Appreciating The Value of Possessions in Indiana

The 905 lost to the Indiana Mad Ants at Gainbridge Fieldhouse, 116-112, on Tuesday night.

There were 13 lead changes and Indiana was up by 15 points in the third quarter, but the game came down to the wire.

With less than 1:30 left on the clock, the Mad Ants had a shot clock violation and backcourt turnover. The 905 also trapped at halfcourt, forced a jump ball, and regained a possession. But the 905 only capitalized once out of those three times.

Indiana went eight-deep, barely using their eighth-man, Ishmael Lane, and made full use of former 905er Obadiah Noel and the super-efficient Stephan Hicks. 

Midway through the third quarter, Indiana’s two-way player Quenton Jackson ripped the ball from the wing, and gave A.J. Lawson a nasty through-the-legs crossover dribble that would make Tim Hardaway jealous. Jackson added an extra dribble to create separation and that bucket gave Indiana a 15-point lead. But to the 905’s credit, they minimized the damage and refused to be shooed away.

Perhaps, the chippiness with which Jackson played pushed Lawson to up his compete level. Like Jackson, Lawson is also on a two-way contract and has a similar build and speed. In the third, Lawson had a fall away triple, completed an and-1 euro-step and a give-and-go play with Chandler, where Lawson went coast to coast. At the start of the final frame, Lawson continued to showcase his speed – Kaminsky grabbing a defensive rebound was enough to initiate a one-dribble lay-up for Lawson on the other end of the court. 

Jared Rhoden and Evan Gilyard were fantastic too. Rhoden seems to hit baskets when they’re needed the most, and always gave the 905 a fighting chance. Most notably, his back cut and subsequent vicious dunk attempt on Okafor, midway through the fourth quarter, sent a huge statement. Rhoden has played 35 NBA games and continues to play with an anchoring presence. 

Gilyard, who has never played an NBA game, continued to show vet-like poise, scoring at the end of the third quarter to keep the 905 within three points. He hit another pivotal jumper off a drive, and then span off Jackson to create space. Late in the fourth, Gilyard drew an off-ball offensive foul by getting in front of Dakota Mathias (and drew another in the second quarter from Obadiah Noel after he blew by Kaminsky).

Every possession mattered in this game and the reason for the loss can’t be attributed simply to the end of the game, but Hicks’ back-to-back corner 3s that maintained Indiana’s four- and five-point lead were crucial in not conceding momentum. 

Partying like it’s 2015

This is what the broadcast team called the Kaminsky-Okafor matchup, the former a ninth pick out of Wisconsin and the latter, third overall out of Duke. They faced each other in the 2015 NCAA Finals, and this was a flashback as the two vets now seek to get back to The League.

The most surprising play was Okafor squaring up on Kaminsky where the above the break arc meets the corner 3. Okafor, who has only made a total six 3s in the 247 NBA games he’s played in, gave a quick jab step and drilled a 3 in Frank’s face. On the next possession, Okafor attacked from the nail, Kaminsky gave him space, and Okafor took two dribbles and scored. Soon after, Kaminsky conceded another mid-range shot, but Okafor missed. That makes sense when you look at this shot map.

The Chomche Watch 

The G League is many things to many different players. It might be rehab for has-beens, but it’s also a chance for the future to test themselves against woulda, coulda, shoulda-beens. Chomche has never had to, and will never, carry the weight of expectations placed on Okafor’s shoulders.

Chomche’s game-lowest -17 plus/minus stat betrays how he looked out on the floor. He may have had a modest stat line – six points, five rebounds, and three blocks – in less than 20 minutes, but he immediately made his presence felt, coming to help from the weakside, getting a block, and then sprinting all the way down the floor into the opponent’s paint. He constantly flipped screens and showed deft touch around the rim.

His most impressive offensive possession: snagging an offensive board with four Mad Ants around him – he swam over Okafor, forced himself inside, and grabbed the ball with two hands as three Mad Ants swarmed him. Chomche’s pass to Lawson resulted in the latter drawing the foul, but he missed his freebie. At that point, the 905 were still down six points with 3:44 left.

As the 905 continue to fight for the top spot and a championship trophy, they’ll need to continue valuing each and every possession.

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