Written by Dan Favale at Bleacher Reports.com
Admit it: Even in your wildest, most optimistic, anything-is-possible-during-the-NBA-preseason dreams, you didn’t see these performances coming.
We expect to be surprised when superstars and starters are ceding touches and minutes to prospects, projects and roster hopefuls. Many of us welcome it, no matter how many caveats are attached to exhibition efforts.
Temporary hardwood detonations, after all, are still fun.
But certain players soar up their teams’ pecking orders more demonstrably, playing their way into roles for which they weren’t originally slotted. They have exceeded expectations in decisive fashion and, in the end, should earn regular spots in the rotation because of it.
Alex Abrines, Oklahoma City Thunder
Alex Abrines isn’t much of a passer or rebounder, nor is he the most gifted defender. But boy can the Oklahoma City Thunder rookie get buckets.
After five preseason tilts, Abrines is sporting a 50/60/100 shooting slash. That is clearly sustainable, and he should be penciled in for MVP candidacy immediately.
If you’re feeling more reserved, you’re free to guess that he becomes Russell Westbrook’s favorite new spot-up toy instead.
Bryn Forbes, San Antonio Spurs
Of course the San Antonio Spurs would wind up with an honorable mention.
Bryn Forbes latched on in NBA Summer League, and the Spurs never let go. He has repaid them by averaging 21.8 points, 5.2 rebounds and 2.3 steals per 36 minutes during the preseason. Oh, he’s also shooting 50 percent from beyond the arc.
San Antonio’s backcourt rotation is set as long as Tony Parker stays healthy, but Forbes looks like he’s ready to fill the gaping garbage-time-superhero void left by Boban Marjanovic.
Andrew Nicholson, Washington Wizards
All Andrew Nicholson has ever seemed to need is a consistent role in which he can showcase his versatility. The Orlando Magic never gave him that stability, and he didn’t do too much to force their hand during his short bursts on the court either.
Nicholson hasn’t run into the same problem with the Washington Wizards. He’s averaging 17.9 points and 9.2 rebounds per 36 minutes, shooting 46.7 percent from three-point land and regularly outplaying every other forward-wing on the Washington roster.
Markieff Morris, in fact, may want to watch his back. His regular-season minutes could be impacted accordingly.
It turns out Willy Hernangomez, the No. 35 overall pick in 2015, is more than just a novelty who poses shirtless with Kristaps Porzingis. He belongs in the NBA, and the New York Knicks did themselves a service by picking him up from the Philadelphia 76ers.
Though Hernangomez was a borderline first-round prospect, the Knicks pieced together a roster dominated by veterans, suggesting they would have little, if any, time to invest in non-unicorn projects. Hernangomez is forcing them to reconsider.
The 6’11” newbie is averaging 12.1 points, 10.6 rebounds and 3.4 assists per 36 minutes on 55.2 percent shooting (15.8 minutes per game). He seldom looks for his shot outside the paint and doesn’t play above the rim, but what he lacks in range and explosion, he makes up for with smarts.
Hernangomez’s passing has been a pleasant surprise, and you won’t catch anyone out-hustling him for loose balls. He has the second-highest defensive rebounding percentage on the team, to go along with an uncomfortably high foul rate, and won’t hesitate to put the ball on the floor when he catches it beyond the charity stripe.
Kyle O’Quinn’s minutes behind Joakim Noah and Porzingis feel unsafe as a result. Head coach Jeff Hornacek has all but tabbed Hernangomez as the backup center and more, telling reporters, per Newsday‘s Laura Albanese: “I think [Hernangomez] probably is [in the running for sixth man] for some of the things that he’s been doing for us.”
That’s not something any of us should have expected to hear this soon.
And yet, given how the 22-year-old bounds up and down the court, with a combination of reckless diligence and perfected poise, he doesn’t seem like some fly-by-preseason fad, either.
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