Charles Bassey Settling Into 'Perfect Spot' with Hometown Spurs
Charles Bassey is back home in the Alamo City and shining with the San Antonio Spurs.
Once a product of St. Anthony's Catholic High School, his arrival to the Spurs on Oct. 24 through a two-way deal seemed like a storybook connection. And according to Bassey, things couldn't be going any better after another impressive performance in Friday's 111-93 win over the Milwaukee Bucks.
"Like I said man, this is a perfect spot," Bassey said. "This is a young team, I'm still learning everything out there. I wish I started preseason training camp with them, but everything's going smoothly. I'm just so locked in with my team."
In his fourth game as a Spur, Bassey posted just five points, but was a menace on the boards, pulling down a career-high 14 rebounds to go along with four assists and four blocks.
During Friday's NBA action, only Orlando Magic forward Bol Bol had more rebounds (15).
And even with the game out of reach late, Bassey showed the flash of stretch-big potential that skyrockets his ceiling. He drained a catch-and-shoot 3-pointer with under a minute left, as he's now 2 of 5 from deep as a Spur.
But it's the defense that Bassey provides off the bench that he admitted is his biggest strength, and there might not be a more obvious assessment. Quite the strength to have when playing for a defensive-minded coach like Gregg Popovich.
"I mean, just playing for Pop, man ... That's the coach you go out there, you play for, you go hard for," Bassey said. "He's just so calm. When we're losing or winning, he's just calm."
The Spurs will need Bassey to continuing excelling on the boards and as an interior defender once the team hits the road for an upcoming five-game road trip on the West Coast.
The first test? An interesting one, as Bassey will have the task of guarding Golden State Warriors center James Wiseman when the Spurs visit the defending champions on Monday at Chase Center.
You can follow Zach Dimmitt on Twitter at @ZachDimmitt7
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