by Scott
Tyshawn Taylor has played more NBA games than the average rookie spending time in the D-League, but he still isn’t getting many minutes. In 21 appearances for the Nets this season, Taylor is averaging 1.6 points in just 4.3 minutes per. And, as the Nets’ backcourt is pretty stacked, it doesn’t look like that is about the change anytime soon. For that reason, Taylor finds himself playing for the Springfield Armor, where he has been tearing it up. In four games for the Armor, Taylor is averaging 26.5 points (third best in the D-League), 7.5 assists (fifth best in the D-League) and 4.3 rebounds in 41 minutes. He is also shooting 45.7% from the field and 38.5% from the beyond the arc.
For as long as the Nets decide to keep Taylor in the D-League, you can expect him to continue to put up these types of numbers as it doesn’t look like he’ll slow down anytime soon, as proven last night against the Maine Red Claws. In 42 minutes, Taylor had his most complete game to date, as he scored 27 points (9-19 FG), dished out a career-high 11 assists and grabbed five boards.
Interestingly enough, he didn’t start the game particularly well, as he only had nine points on 3-9 shooting at the end of the first-half. In fact, it wasn’t really until the fourth quarter that Taylor would start to heat up. Facing a 12 point deficit, Taylor put the team on his back, as he scored 12 points and handed out five assists in the final frame. Unfortunately for the Armor, it was a case of too little too late, as they ended up losing 120-112 despite Taylor’s best efforts. Nevertheless, it was another impressive performance from the 22-year old rookie and helps him build on some already impressive season averages.
