Thunder End of The Year Report Card: Aleksej Pokusevski
When watching the Oklahoma City Thunder, it's hard not to gravitate towards Aleksej Pokusevski.
One of the most interesting prospects in the NBA, Pokusevski had an up-and-down rookie season.
The rookie capped it off by scoring 29 points on 6-for-9 3-point shooting in a win over the Clippers, leaving plenty of intrigue for year two. Here are SI Thunder's grades for Pokusevski's rookie season:
Nick Crain's Grade: B-
Selected No. 17 overall in the 2020 NBA Draft, Aleksej Pokusevski didn’t have extremely high expectations coming into his rookie season with the Thunder. An extremely raw talent, he was viewed as a long-term project.
However, he shattered expectations, becoming a fan favorite around the league and flashing an extremely fun style of play.
Pokusevski deserves a lot of credit for the things he did well. For starters, playing 24.2 minutes per game while starting 28 times is no easy task for a 19-year-old who’s been in the United States for less than a year. He finished the season averaging an impressive 8.2 points, 4.7 rebounds and 2.2 assists per game. While he only shot 28.0 percent from deep on the season, he showed steady improvement all year.
This season, Pokusevski became the first rookie since LeBron James in 2004 to notch at least five points, assists, rebounds and blocks in a single game. At the same time, he broke The OKC rookie record with six blocked shots. With his unique shooting ability for his size, he made seven 3-point field goals in one game, setting a new Thunder rookie record.
On the flip side, Pokusevski still has a ton of work to do, which is expected for a rookie. For starters, he averaged 2.2 turnovers per game as he learned to adapt to the NBA style of play. As mentioned, his 3-point shooting could use work, but the shooting form looks excellent so that shouldn’t be a concern.
Finally, adding some weight to his frame will do him a lot of good as he looks to begin scoring at all levels. Overall, it was a successful season for Aleksej Pokusevski and the things he needs to improve on are very clear.
Aleksej Pokusevski
Alonzo Adams / USA TODAY Sports
Derek Parker's Grade: B
Aleksej Pokusevski's season was a successful one in the fact he saw the hardwood at all.
Anything more than G-League bubble action or garbage minutes would be considered a win by Presti and co.
The 7-foot Serbian got off to a rocky start, but even then he showed flashes of valuable skills for his size.
Before entering the bubble, Pokusevski averaged 3.3 points on 24 percent shooting from the field, and 17 percent from three, in 17.4 minutes per game. Fun highlights and blocks were some of the only positives.
Post-bubble, Pokusevski averaged 11.1 points, grabbed 5.4 rebounds and dished out 2.7 assists in 28.4 minutes a game. He shot 36 percent from the field and 31 percent from three.
Scoring 11.1 points per game would rank him 9th amongst rookies, well above where he was picked at 17th.
Pre-bubble Pokusevski proved he belonged in the league. Post-bubble he proved he can excel in it.
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Ryan Chapman’s Grade: B-
Aleksej Pokusevski was always going to be a long term project, so expectations needed to be tempered.
But how the Serbian started the season was still concerning. Not short on confidence, Pokusevski simply looked out of his depth in his first couple of games in the NBA.
But a trip to the G-League Bubble alongside Ty Jerome and Moses Brown helped the rookie settle in, and he returned to the Thunder looking much more comfortable.
Without losing his confidence, Pokusevski displayed the flashy passing and playmaking instincts that Sam Presti fell in love with, and he came into his own with increased playing time down the stretch.
He even showed he could play a little point guard in OKC’s season finale, meaning he played every position for the Thunder this year.
Pokusevski still has plenty to work on, especially on the defensive end, but if he can continue to grow as a player while he adds more size to his frame, he could develop into a nice piece in the Thunder rotation.
