. But the initial battle stands out just a bit more. Turner had his most efficient game of the season on Friday night at the TD Garden as he successfully finished five of his seven attempts which is good for 71.4%. Turner would also set a season high in assists in this one, though he eventually tied that in the final game of the week, with seven dimes and he also pulled down five rebounds. Not a bad stat line for the Illinois native especially in just 26 minutes off of the pine.
Team Record: 7-7
Upcoming Games: Tonight vs Philadelphia 76ers, 11/27 vs Washington Wizards, 11/29 @ Orlando Magic, 11/30 @ Miami Heat.
Continue reading...
Bret Favachio via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
It was a pretty good week for former Buckeyes in the NBA. Let's check out how the five performed.
Last week, it was former Buckeyes Mike Conley, D'Angelo Russell, and Jared Sullinger who received some sort praise for their efforts on the court. As for Kosta Koufos and Evan Turner, it was certainly a forgettable week and one they hope to put behind them.
Mike Conley, PG, Memphis Grizzlies
Last week wasn't a bad one for Mike Conley but he can undoubtedly perform at a higher-level. He proved that this week, when he obliterated his previous weeks scoring numbers. Conley averaged 24.3 points per game in his last three games. His previous high was 14.3, back in the second week of the season, and he earned those numbers with a not-so-good FG%. This week was a different story as Conley made exactly half of his shot attempts from the floor. After two consecutive weeks of iffiness from the FT line, Conley got back to form, as he missed just one of his 14 freebies. Conley closed out the week with an additional 3.0 rebounds, and 5.3 assists per game.
Best Performance: You just can't go against the night that Conley set his high for points on the season with 26 against the Rockets. Conley was 10-17 on the night ,which is good for 58.8% -- his second most efficient game thus far. While he struggled the rest of the week from three-point land, in this one he nailed three of his six attempts from distance. Conley also dished out five assists while grabbing three rebounds. The superb performance from Conley helped the Grizzlies take down Houston 96-84 in the Grindhouse.
Team Record: 8-7
Upcoming Games: Tonight @ Houston Rockets, 11/27 vs Atlanta Hawks, 11/29 vs Philadelphia 76ers, 12/1 @ New Orleans Pelicans.
Kosta Koufos, C, Sacramento Kings
No other former Buckeye put together a more dreadful week last week than Kosta Koufos did. It was very important that the 7-footer bounced back and put that in his rear-view mirror by giving George Karl and the Kings more quality play and he did. Somewhat inexplicably, Koufos was given more minutes and he promptly delivered by putting together his best scoring week since becoming a member of Sacramento. Koufos failed to reach double digits in just one game this week -- the six point game against Miami -- and sure enough, after mentioning it last week, Koufos was finally able to gather a positive +/- performance. All in all, the Kings big man was much more aggressive as he took the most shots in any previous week and was fairly efficient at the same time.
Best Performance: This is a toss-up, but you have to acknowledge the first positive +/- rating for the 26 year old on the year. That came on Saturday when the Kings snapped a two-game skid by defeating the Magic in Orlando. Koufos dropped 12 points on 4-7 shooting (57.1%) and also a perfect 4-4 from the charity stripe. Yes, he did only secure five rebounds, but the thing that stands out the most is that he only committed one foul, which has been an issue for him this season.
Team Record: 5-10
Upcoming Games: Tonight @ Milwaukee Bucks, 11/27 vs Minnesota Timberwolves, 11/28 @ Golden State Warriors, 11/30 vs Dallas Mavericks.
D'Angelo Russell, SG, Los Angeles Lakers
It was a worrisome and uneventful first two weeks for D'Angelo Russell in the NBA. However, as the first three weeks of the season concluded, Russell was able to make slight improvements each week. That upward trend continued this week and it's likely that Russell received his high in minutes because of it. Russell averaged 32 minutes per contest in the most recent three games and his scoring benefited from having more time on the hardwood. Leading the way for Russell was a 17 point night against the Eastern Conference's Toronto Raptors. The big night surpassed his previous high of 16 points back on November 6th against Brooklyn. The first year man out of Ohio State also reached a season-high in rebounding.
Best Performance: It was a tough pick between Russell's first two outings of the week. However, it's the contest against the Blazers that will get the nod here. Despite turning the ball over three times and having a less than desirable +/- rating, Russell put together a respectable line otherwise. The rookie played a season-high 36 minutes while scoring 13 points as well as grabbing nine rebounds and six assists. Despite the solid output, it wasn't enough to help the Lakers -- nothing is anymore.
Team Record: 2-12
Upcoming Games: 11/28 @ Portland Trail Blazers, 11/29 vs Indiana Pacers, 12/1 @ Philadelphia 76ers.
Jared Sullinger, PF, Boston Celtics
After averaging a double-double last week, Sully was able to grab just one this week but he wasn't able to outperform the lines he gave Boston last week. That's not to say that the 6'9, 260-pounder played poorly. It was an average week for the Ohio State product. Sullinger gave the Celtics a better scoring display but that can be pointed to the very first game of the week. He did slightly regress in the majority of statistical categories but the forward will walk away from this week averaging better than 10 points and close to eight rebounds per game. One thing worth monitoring is that Sullinger has seen a weekly decrease in his field goal percentage. Hopefully he can break that trend next week.
Best Performance: It's never easy to put an inefficient game as someones best performance, but it was mostly that way for Sullinger this week. So, we will look at the bright side of a 7-19 (36.8%) shooting display. It was last Wednesday when Boston squared off against the Mavericks. Sullinger was able to pick up his fourth double-double of the season when he dropped 18 points and pulled down 12 boards. All for nothing however, as Dallas was able to pull away in the fourth quarter and come out on top by four.
Team Record: 7-7
Upcoming Games: Tonight vs Philadelphia 76ers, 11/27 vs Washington Wizards, 11/29 @ Orlando Magic, 11/30 @ Miami Heat.
Evan Turner, SF, Boston Celtics
Turner took a hit in seemingly every major statistical category last week as he struggled in most of his outings. In hopes of turning things around, Turner enhanced his play in the four games the Celtics played this week. The former St. Joseph (IL) star turned in his second best scoring week at about 9.8 points per game. Turner did so by being the most efficient he has all year thus far with his 53.3 FG% and he only had one game in which he shot under 50%. Also, Turner was able to notch his single game season-high in rebounds and assists.
Best Performance: Turner played well in both meetings against the Nets this week. But the initial battle stands out just a bit more. Turner had his most efficient game of the season on Friday night at the TD Garden as he successfully finished five of his seven attempts which is good for 71.4%. Turner would also set a season high in assists in this one, though he eventually tied that in the final game of the week, with seven dimes and he also pulled down five rebounds. Not a bad stat line for the Illinois native especially in just 26 minutes off of the pine.
Team Record: 7-7
Upcoming Games: Tonight vs Philadelphia 76ers, 11/27 vs Washington Wizards, 11/29 @ Orlando Magic, 11/30 @ Miami Heat.
Continue reading...