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The NBA is stacked with great players. From the bench reserves to the superstars, there is a guarantee that these players are arguably the best in the world. With the league filled with a surplus of talent these days, it is unfortunate that some players don’t get to play the minutes that they deserve, given that a game only lasts 48 minutes with only five players per team allowed on the court.
Not all basketball players in the league can achieve greatness in their NBA careers, however, a great player can make his mark in the league when he’s given a shot. As basketball fans, we know that to have more playing time, it also means to have more responsibility of making an impact for your team.
In the ongoing season, we’ve seen various players breakout of their shells after given the opportunity to play more minutes. These guys include Yuta Watanabe, the Raptors big man who is a two-way contract player that is making a case to deserve a full NBA deal after displaying his defensive skills. In fact, his emergence with Toronto made his jersey the top-selling NBA apparel in his home country, Japan.
Aside from Watanabe, another prospect who made the most out of the opportunity given to him is 17th overall pick in the 2020 NBA Draft, Aleksej Pokusevski. The Serbian prospect who has barely played this year, while being assigned to the G -League, finally made his presence felt in the NBA after getting a rare start against the Memphis Grizzlies. In that breakout game, he registered 23 points and 10 rebounds while also making five shots from rainbow country. Pokusevski became the youngest player in NBA history to register those numbers, while also being the youngest Thunder player to record a double-double.
With some of these notable players finally getting their extended minutes, for this piece, let’s take a look at five NBA players that also deserve more playing time.
Mo Bamba
MPG: 10.2
NBA Season stats: 4.7 points, 4.1 rebounds, 0.3 assists, 0.2 steals, 0.9 blocks
Coming out of Texas, Mo Bamba breamed with a lot of potential, given that he possesses some unique physical gifts. Furthermore, he had a relatively successful college career where he produced 12.9 points and 10.5 rebounds per game for Texas. Unfortunately, the NBA hasn’t been so kind to the 7’0 center.
With Bamba suffering multiple injuries early in his career, his development has been slow. Furthermore, it doesn’t help for him that the Magic are leaning on Nikola Vucevic, who plays the same position as Bamba, as the face of their franchise. As a result, despite being selected as the Magic’s lottery pick in the 2018 Draft, the Texas standout has been in and out of the team’s rotation.
But even if Bamba has been playing limited minutes, he has shown glimpses of his potential to deserve more playing time. In a game against the Chicago Bulls earlier this year, Bamba tallied 14 points and seven rebounds on an efficient seven of eight shooting in just 12 minutes of action. In fact, Bamba has gained some interest before the trade deadline with the Los Angeles Lakers looking for a serviceable center with Anthony Davis out for quite some time.
However with the Magic struggling to put up some wins this season, as they have lost eight straight games for a lowly 13-26 record, fielding their 7’0 big man more could help their case. Aside from standing at 7’0 tall with a freakish 7’10 wingspan, Bamba has the skills as well to evolve into a legitimate rim protector that will anchor the Magic’s defense. Because of this, he certainly needs to get more than 10 minutes a game to develop into a monster in the paint that people expected him to be.
Bol Bol
MPG: 5.2
NBA Season stats: 1.8 points, 0.7 rebounds, 0.2 assists, 0.1 steals, 0.3 blocks
If there is another big man beaming with potential that is glued to the bench, it would be the Denver Nuggets’ Bol Bol. The 7’2 power forward possesses some great skills especially for his size. Unfortunately, he hasn’t been a mainstay in Michael Malone’s rotation this year.
Bol Bol started to show everyone what he was capable of when he dominated the scrimmages before the official start of the 2020 NBA Bubble in Orlando. Against the Washington Wizards, which was his first taste of NBA action, the stretch big man scored 16 points and grabbed 10 rebounds in just 32 minutes of play. It is worth noting that his great showing even required him to undergo drug testing. But despite this, he just couldn’t crack the Nuggets rotation thereafter and this new season is no different.
With Nikola Jokic crowned as the Nuggets’ franchise player, alongside the veteran needs that Paul Millsap provides, the frontline is just overcrowded for Bol Bol to see steady minutes. In fact, the team also has other big men in JaMychal Green, Isaiah Hartenstein, and Zeke Nnaji.
There is no question that it is difficult to see a talented player like Bol Bol is forced to be glued to the bench. Although he can definitely learn a lot by being teammates with All-Star big men Jokic and Millsap, a skilled big man like him deserves to showcase his wares more often on the NBA court. With skills like Bol Bol, he can easily make an impact on both ends of the floor and he is certainly a great prototype of the skilled modern big man that has the potential to dominate the league.
Talen Horton-Tucker
MPG: 18.0
NBA Season stats: 7.7 points, 2.6 rebounds. 2.2 assists, 0.8 steals, 0.5 blocks
Everybody knows that THT has a lot of potential. With great size and length, combined with his ability to score, he is capable of blossoming into a legitimate starter at least. But for now, THT is still seeing limited action.
Of course, the Lakers are occupied at the wing position by no other than their main star LeBron James. With LBJ not showing any signs of slowing down, he will indirectly eat up the minutes of THT. Aside from LBJ, the team also has KCP, Wesley Matthews, and potential third star in Kyle Kuzma. As a result, it might take some time before THT will see more minutes.
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But when it comes to whether he deserves more playing time, THT can ball out if he is given the green light. As we saw in the NBA bubble, he gave a decent showing in Game Five against the Houston Rockets, as he finished with nine points off the bench in limited minutes to help the Lakers advance to the Western Conference Finals.
Aside from this, THT also impressed everyone during the preseason, where he averaged 20.5 points, 6.5 rebounds, and 3.0 assists per outing. The 6’4 gunner even dropped 33 points against the Los Angeles Clippers which made him just the fourth Laker in the past 10 years to drop at least 30 points in a preseason game alongside Brandon Ingram, D’Angelo Russell, and Kobe Bryant.
If we see THT continue making an impact off the bench for the Lakers, there is no question that he will become something special for the Lakers. In fact, he can possibly be a key player off the bench that can increase the chances of the team to successfully defend their title this year.
Hassan Whiteside
MPG: 14.6
NBA Season stats: 8.3 points, 5.7 rebounds, 0.5 assists, 0.3 steals, 1.3 blocks
If there is a player that is being highly underutilized this season, it would be Hassan Whiteside. Unlike other players in this list, Whiteside has already established himself in the league that he can be a dominant rim protector with freakish athleticism. In fact, Whiteside led the league in blocks just last season with 2.9 swats per game. He even averaged a monster double-double of 15.5 points and 13.5 rebounds per game for the Portland Trailblazers.
Unfortunately, things aren’t exactly going to plan in his stint with his original team Sacramento. In an attempt to push the pace, Coach Luke Walton has gone away from his 7’0 center and went with Marvin Bagley and Richaun Holmes for his frontline instead. Thus, it left with Whiteside with limited minutes.
But despite the limited minutes, the reigning league leader in blocks has made the most out of his stint. In fact, when he finally enjoyed more than 23 minutes of play, Whiteside had the best game of his season by tallying a monster statline of 26 points, 16 rebounds, and five blocks which made him the first player to register those numbers since Chris Webber. It is also worth nothing that he was also the first to do it in franchise history without being a starter.
Because of his fine play, other contending teams have inquired about trading for the talented underutilized big, including the Lakers who are planning to shore up their frontline. Whether he finally gets minutes with the Sacramento Kings or the Los Angeles Lakers, opposing scorers will surely have a hard time with Whiteside guarding the paint.
Matisse Thybulle
MPG: 18.4
NBA Season stats: 3.7 points, 1.6 rebounds, 1.0 assists, 1.6 steals, 0.9 blocks
If there is a key player that deserves more minutes, it has to be Matisse Thybulle of the Philadelphia 76ers. Although Thybulle isn’t the scoring spark that you usually get off the bench, his contributions on defense has been very valuable for the Sixers.
Although people have been raving about Ben Simmons' elite defense, Thybulle has also been making a name for himself in that department. In fact, he has shut down the opposing teams’ best players that includes All-Stars Blake Griffin, D’Aaron Fox, and Zach LaVine. Unfortunately, unlike Ben Simmons and Joel Embiid, Thybulle isn’t a name being considered to win the Defensive Player of the Year primarily because of the limited minutes he plays. In fact, his fellow Australian teammate Simmons would agree to this.
According to a report on Heavy, Simmons told reporters “He’s getting shots up, he’s been slashing more, driving more, he’s getting to the rim. Overall, he’s been great – and then defensively he continues to be get better. I feel like if he had the same amount of minutes as me, he would be defensive player of the year. Easily. He’s great and he’s getting better.”
Thybulle has been a great defensive specialist for the Sixers and thanks to him, the Sixers have another player to keep tabs on the opposing team’s star players. If he can continue to give energy and continue to do his damage on the defensive end of the floor, I don’t see why he’ll remain to play under 20 minutes a game in the future. His mark on defense will surely come in handy for the Sixers especially with the postseason right around the corner.
