Player #2: Nemanja Bjelica
The numbers will not help support his case, but Nemanja Bjelica was a huge asset for the Sacramento Kings during their struggles. After Marvin Bagley III was sidelined with a thumb injury, Bjelica took his place in the starting lineup.
Although Bjelica is not the bonafide scorer and athlete that Bagley is, he stayed true to himself and brought different aspects of the game that the Kings’ original starting five lacked. Especially on the offense end, Belly was solid as he made shots at an effective rate, set up plays for his teammates to score, and moved well without the ball which resulted in good spacing.
No one is going to say that Bjelica is the Kings’ star player, but in terms of fulfilling his role, he continues to be excellent. With Bagley still out for a couple of weeks, Belly will have to remain efficient for the Kings to keep winning.
In Bjelica’s five October contests, he averaged around nine points, five rebounds, and one steal a game. He also recorded the second-highest PER (Player Efficiency Rating) amongst the team’s rotation players and shot around 52% from the court, 50% from beyond the arc, and 100% from the charity stripe.