Friday Bolts – 4.8.16
Anthony Slater is on #TeamPlayHuestis: “Then there’s the all-important floor-spacing. In 69 D-League games the past two seasons, Huestis shot 31 percent from three, a below average clip. But the mechanics look good and Huestis said he feels it improving. In his limited playing time, Huestis has made all four of his 3s. Meanwhile Singler is mired in a deep shooting slump, missing 16 straight 3s dating back to March 6, dropping him to 27.5 percent for the season … Forty-two career minutes. That’s all the NBA has ever seen of Josh Huestis. A microscopic sample size. But in those 42, he’s provided a splash of defense and floor-spacing. Is it enough to get him a three-game trial run before the postseason. At a spot lacking consistency in both areas, what could it hurt?”
Michael Singer of USA Today: “With 17 triple-doubles already this season, Russell Westbrook is just one shy of Magic Johnson’s mark set in 1981-1982, the most since the NBA-ABA merger. His seven triple-doubles in March were the most since Michael Jordan in 1989. He’s second in the league at 10.4 assists per game, is top-10 in points and is easily the best rebounding guard in the NBA. As evidence, his 7.8 rebounds is tied with Nets C Brook Lopez. Curry and Westbrook have each also stolen some shine from Kevin Durant, whose prolific scoring has come to be seen as commonplace. Following another such effort vs. Denver this week, Durant extended his streak of at least 20 points to 62 consecutive games, the longest streak since Kobe Bryant in 2005-2006. Somehow, this is being overlooked.”
Josh Planos of the Washington Post: “As shown, Westbrook sees more points (34 compared with 28.7) and rebounds (11.3 vs. 10.1) than Johnson when the figures are weighted, while Johnson sees more assists (16.4 vs. 14.9). With three games remaining, Westbrook can pass Johnson’s 1988-89 triple-double campaign. He’s produced more than 50 percent of his triple-doubles this season since the all-star break, so there’s a reasonable chance he’ll pass the mark. But even if he doesn’t, Westbrook has already done more than Johnson did, considering how few minutes he’s played.”
Richard Mize of NewsOK: “Thunder forward Kevin Durant went backward — way backward — when he sold his two-house luxury home in Gaillardia. Almost to half court, in fact. County records show how the pricing ball bounced for the 27-year-old basketball star. Durant took a nearly 50 percent hit when he sold his place on Calais Court on March 11 for $925,000. He paid $1,799,500 for the property, a traditional-style, 3,623-square-foot home with a 2,120-square-foot guest house, in 2011. Durant in 2013 bought two townhomes in Deep Deuce with plans to join the pair into one residence.”
Kevin Draper of Deadspin on Sam Hinkie: “This isn’t to say there’s no luck in the draft (there’s a lot), or that the above executives haven’t made poor draft picks (they have). But drafting—which relies heavily upon player evaluation, maybe the single most important skill for a general manager to have—is very clearly a skill. RC Buford and Sam Presti definitely have it, and David Kahn definitely doesn’t. Sam Hinkie admits that he doesn’t either. Placing outsized importance on the draft as a vehicle to improve a team is a perfectly reasonable strategy. But Hinkie essentially attempted to game the draft while dismissing the most proven and best way of doing so—actually being better at spotting talent than rival executives.”
