New Phoenix Suns forward/center Bol Bol expressed his excitement to play with and learn from Kevin Durant at the team’s media day yesterday.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!“I think it’s pretty cool,” Bol said to me about playing with Durant. “Especially (because) that’s definitely like my favorite player growing up and someone I looked up to. Coming into league I was really looking forward to playing against him, but fast forward to now we’re on the same team, and (I) get to compete with him and against him every day in practice. I think that’ll be very cool for me.”
Our @brendan_mau asks Bol Bol about playing with KD. pic.twitter.com/zOrsqsMvRm
— Burn City Suns Talk 🎙️ (@BurnCitySuns) October 2, 2023
Bol was signed by the Suns on July 16 after being waived by the Orlando Magic.
Several players called 7-foot-2, 220-pound Bol a guard because of his unique skillset yesterday.
Just how the 23-year-old fits on this team is one of the Suns’ biggest questions heading into the upcoming season. His potential has always been there, and there were a lot glimpses last season of what kind of player he could be.
After an injury-riddled freshman season at Oregon, Bol was selected by Miami with the 44th overall pick in the 2019 NBA Draft. He played his first three seasons with Denver, only appearing in 53 games total and averaging under 10 minutes per game in his time with the Nuggets.
He then vastly improved last season with the Magic.
Bol’s 2022-23 season stats: 9.1 PPG | 5.8 RPG | 1.0 APG | 1.2 BPG | 0.4 SPG | 1.6 TOV on 54.6/26.5/75.9 splits in 21.5 MPG (70 games, 33 starts)
See over 17 minutes of some of his most “freakish” plays with the Magic last season below.
However, he has had some problems making jump shots.
The son of 7-foot-6 NBA legend Manute Bol now has a lengthy shooter in Kevin Durant to mentor him. With one of Bol’s biggest struggles being his shooting, this is an area the 6-foot-10 Durant has mastered. Bol has only shot 29.3% for three-point range in his career, but has converted on 61.5% of his two-point attempts.
Could Durant mentor the 7-footer into being a deadly weapon for the Suns this upcoming season?
Kendrick Perkins: “Bol Bol is going to show up and show out this season.”
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Brendan Mau is a senior writer covering the Phoenix Suns and more for Burn City Sports. You can follow him on X via @Brendan_Mau
