Wendell Carter Jr. doesn't view Alperen Şengün as a tough cover and doubles down on his Angel Reese boast

Wendell Carter Jr. is having his most efficient season as a scorer, logging a 60.9 effective field goal percentage to go along with good defense. He stopped by FanDuel’s Run It Back show on Monday morning as the ideal company man, giving some background on the team, plus answering some low-heat questions about 12 hours after the loss in Houston against the Rockets.

He also doubled down that he and his girlfriend, WNBA star Angel Reese, would beat Bam Adebayo and WNBA MVP A’ja Wilson in a game, a claim he made prior to the NBA season. Thus far, Adebayo and Wilson have not responded.

When asked about covering Aleperen Şengün and if it’s similar to checking Nikola Jokić, Carter said, “I wouldn’t say it’s a tough cover for me. I feel like Jokić is on a different level…”

He’s not blowing smoke. Carter held Şengün to 22.2 percent shooting, per the NBA’s tracking data, on Sunday. The film passes the eye test, too, as he contained "Turk Nowitzki" by forcing tough jumpers and contested hooks, including seven-straight misses. An additional 17.2 percent of his defensive time was on the quicker-footed Kevin Durant as well, which he held to five makes in nine tries.

Naturally, Desmond Bane’s shaky start to the year came up by the panel, and Carter had his back, saying the team didn't expect him to be perfect. He added that Bane, who has seen his EFG percentage drop by 7.5 points, is still trying to find his flow.

Wendell Carter Jr. — Troy Taormina-Imagn Images

The Magic are “getting back to” its defensive identity after 14 outings, according to Carter. They’ve been the eighth-ranked defense over the last five games, which includes the debacle hosting the Celtics and Monday’s loss in Houston sans two starters: Paolo Banchero and Jalen Suggs.

He also gave props to Banchero for guarding well and said the 23-year-old star is still figuring out his body and that the sky is the limit for him. “At that size, to be able to do what he does with the ball… he’s a guy you want in your team, and he just plays the game the right way.”

He cited Orlando’s middle-of-the-pack [TV] market as a reason why Banchero isn’t more popular, but that can't be it. It’s hard to stay relevant when you aren’t playing, and Banchero missed 44 percent of last season, which was supposed to be a big follow-up to the tremendous first-round series he had against the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Carter has failed to pick up on understanding German despite Franz and Mo Wagner often speaking in it, but he’s more concerned with staying ready to guard the league’s best players. He hasn’t let them down, even if he fouled out of Sunday’s loss.

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