Grand Rapids Drive 2019 G-League Winter Showcase recap

The Grand Rapids Drive fell one overtime short on their quest to winning $100,000. What went well for the Drive, and what do they need to improve on going forward?

From Dec. 19 to Dec. 22, the NBA G-League held their annual Winter Showcase in Las Vegas, Nevada. This year though, the league decided to add a nice little incentive to the in-season tournament. A prize of $100,000 to the winning team.

The tournament saw the top four teams in the G-League (through 12 games), make it in to the championship bracket. Those teams were the 11-1 Memphis Hustle, the 11-1 Wisconsin Herd, the 10-2 Salt Lake city Stars, and, of course, the 8-4 Grand Rapids Drive.

Though the Drive went on to lose four of their next five games after the seeding, the bracket was already set, allowing the Drive to participate in the tournament despite their mediocre record of 9-8 coming in.

analysis. Setting realistic expectations for Sekou Doumbouya. light

Semifinals vs. Memphis

The Drive played the top-seeded Memphis Hustle in a very fast-paced and entertaining game. Without their second leading scorer Sekou Doumbouya, who was called up by the Pistons right before the tournament, the Drive would need big contributions from their other players in order to have a chance against the Yuta Watanabe and Josh Jackson-led Hustle.

After watching the game, it’s clear why the name of their team is the “Hustle,” because defensively, they are everywhere. They compiled 18 steals and forced the Drive to turn the ball over 23 times on the night.

The Hustle had 29 stocks (steals plus blocks), to the Drive’s 11. Even with those one-sided defensive stats, the Drive upset the Hustle 104-101, thanks to an excellent 10 of 23 (43%) from beyond the arc.

Jordan Bone led the drive with 22 points despite dealing with leg cramps late in the first half. When he was in the game, the offense flowed, and the Drive looked like a well-oiled machine. When he was sidelined with leg cramping however, the Drive struggled to find good shots and put the ball in the basket which allowed Memphis to take control of the momentum.

previewing the season. Jordan Bone has NBA potential. light

The Drive had no answer all game for forward Watanabe. He got to the rim and finished at will and showed the ability to knock down the three. It led me to wonder what would have happened if the Drive got a Watanabe and Sekou matchup, but with how skilled both of them are this early in their careers, it’s bound to happen sometime in the future. Luckily due to an awful night offensively from former No. 4 overall pick Jackson, Watanabe’s great game was canceled out by Jackson’s struggles.

Both teams got tremendous contributions from their benches, 41 bench points for the Drive, compared to 37 for the Hustle. The difference in the game was the 3-point percentage. Both teams made 10 three’s on the night, but the Drive shot 10% higher than the Hustle, which ultimately decided the game.

Key contributors for the Drive were Bone, Louis King, Donta Hall, and Khalil Iverson, who all scored in double digits sealing the win for the good guys, and sending them to the championship game against the third-seeded Salt Lake City Stars.

Championship vs. Salt Lake City

On national television, playing for $100,000, the Drive would match up against the Stars, who had won 11 straight games coming into the night. This was going to be the Drive’s biggest test yet, without Doumbouya and with Bone experiencing leg cramps.

analysis. 3 questions the Pistons must answer before making a trade. light

The game was a dogfight and saw a combined 39 turnovers by both teams, 20 of which by the Drive. Unfortunately it was the turnovers and missed three’s that led to the Drive’s 91-88 overtime loss. It’s really hard to win a game when you shoot 13% from three on 23 attempts.

The entire game saw the Stars leading by double digits until in the last few minutes, the Drive were able to tie it up and send it to overtime. It was an ugly game and Grand Rapids was given many chances to put it away, but poor decision making down the stretch didn’t help its cause.

It seemed as if every time the Drive finally had a chance to ice the game, they’d drive into the lane and get swallowed by the Stars’ suffocating interior defense. The Drive’s 20 turnovers and poor field goal percentage reflect that.

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Most everyone on the Drive was a turnover machine and they weren’t getting enough assists to make up for it. King was an absolute no-show, which is a shame because he played very well the game before, but against the Stars he had 2 points, was 0 of 7 from the field, and turned the ball over four times in 19 minutes. he has to be better if the Drive want to win.

Hall played like a beast and is really giving the Pistons a case to call him up if they continue to have injuries to their frontcourt. Bone struggled to shoot the ball but still ended with 17 points and five assists. The Drive were also very obviously better when Bone was on the floor, leading many to question why he was sidelined at the end of the fourth quarter when the Drive had a chance to win the game.

The Drive missed out on the $100,000 but at the end of the day, the Stars were the better team and they showed it, respect to them.

The morning after the tournament’s conclusion, Bone was named the point guard on the G-League Winter Showcase Second Team. His ability to score the ball and be a floor general is being noticed by the people that have seen him play, which is a great sign for his progression. As for the Drive as a whole, they are 10-9 and are the eighth seed in the Eastern Conference. They’re 1/2 game back of the fifth seed and will resume their season on Dec. 28 at Fort Wayne.

Next. Pistons top 4 prospects with the Drive. dark

After losing the championship and all that money, hopefully this will give the Drive a needed chip on their shoulder and make them even hungrier going forward this season.