As the season is edging closer to the halfway mark and Kevin Durant being out due to an injury, there is one Phoenix Suns big man who is making the most out of the new opportunities that have come his way.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!Before making a lasting impression in both games against the Portland Trail Blazers and Los Angeles Clippers, Bol Bol only featured eight times for the Suns and when he did, he ended up playing five minutes or less each time.
Since being the 44th overall pick in the 2019 NBA Draft by the Denver Nuggets, Bol has came off the bench for the majority of his career.
Spending three seasons in Colorado, he was unable to become a main figure in the Nuggets as Bol appeared in 53 games averaging 2.7 points, 0.3 assists and 1.2 rebounds.
The 7’3″ big man was then dealt to the Boston Celtics on Jan. 19, 2022 before he would flipped to the Orlando Magic on Feb. 10 that year.
In Florida, he showed glimpes of potential as he started 33 out of the Magic’s 70 games, seeing his numbers jump to 9.1 points, 5.8 rebounds and 1 assist per-game.
After the conclusion of last season, Bol would then opt to sign a one-year deal with the Suns in the summer.
Entering the Spotlight
So far, Bol is averaging 3.1 points, 1.8 rebounds and 0.3 assists in his short stint with the Suns.
Even though he has had a small sample size, he checked into the second quarter against Portland and has made a name for himself ever since.
With his time on the floor skyrocketing from two minutes to hovering around 20, Bol scored 11 points vs. the Trail Blazers and put up 14 on the Clippers.
Using his lengthy stature to the best of his ability, the fans go berserk almost every time he makes a bucket.
Not just the fans, but a key figure of the Suns that has also showed his appreciation for Bol’s impact has been head coach Frank Vogel.
“Really happy for him and proud of him,” Vogel said. “He’s doing the things we’ve been coaching him on in practice, to play a more disciplined brand of basketball with shot selection and turnovers. Just playing within himself and working on the angles that we are trying to work with him on defensively. He’s contributed big time in the last two games.”
It remains to be seen if Bol will receive the same amount of usage when Durant eventually returns from having right hamstring tightness or not.
Vogel has not made a final decision on what exactly will happen with Phoenix’s bench once Durant does come back, but he said that Bol is doing everything he can to play more often.
“We’ll see, he has done enough to earn more looks and more opportunity,” Vogel said. “As KD comes back, we’ll look at all the other guys. We got a lot of guys that have shown what they can contribute to us. That is part of this early part of the season is seeing how everybody fits with this team, with this roster, teammates, as well as in our system. Seeing what Bol did was very impressive and had two really solid performances.”
Whatever Vogel decides to do, Bol is slowly becoming a fan favorite in Phoenix and is making an impact whenever he is on the floor.
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Alec Cipollini is a reporter of the Arizona Coyotes and Cardinals for Burn City Sports. You can follow him on his X account @AlecCipollini
