Former Kentucky Wildcats in the NBA: Best and Worst of the First Half of the Season
With the 2013 All Star game taking place last night and All Star Weekend coming to a close, the second half of the NBA season will be starting up this week and the former Kentucky Wildcats in the NBA will be back in action. Let’s take a look at a couple players who made the most of their first half and a couple players who had a rough first half of the season.
The Best of the First Half
DeMarcus Cousins, Center, Sacramento Kings – Despite all the attitude issues Cousins has had this season, with suspensions and fines, Cousins is putting up a great year, numbers wise. He is leading the team in both points and rebounds per game, averaging 17.3 points and 10 rebounds per game. Cousins is also averaging just under 3 assists per game and 1.6 steals per game. Big Cuz is solidifying himself as a force to be reckoned with in the NBA.
Eric Bledsoe, Guard, Los Angeles Clippers – With the injury to Chris Paul that kept him out for almost three weeks, Eric Bledsoe filed in Paul’s role better than anybody expected. Bledsoe had been giving quality minutes off the bench and when he got his chance to start, he made the most of it, proving that he is a starting NBA point guard for a lot of other teams. Bledsoe is averaging just under 10 points per game, 3.3 assists per game, 3.1 rebounds per game and 1.6 steals per game.
Rajon Rondo, Guard, Boston Celtics – Even though Rajon Rondo tore his ACL last week and is now out for the season, Rondo was one of the top point guards in the NBA during the first half of the season, he was named to the All Star Game before his injury as well. Rondo averaged 13.7 points per game and 11.1 assists per game throughout the first half of the year, which would be his best season to date. Rondo was also grabbed 5.6 rebounds and 1.8 steals per game.
The Worst of the First Half
Keith Bogans, Guard, Brooklyn Nets – A guy who was in the starting rotation at the beginning of the season, Keith Bogans has now made his way nearly to the end of the bench. Bogans is averaging only 4.2 points, 1.7 rebounds and 0.9 assists per game. Bogans’ minutes per game have now dropped below 18 per game.
Terrence Jones, Forward, Houston Rockets – The rookie season of first round draft pick Terrence Jones has not been one to write home about. Jones has been up and down from the Rockets to the D-League multiple times, only playing in 11 games at the NBA level. Jones averaged 3.1 points, 1.6 rebounds and 0.5 assists per game so far this season.
Chuck Hayes, Forward, Sacramento Kings – The Kentucky Wildcat fan favorite in his time at UK has had a bit of a down year for the Kings. Hayes is averaging only 2.4 points, 3.9 rebounds and 1.4 assists per game, in over 16 minutes per game this season.
Hopefully, all the former Kentucky Wildcats playing in the NBA can have a successful second half of the year and maybe a couple will make deep playoff runs. The Big Blue Nation would like to add an NBA Finals ring to their list of things to boast about.
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