Year of the Fox, The Bodega KAT, Celtics Repeat Pending?
Here are some facts you may have missed from last week and my thoughts on them.
Year of the Fox:
We are in the era of the scoring point guards. Now De’Aaron Fox knows he is nice, but the rest of the world is starting to notice.
Over a two-game span, Fox scored 109 points! This is coming off a back to back, where he joins Kobe Bryant as the only players to score that much on a back-to-back:
Fox also now has the most total points scored by a point guard in back-to-back days in league history.
Fox is nice. It was a big controversy behind not trading him instead of Tyrese Haliburton for Domantas Sabonis. Fox got his own sneaker this year with the Curry brand and worked out with Steph again in the off-season. He keeps adding more to his game, complimenting his fox-like speed and athleticism. Defenses are at the mercy of De’Aaron once he steps on the court.
The Bodega KAT:
Karl-Anthony Towns is having a great offensive season. He is set to becoming the highest scoring Knicks center (26.4) since Amar'e Stoudemire in 2010-11 (25.3). The downside of the situation is KAT’s defense. Tim Bontemps reported about a week ago that players are shooting 91% against Karl-Anthony Towns in the restricted area.
That is a very disturbing stat. While Towns has never been known as a defender, he has to make better decisions on that end. To also, what made KAT better on the defensive end last season was having Rudy Gobert helping him. KAT not being the defensive hub really allowed him to free roam and not having the assignment of being the main defender. That is why it is important for the Knicks to get Mitchell Robinson back. His defense means a lot for this team. He will serve as the defensive anchor and Towns can possibly get into foul trouble as much, not having to be the anchor. The defense of the wings or as we call them now, “Wingstop” with Mikal Bridges, OG Anunoby and Josh Hart have been playing better as of late. Even when Precious Achiuwa comes back, the defense will become better.
The Lakeshow:
We are finally seeing a fully loaded Anthony Davis in full swing effect. Under JJ Redick’s new system, AD is averaging 31 points per game. He is also shooting 43% from behind the arc. Both are career-highs for him. LeBron is still beating Father Time, putting up four straight triple-doubles, the first time he’s ever accomplished this feat, in year 22! King James just keeps adding to his legacy.
But the one player who’s not getting talked about, is Austin Reaves. Redick is trusting Reaves to run the offense more and it’s unlocked a new dimension in their offense. Reaves is up to a career-high 18 PPG while still dishing out 5.5 assists. AR15 has been playing the point in some lineups and he seems more comfortable with playing that role.
Luck of the Irish:
The Cavs are still sitting pretty with their 15-0 record, but on Tuesday they will face the defending champs. Celtics are still a well oiled machine, even without Kristaps Porzingis. Derrick White has become the team’s third option averaging a career-high 18.9 points. But the big story is Payton Pritchard. He is boosted his scoring to 15.5 PPG, knocking down almost four three-pointers on almost nine attempts. That’s good for a .419% clip. P-Rabbit can be in the running for Most Improved Player of the Year and the Sixth Man of the Year awards. If the team can keep this production up when KP comes back, they can become the first repeat champions since the Golden State Warriors who won the 2017 and 2018 championships. All the talks of breaking up the duo of Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown are finally over. Boston showed that keeping a core together over the years wins championships. Just adding the right pieces to their young wings was the perfect formula. While Al Horford may be on his way out, the Celtics still have a young-to-middle aged core. Only Horford, Jrue Holiday and Derrick White are at 30 years of age. Even their coach, Joe Mazzulla is still in his 30s (36). Celtics have a team that can stay competitive for some seasons, as long as they find a way to manage their salary cap.