In Minnesota, there are minutes to take. Chris Finch made it very clear to his team that the preseason was going to be about seeing which rotations worked best. Naz Reid continues to take the opportunity to show himself in his best light, with 13 points, 5 rebounds and 2 blocks in the victory against the Clippers.
“He plays with a lot of confidence. I told him he played really well. He does all the little things for the team. He doesn’t force anything. The game is easily coming to him at the moment ”, likes Chris Finch in The Pioneer Press. “He had top level finishes, he managed actions at difficult angles. On the rebound, in defense, I am very proud of him. He had a great preseason. We need to find him more minutes. “
In this case, Naz Reid has much more to his coach in association with Karl-Anthony Towns. Being like KAT able to step aside to present a danger both behind the arc and on the initiative in dribbling, the usual replacement has scored points for the coming season, his third.
“We had a good few minutes with him and KAT together on the pitch”, adds Chris Finch in The Athletic. “Offensively, we are still looking for solutions but I found that they continued to play well every time we associated them on the field. “
Lightened by 14 kilos!
With 11 points and 5 rebounds on average for his second campaign last season, Naz Reid confirmed the promises he had made when he was a rookie. But the former LSU wants to take a new step for his third year, having lost nearly 14 kilos during the summer. At 2m06 and 104kg therefore.
He readily admits that he had to work hard on his defense to keep up with the speed of NBA athletes. From his first match in the summer league, to tell the truth …
“Everyone was overwhelming me. I knew how to play, of course, but talent can only get you up to a point. You can’t defend really well if your lateral movements aren’t good. There were things like that I had to do and I was ready to do them ”, he explains before returning to his new lean physique. “I’m moving better now. I take off faster from the ground, I feel much better. I don’t want to change anything anymore: the shape I have, the fat mass I have. There is no more corn, I feel really good! “
In top form, Naz Reid now wants to add the veteran’s mental and meticulous preparation. Limited to 18 minutes of career average, he wants to claim more. His preseason performances point in this direction.
“It’s something I didn’t know when I came to the NBA, but it all counts. You can’t take shortcuts for anything. There are things you can’t ignore. And I have no problem with that. I will do whatever it takes to help the team win ”, he concludes. “I can’t wait to be able to replay and show all the things I’ve learned and worked on this summer. I’ve been waiting for this for a while, six months, and I can’t wait to get started. With the potential I have now, I have no limits. “
| Naz Reid | Percentage | Rebounds | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | MJ | Min | Tirs | 3pts | LF | Off | Def | Until | Pd | Fte | Int | Bp | Ct | Pts |
| 2019-20 | MIN | 30 | 17 | 41.2 | 33.0 | 69.8 | 1.1 | 3.0 | 4.1 | 1.2 | 2.8 | 0.6 | 0.7 | 0.7 | 9.0 |
| 2020-21 | MIN | 70 | 19 | 52.3 | 35.1 | 69.3 | 1.2 | 3.4 | 4.6 | 1.0 | 2.6 | 0.5 | 1.0 | 1.1 | 11.2 |
| Total | 100 | 18 | 49.0 | 34.3 | 69.4 | 1.2 | 3.3 | 4.5 | 1.1 | 2.6 | 0.5 | 0.9 | 1.0 | 10.5 | |
