While You Weren't Watching: Korver confuses, Wiggins posts up and more
The NBA regular season operates at a frenzied pace, with one game and storyline bleeding into the next. Every Friday here at SI.com, we'll slow things down in While You Weren't Watching – a spotlight on the little moments in the week's slate that might otherwise get lost in the shuffle. Here's what you may have missed...
• Easy living. For a taste of why Kyle Korver draws rave reviews, track his movement against the backdrop of Washington’s defense. Just by cutting baseline he necessitates help, which allows Paul Millsap to make a quick catch turnaround midway into the paint:
• Omnipresence. You can push and bump Milwaukee’s John Henson all you’d like, but you’ll never quite get out of his eternal arm’s reach:
• Grasp. I’m not sure I fully realized how crummy Lance Stephenson’s play had been this season until I was genuinely surprised by him making a few moves like this one in a single game. It now feels genuinely weird to see him succeed:
• Thankless post work. Washington’s Kevin Seraphin doesn't have much of a national profile despite the fact that he’s been essential to one of the East’s better teams. He scores as much per minute as Bradley Beal at even higher efficiency. With a never-ending stream of hook shots he anchors a second unit that would otherwise be pained for shot creation. Honestly: Where would the Wizards be had Seraphin not returned on the qualifying offer to so easily and consistently do this?
• Consolidation. Any effort that saves the ball and doubles as a full-court outlet pass is alright by me. Well done, Corey Brewer:
• Missed connections.Ricky Rubio’s return week brought highlights, smiles, and more than a few bungled would-be assists. Adjusting from Mo Williams to Rubio could take the Wolves’ cutters and bigs a minute:
• Unlikely bully ball. It’s promising to see the long, lean Andrew Wiggins – listed at just 200 pounds – working inside against smaller guards. High efficiency from the post isn’t even required at this point; just by being there he’ll make defenses nervous. Wiggins has been using that to his advantage throughout his productive streak to draw fouls and work angles:
• Expansion. There are bigs who go their entire NBA careers without ever developing the kind of comfort level necessary to make quick, successful moves with the ball. Derrick Favors is not one of them.
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Redirection. We could run a weekly feature solely on all the unnoticed things Nene does to make the Wizards a better team, but instead he’ll have to settle for recurring spot here. Watch here as he turns a jammed pick-and-roll into an easy score by working a tight passing angle between two defenders:
• Reach. You would think that, at some point, opposing guards would learn not to try this kind of thing against Anthony Davis:
