LaMarcus Aldridge is a bit of a throwback.
In the age of the ubiquitous three-point shooter, he’s a man who has built his prolific career around the mid-range in both the high and low position.
He has always been one of the main benchmark scorers otherwise the A must-have scorer for any team he’s played for, whether in college with his native Texas Longhorns or in Portland or San Antonio in the NBA.
When the seven-time All Star joined Brooklyn, he knew it wouldn’t, but the 20,000 point mark was still well in his sights, and he found himself within 50 points of the milestone before that. his life did not change last April. He suffered a cardiac event in the game and this was followed by the devastating news that he would have to retire from the NBA due to an irregular heartbeat.
It felt like a sad, sudden end to a very impressive career. But his luck changed in September after his doctors completely allowed him to play again.
He joined the Brooklyn Nets. And Friday night, with just under two minutes left in the third quarter, Aldridge hit a 22-foot jumper to reach the career 20,000th point. He scored 21 points on 10 of 16 shots in Brooklyn’s 105-98 win over Indiana in 28 minutes of action.
Highlights of the Indiana Pacers vs the Brooklyn Nets in Week 2 of the NBA
Upon reaching this milestone, Aldridge became the 48th player in league history and the seventh active player to score 20,000 points, joining LeBron James, Carmelo Anthony, Kevin Durant, James Harden, Russell Westbrook and Chris Paul.
“It’s a blessing,” Aldridge said after the game. “A real blessing.
” Certainly. I didn’t think this was going to happen after what happened last year. I stayed there, fought back and felt really good doing it.
“Last year has been a crazy year for me, it’s been a long way home and I’m just blessed to be here. “
“He has the instinct to score,” said his teammate Durant. “(This is a) huge accomplishment. … (A) huge milestone. “
Kevin Durant of the Brooklyn Nets offered the game of the day against the Indiana Pacers.
In addition to his personal accomplishment that night, Nets head coach Steve Nash was pleased with Aldridge’s role in the team’s victory.
“He was awesome,” Nash said after the game. “Obviously we scored when we needed to, but we also stuck to the game plan.
“It was a really important performance, and to top it off he got into 20,000 which is incredible territory and a testament to the career he’s had. “
For the second time in a week, Aldridge has more than 20 points in less than half an hour on the bench, having managed it in Philadelphia against the Sixers last week.
There was a key spell in the third quarter in Friday night’s win at Barclays Center where Durant facilitated the team and Aldridge was the primary beneficiary, feasting on the midrange.
The 16-year-old NBA veteran once said, “The midrange is seen as a bad move these days, I guess. But I got 19,000 odd points on the midrange, so you’re telling me it’s a bad move, I don’t believe you. “
And while analysis gurus might argue, Aldridge has shown, and still does, the production to back up his point – and given where he was six months ago, it’s a remarkable achievement to return to play. such a level.
