It hasn't exactly worked out that way, but we have had a lot of injuries.
Lately, our bench is showing some signs. Wes seems to be adapting perfectly to his role as an aggressive bench scorer. Over the last 4 games he is averaging 16.2 pts, 2.2 assists, and 2.7 rebs per game while shooting good percentages. He looks much more comfortable, and has shown signs of improving his dribble-drive game and his post-up game while putting in solid effort on D.
Webster had a bit of a break out game against Toronto, putting up 15 points on solid shooting, looked much more confident, and had that awesome dunk. Hopefully that game is the sign of more good things to come for Martell, because he looked so good when he first came back from his injury, and having him contribute on a consistent basis would be huge for this team.
Jonny also had a bit of a breakout game against Toronto. In 23 minutes he had 10 pts on soild shooting with a couple 3s, 8 assits, only 2 TOs, and 6 rebs. Beyond these numbers, he looked like the old Jonny Fly, aggressively looking to make things happen for himself or his teammates, and didn't really make any boneheaded decisions. Also, he and Wes seem to be developing some chemistry, which I was hoping would happen one of these days.
Tolliver has quietly been soild the past 4 games, averaging 7.5 pts, 3.2 rebs per game while shooting 4-9 from 3. He has played solid D and continues to draw a lot of charges. His numbers will never jump off the page, but he is slowly returning to his pre-injury form, it seems.
Pek is Pek. Sometimes it seems like he is adapting, sometimes it doesn't. His energy and mobility on D are better than I expected. His post game has shown some flashes. He only played 6 minutes against Utah, but if you exclude that game, over his last 5 he is averaging 7 pts, 3.6 rebs and 1 block. I still think he has potential to adapt to this league and become a contributer. I hope so, because I love the dude.
Anyways, more important than the individual numbers is the fact that our bench as a unit has been improving lately. It has just been over the past 4 or 5 games or so, but it is something to keep watching. Over the past 4 games, going back to the loss to Houston, we have gone 1-3. However, in that same stretch, our net point differential is +3. Our bench has provided solid minutes in all these games, not allowing the opposition to blow the game open, and actually looking like a legit NBA rotation. As far as I can remember, this little stretch is the first time all season I have been consistently impressed with the play of our bench.
Whether this strong play will continue remains to be seen, but I think it will be a huge factor in our record for the rest of this season. Even good teams that can count on consistent production from their starters struggle to win games if their bench doesn't produce, so it is no wonder we have only won 11 games. However, if our bench continues this improved play, both individually and as a unit, I think we will continue to be competitive and give ourselves chances to win games on a nightly basis. Of course, to actually get Ws we will have to find a way to execute down the stretch and limit our ridiculous TOs, which is another story:
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