NBA Week 6 Rewind: So, no one can stop the Warriors?
By Tom West
Under-the-radar Players to Watch Next Week
Whether you want to know every player who’s stepping up outside of the spotlight or you want a target for your fantasy team, here are some names to look out for next week.
Tyreke Evans has finally returned from injury to help the Pelicans and he’s made his comeback a good one. He missed their first 17 games of the season, and has instantly made an impact since playing again last week. His ability to drive has been the staple of his career, and that’s been evident with his 14.5 points per game last week. A part of his skill set that’s often underrated, though, has been his passing, either when running the offense or when driving and dishing to a teammate. With 9.3 assists a night since his return, that passing ability has been on full display and was a major benefit to the Pelicans as they took down the Cavaliers.
Paul Millsap is having the best year of his career and no one seems to have noticed. With career-highs in points (18.2), rebounds (9.5), assists (3.5), steals (1.9), blocks (1.2) and PER (23.4), there’s no way to deny that Millsap has taken his game to another level. He’s been guarding the perimeter as well as always, while upping his aggressiveness inside with an improved defensive impact. He’s been a good defender on the wing for years, but that presence in the paint at the rim and on the boards is a great sign of improvement. With the best offensive and defensive rating of any Hawk, Millsap has the diversity to be their most valuable player in all aspects of the game. He’s fulfilling that role better than ever, and deserves a little more recognition.
Kyle Lowry was an All-Star last year, so he isn’t exactly a player who hasn’t received any acknowledgement for his performance. This season, however, Lowry has gone fairly under the radar despite the way he’s been playing recently. After losing weight in the summer, he’s looked more agile on the court than ever and has been more aggressive attacking the rim. He’s taking a higher percentage of his shots (24.3) within six feet than he has in four years and it’s paying off. Add on his career-high 41.7 percent three point shooting, and Lowry has been more effective from numerous areas of the court.
After a sensational 41 point night on 53.8 percent shooting against the Warriors on Saturday as he came so close to ending their streak, Lowry has made a statement of how good he’s playing right now. He has career-high averages in points (22) and PER (25.8) while coming close to doubling his steals per game with 2.7, and has been the driving force of the Raptors so far. In fact, he’s been so efficient that he’s 10th in the entire league in PER. That deserves some attention.
His 41 point performance can’t be overlooked, as the underrated, 6 foot point guard from Toronto almost took down the champions. That’s something that no single player has been able to say this season.