Nine former IU basketball players have or will play the game at the highest level during the 2020-21 NBA season. We will be monitoring their seasons with weekly updates.
Below we summarize their year to date performance with NBA stats and notes through 15 weeks of the season and provide a brief update on each player.
Victor Oladipo – Miami
In what has been a whirlwind this season for Victor Oladipo, he is now on his third team. After starting the season with the Pacers, he was traded to the Rockets in a blockbuster trade centered around James Harden heading to Brooklyn.
Now, Oladipo has joined the Miami Heat.
Miami Heat star Jimmy Butler spoke to the media about the acquisitions the Heat made at the trade deadline, which included adding Oladipo.
“I think both of those guys help us in the numerous amount of ways obviously from the ball into the basket, spacing the floor, being able to get their own shot and we’ll be able to do a lot of switching with both of those guys,” Butler told the media. “Can’t wait for them to get here, to introduce them to the squad, the culture, and get this thing back on track because we got a lot more basketball to play.”
After his first game with the Miami Heat against the Warriors, Oladipo spoke with the media about knowing it would be a process to get adjusted but is taking it one day at a time.
“Everything else will click as I continue to keep playing, continue to keep getting acclimated, just got to take it one day at a time,” Oladipo told the media.
In two games played with the Heat thus far, Oladipo is averaging 7.0 points, 2.0 rebounds, 5.0 assists, and 2.0 steals in 26.5 minutes per game.
2020-21 YTD Stats:
Games/Games Started – 31/31
MPG – 33.0
Points – 19.9
Rebounds – 4.8
Assists – 4.7
Blocks – 0.4
Steals – 1.4
FG% – .404
3FG% – .323
FT% – .748
Eric Gordon – Houston
Eric Gordon continues to be sidelined for the Rockets, who are 13-36 overall.
According to a March 12 report from Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN, Gordon will be out 4-6 weeks with a groin strain.
Before going out with an injury, Gordon was averaging 17.8 points per game in just over 29 minutes of action.
2020-21 YTD Stats:
Games/Games Started – 27/13
MPG – 29.2
Points – 17.8
Rebounds – 2.1
Assists – 2.6
Blocks – 0.5 (Ties Career High)
Steals – 0.5
FG% – .433
3FG% – .329
FT% – .825
OG Anunoby – Toronto
Anunoby finished the month of March by statistically having his best month of the season regarding his per game averages of points, assists, and rebounds.
During March, Anunoby averaged 18.3 points, 7.1 rebounds, and 2.6 assists in 34 minutes per game. He managed to put up those numbers while shooting 47.9 percent from the field and 42.3 percent from three. Not to be forgotten is his defensive presence, as he also averaged 2.0 steals per game in the month of March.
Although the Raptors did beat the Golden State Warriors 130-77 on Friday night, this season has not been what they had hoped. Toronto is currently 19-30 overall and 2-8 in their last 10 games.
Currently the eleven seed in the Eastern Conference, Anunoby and the Raptors have to continue to win games if they want to make it back to postseason play.
The Raptors host the Washington Wizards tonight looking to make it two wins in a row.
2020-21 YTD Stats:
Games/Games Started – 32/32
MPG – 33.5 (Career High)
Points – 15.0 (Career High)
Rebounds – 6.0 (Career High)
Assists – 1.9 (Career High)
Blocks – 0.8 ( Ties Career High)
Steals – 1.7 (Career High)
FG% – .479
3FG% – .398 (Career High)
FT% – .750 (Career High)
Thomas Bryant – Washington
Bryant continues to be sidelined, as he suffered a torn ACL to his left knee during the first quarter of a 128-124 loss to the Miami Heat on January 9 that will keep him out for the remainder of this season.
The injury came at a time when Bryant was starting to play consistent basketball and was averaging career highs in both minutes played and points per game.
However, the focus for Bryant now shifts towards coming back even stronger next year.
2020-21 YTD Stats:
Games/Games Started – 10/10
MPG – 27.1 (Career High)
Points – 14.3 (Career High)
Rebounds – 6.1
Assists – 1.5
Blocks – 0.8
Steals – 0.4
FG% – .648 (Career High)
3FG% – .429 (Career High)
FT% – .667
Cody Zeller – Charlotte
Cody Zeller played in all four of Charlotte’s games this past week, with the Hornets going 2-2 in those contests.
Zeller came off the bench in all four games, playing 24, 21, 28, and 13 minutes, respectively.
Perhaps his most impressive game of the week came in a 114-104 win against the Washington Wizards on Tuesday. Zeller played 24 minutes and finished with 16 points and 13 rebounds while shooting 7-13 from the field and 2-3 from the foul line.
On the season, he is averaging 9.1 points, 6.9 rebounds, and 2.0 assists per game.
The Hornets have not made the playoffs since the 2015-16 season, but are currently sixth place in the Eastern Conference standings with a record of 25-24.
2020-21 YTD Stats:
Games/Games Started – 30/20
MPG – 21.5
Points – 9.1
Rebounds – 6.9
Assists – 2.0
Blocks – 0.4
Steals – 0.7
FG% – .531
3FG% – .136
FT% – .696
Romeo Langford – Boston
Langford was cleared from the wrist injury he suffered during last season’s NBA Playoffs. However, due to health and safety protocols, it took time to get back on the court for the Boston Celtics.
In Sunday’s 116-86 victory over the Charlotte Hornets, Langford made his season debut. He had 3 points, 1 rebound, and 1 assist in 12 minutes of action. Add 1 block and 1 steal, and Langford showed his ability to contribute defensively as well.
Speaking with the media after the game, Langford said it was good to be back out there.
“It felt good to get back out there, get my legs back under me, and just compete with my teammates. I wasn’t too tired, I wasn’t exhausted so it was good,” Langford told the media.
While he is not quite back to 100 percent, he feels as though he is almost there.
“I had pretty good workouts the last couple of days, I feel like I’m just about there. Mainly it’s just now just getting my legs back under me. I got the feel for the game I ain’t lost that but just my legs and my condition that’s the only main thing,” Langford said as he spoke to the media.
Last season, Langford appeared in 32 games for the Celtics, starting two of them. He averaged 2.5 points, 1.3 rebounds, and 0.4 assists in 11.6 minutes per game.
2020-21 YTD Stats:
Games/Games Started – 1/0
MPG – 12.0 (Career High)
Points – 3.0 (Career High)
Rebounds – 1.0
Assists – 1.0 (Career High)
Blocks – 1.0 (Career High)
Steals – 1.0 (Career High)
FG% – .250
3FG% – .500 (Career High)
FT% – N/A (Has Not Attempted)
Juwan Morgan – Utah
Juwan Morgan has appeared in 19 games this season for the Utah Jazz, who are an NBA-best 38-11. He most recently appeared in a March 27 win against the Memphis Grizzles, playing for six minutes and securing a rebound.
The highlight of this season for Morgan was his January 29 performance against the Dallas Mavericks, which was televised on ESPN. He finished the game with 12 points, 7 rebounds, 1 assist, and 3 steals in 21 minutes of action. Also impressive was his efficiency, shooting 5-8 from the field and 2-4 from three point range.
Morgan was out Monday’s game at Dallas with left calf tightness.
2020-21 YTD Stats:
Games/Games Started – 19/0
MPG – 4.4
Points – 0.9
Rebounds – 0.8
Assists – 0.2
Blocks – 0.0
Steals – 0.2 (Career High)
FG% – .412
3FG% – .273
FT% – .200
Yogi Ferrell – Free Agent
Ferrell appeared in two games for the Cleveland Cavaliers this season. However, his 10-day contract with them ended with him being waived.
Recently, Ferrell was in attendance for the NBA G League regular season, running from February 10 to March 6 at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex at Walt Disney World Resort in Lake Buena Vista, Florida.
Ferrell played in and started 14 games for the Salt Lake City Stars. He averaged 15.4 points, 2.7 rebounds, and 4.0 assists per game in 28.3 minutes per contest. The Stars went 4-11.
2020-21 YTD Stats:
Games/Games Started – 2/0
MPG – 20.0
Points – 9.5
Rebounds – 3.5 (Career High)
Assists – 2.5
Blocks – 0.5 (Career High)
Steals – 1.5 (Career High)
FG% – .381
3FG% – .333
FT% – .000
Noah Vonleh – Free Agent
Noah Vonleh appeared in four games for the Brooklyn Nets this season after being signed on February 8. He averaged 2.8 minutes per game.
However, according to a report from Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN, Vonleh was waived by the Nets on February 23.
In 339 career games played, he has averages of 4.9 points, 5.1 rebounds, and 0.8 assists per game.
2020-21 YTD Stats:
Games/Games Started – 4/0
MPG – 2.8
Points – 0.0
Rebounds – 0.3
Assists – 0.3
Blocks – 0.0
Steals – 0.0
FG% – .000
3FG% – .000
FT% – N/A (Has Not Attempted)
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