Westchester Knicks Week 1 wrap-up: Myles Powell shines in Orlando
Injuries have the W-Knicks off to a rocky start in the NBA G League bubble, but Myles Powell has been sensational, as have Jared Harper and Ignas Brazdeikis, when healthy. Catch up on the first week of W-Knicks action.
Westchester started the season in the Orlando G League bubble with a win over the Fort Wayne Mad Ants, 125-120. Ignas Brazdeikis and Jared Harper, both top 25 scorers among players with ten or more games in the G League last season, continued their domination, each recording a double-double. Brazdeikis scored 28 points on 60% eFG and grabbed 15 boards, while Harper burned the Mad Ants for 31 on 80% eFG% and 12 assists. Seton Hall alumnus Myles Powell poured in 16 points on 12 shots off the bench, while Simisola Shittu grabbed 12 boards and scored 10 points.
Harper looked poised to continue his excellence in the next game versus the Greensboro Swarm, but sprained his right ankle after just four minutes. Brazdeikis and Justin Patton also missed time with ankle injuries. With Harper and Brazdeikis out, Westchester lacked their two top guns, but four different W-Knicks stepped up and scored 20 or more points – Powell had 22 on 62.5% eFG while replacing Harper, while Louis King (63.3% eFG), James Young (45.5% eFG), and Shittu (53.3% eFG) each scored 21 points, en route to a 118-106 victory over the Swarm.
The W-Knicks’ winning ways quickly vanished, however, as they fell to the Santa Cruz Warriors, 116-124, in their third game. Shittu and Powell again cracked the 20-point mark, scoring 20 and 24, respectively. Powell also added seven assists, six boards, and five steals, while Shittu kept up his good rebounding with 12 rebounds. The Warriors were lifted above the W-Knicks by a great performance from OAKAAK Jeremy Lin, who had 29 points on 104.2% eFG, and nine dimes.
Iggy Brazzers returned to the lineup on Monday against the Rio Grande Valley Vipers, but his 20 points (55.9% eFG) and nine rebounds in 35 minutes weren’t enough, as the W-Knicks dropped their second straight. Two Juniors, Kenyon Martin Jr. and Kevin Porter Jr., undid the W-Knicks. Porter Jr. scored 32 on 72.2% eFG, and added two steals, seven rebounds, and nine assists, while Martin Jr. wrangled 13 boards and scored 21 points on 75% eFG, taking every shot from either at the rim or from beyond the arc. Powell again had the Midas Touch, setting a career high in points for the fourth straight game with 31, making all five of his attempted 3-pointers, leading to an 89.3% eFG. Powell also had seven assists and two steals. Former W-Knick and current Valley Viper Kenny Wooten continued to struggle vs. his former team, scoring just three points and bringing down just two boards.
Westchester dropped their third straight on Wednesday, losing to the Long Island Nets, 115-123. Brazdeikis scored 24 points on 52.5% eFG and grabbed eight boards. Powell had his first poor scoring game of the season, scoring just 10 points (a current career low) on 29.4% eFG. Despite his poor shooting, Powell still added eight assists and two steals. Justin Patton returned to the starting lineup after missing two games and coming off the bench versus Rio Grande, and scored 11 points and brought down seven boards. Shittu’s four-game double-double streak was broken, as he grabbed just eight rebounds.
Jared Harper returned from his ankle sprain on Thursday for Westchester’s game against the G League Ignite. Harper’s 16 points and 11 assists played a prominent role in Westchester besting the team featuring NBA Draft hopefuls. Westchester rallied from an 8-point deficit at half to force overtime, in which they absolutely blew away the Ignite, 11-3. King devastated the Ignite in the additional period, making all of his 3-point attempts and assisting Powell on a dunk to ice the game. Brazdeikis struggled shooting-wise (45.5% eFG), but led Westchester in scoring with 21 points, and had 10 rebounds. Powell returned to form, scoring 17 off the bench on 72.7% eFG. Patton also had a solid performance, grabbing 11 boards and scoring 15.
Westchester’s Player of the Week: Myles Powell
Powell has been electric in his first week in the G League, dishing and swishing to the tune of 20 points (57.3% eFG) and 5.8 assists per game over the first six games. Powell has combined his offensive percolation with some good defensive sleight of hand, averaging 1.8 steals, which is tied for eighth-most in the G League.
While Powell’s scoring has been impressive, it is important to remember that scoring alone at the G League level does not destine someone for NBA production — the majority of scoring high-flyers in the G League don’t go on to become good NBA players. Learning valuable skills that help players fit into systems as role players at the next level is more important than piling up individual scoring totals. Nonetheless, if Powell continues to impress, it will not be long before he’s given a chance by an NBA team. Whether that’s with the big Knicks or not remains to be seen, and largely depends on if New York can open up a two-way or 10-day spot for Powell.
I’ll be back next Friday recapping this next week of W-Knicks games, from their Feb. 20 game against the Austin Spurs to their Feb. 25 game against the SLC Stars. Believe it or not, we’re over a quarter of the way through the G League season — just nine games remain before the playoffs! If the season ended today, Westchester would not be among the eight teams sent to the single-game elimination playoffs.
