Welcome back to The Weekly 4-Point Play, our new weekly column highlighting four of the biggest and most exciting stories in the association. In case you missed it, Volume 4 is HERE. I hope everyone that celebrates had a nice Thanksgiving and that they didn’t miss this post too much during the holiday.
We are now into the month of December! Remember that on December 15th that most of the league will become eligible to be traded, we are getting closer and closer to the trade season but we don’t need to focus on that too much, for now at least.
We have to go to Miami to check out a sharp shooter returning to form, as well as look at a winless month with a trip to the trade machine, a superstar could be arriving in Houston, and we can’t have a 4-Point Play without the Block Party of the week! Let’s dive into it. Take us away Steph Curry!
Role Player Spotlight: Duncan Robinson is returning to form.
Duncan Robinson broke onto the scene during the 2019-2020 NBA season. The sharpshooter out of Michigan didn’t seem to have much of a NBA future during the draft process but he caught the eye of the Miami Heat who unlocked his movement shooting ability. Robinson was a key contributor to the Heat making a run to the NBA Finals in 2020. He even scored 26 points in a finals game to help keep the Heat alive.
Robinson has had an up and down past few seasons where he saw himself fall out of the Heat rotation at times. The team lost Gabe Vincent and Max Strus in the offseason and they looked to Robinson to step up and he has. He is averaging a career high in points with 14.5 and has his highest 3 point percentage with 44% since the 2019-2020. Robinson is doing his part as the Heat will look to make another run to the NBA Finals this season.
Trip to the trade machine: Do the Pistons need to make moves after a winless month?
I can’t trash the Pistons too much, their last win came against my Chicago Bulls, but this is not how Detroit saw this season going, especially after a 2-1 start that looked promising. The Pistons can’t seem to get out of the basement of the NBA. Their best solution might be to try to add as many assets as possible and restart the rebuilding process in a sense. Bojan Bogdanović is a name to monitor on the trade market.
Pistons get draft capital they use to add more young talent or move up in the draft to target specific players. This might not sound super appealing to Pistons fans, but I honestly am not sure what other option they have.
I don’t think trading for win now players would be the right move with the current state of the team. The 76ers would add another scoring option and Bojan is much more of a steady presence than Morris.
Future Star Watch: Alperen Şengün proving to be the guy in Houston
The Rockets have plenty of young players that have caught the eye of NBA fans. Jalen Green and Jabari Smith were high draft picks that have flashed plenty of potential. Şengün was not a high draft pick but he is the first one of the young Rockets to prove himself as an All-Star caliber player. He has made strides defensively which has made him much more playable, but it’s on the other side of the court where he is special.
He is a special passer for his age and size. His post moves and overall skill on the basketball court is making him a much watch on league pass. He is only 21 and still has plenty of time to improve as a player. Şengün is making it known that he is the clear #1 in Houston moving forward.
The Block Party of The Week: Giannis denies Patrick Williams in the clutch
The Bucks lost a heartbreaker in OT to the Bulls on the last night in November. A big reason why the game even got to overtime was because Giannis absolutely swallowed up a Patrick Williams attempt at taking a late lead.
The defense has been a work in progress for the Bucks as a team since the departure of Jrue Holiday. Brook Lopez and Giannis are doing all they can but their perimeter defenders need to be better. The Bucks are looking at young guys like Andre Jackson Jr and MarJon Beauchamp to fill that role and they have been up and down to say the least.
Without many draft assets to make a move the Bucks will need everyone to give it their all on the defensive side of the court. I think a fair criticism of Giannis so far is that he is trying to do too much on offense.
It might be time for him to let Dame cook on offense and he can focus more of his effort on the defensive side of the court. I think that would be the optimal version of this Bucks team
Reilly McDonnell
Reilly is from Naperville, IL and is a big Bulls and Michigan State Spartans fan. He enjoys spending time with loved ones, watching movies, and coaching Water Polo when he isn’t watching basketball or deep diving Basketball-Reference and Stathead.com. Follow him on Twitter at @McDReilly97!