Nets head coach Jacque Vaughn joked that he must take veteran ahead Royce O’Neale out to dinner for taking part in him so many minutes via the primary leg and a half of the common season.
Make that two steak dinners headed his manner — and each of them had higher be steak.
O’Neale’s minutes load alone is a testomony to how necessary the previous Utah Jazz wing is on each ends of the ground for a Nets group whose 19-7 run beneath Vaughn’s management has legitimized their standing as NBA championship contenders.
O’Neale has grow to be one of many extra dependable gamers on a deep Nets’ roster with competitors at each place. He gained the beginning wing job whereas Joe Harris was out with a sore foot and by no means gave it again — with Harris, Brooklyn’s longtime beginning shooter, now Vaughn’s “first option off the bench” whereas O’Neale begins alongside Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving, Ben Simmons and Nic Claxton.
O’Neale gained that job for 2 causes, chief amongst them being his reliability. The veteran ahead has remained wholesome and obtainable whereas Harris continues to work via the ramifications of the 2 left ankle surgical procedures he underwent final season.
O’Neale is averaging career-highs throughout the board. He’s taking pictures 42.4% from downtown and ranks fifth in three-point proportion amongst qualifying gamers within the NBA averaging at the very least 5.5 makes an attempt from three per recreation. He’s additionally averaging a career-high 4.3 assists per recreation and the very best scoring mark in his profession a tick beneath double figures at 9.5 factors per recreation.
Opposing gamers additionally shoot 1.9% worse on a median of 15 shot makes an attempt per recreation when guarded by the previous Baylor Bear.
For reference, solely Durant averages extra defended area purpose makes an attempt per recreation for the Nets. Opponents shoot 4% worse when guarded by the famous person ahead, 6% worse when defended by beginning middle Claxton, 4% worse when guarded by Markieff Morris and a pair of.6% worse when defended by Harris, who has categorically improved as a defender this season.
With O’Neale’s two-way manufacturing, in fact, comes heavy minutes. He averaging a career-high 35 minutes per recreation and has appeared in 31 of the Nets’ 33 video games. Only Durant (32 video games) has performed in additional.
Durant now ranks sixth within the NBA in complete minutes at 1,164 coming into Monday’s matchup towards the Cleveland Cavaliers. O’Neale, after lacking two video games, ranks twentieth at 1,090 minutes. Durant, O’Neale and Irving every common greater than 35 minutes per recreation.
”Yeah, I ought to proceed to apologize to him, take him out to dinner. That was on me, taking part in him too many minutes, however it was as a result of I like what he does,” Vaughn mentioned two days earlier than Christmas, noting the Nets had three off days earlier than taking part in once more after O’Neale missed his second recreation. “I think [the time off] really got him in position where mentally and physically, he was able to reload. Now you see the value that he brings to us on both ends of the floor, so I take the blame for running him into the ground for the first couple of weeks for sure.”
As for that second steak dinner? Thanks to O’Neale’s play, normal supervisor Sean Marks all of the sudden seems like the neatest man within the room for assembly the Utah Jazz’s asking value earlier than one other group may pounce.
With a lot low season controversy — primarily whether or not or not Durant can be in a Nets jersey this season — some had been confused by the timing of the O’Neale deal. The Jazz had been clearly resetting the franchise and positioning to commerce Donovan Mitchell when Brooklyn got here into play.
Here had been the Nets, ostensibly on the brink of buying and selling Durant and detonating their very own title hopes, transferring a worthwhile first-round choose to soak up O’Neale’s contract into their commerce exception.
Marks by no means dealt Durant, signed Edmond Sumner, TJ Warren, Morris and Yuta Watanabe — every of whom have performed integral elements in Brooklyn’s early success — and added O’Neale to the lineup. After transferring on from Steve Nash as head coach, the Nets at the moment are the most well liked group in basketball.
O’Neale’s consistency is a cause why, and it’s why each Marks and Vaughn owe O’Neale a pleasant porterhouse steak.
Then once more, O’Neale — who’s beneath contract via the top of the 2023-24 season — ought to be capable of afford to select up the tab with the deal he’s certain to get if he retains taking part in like this.
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Source: www.bostonherald.com