OKC Thunder: Darius Bazley 2019-20 season and contract grades
Season highlights
There are three highlights of Bazley’s first season that I would like to focus on. The first, which was one that got me out my chair was his dunk on Joel Embiid. The rookie was having issues with his confidence from behind the line. Then he saw the opportunity to do this.
The second highlight of the season was when Bazley stepped into the starting role after Gallinari went down with injury around Christmas. Bazley played four games as a starter at this time and the OKC Thunder went 3-1. This included wins against the LA Clippers and Toronto Raptors.
Bazley started nine games all season when Gallinari was out. In those games, the Thunder went 7-2 which is incredible. Gallinari was such a big part of the offense last season but Bazley showed tremendous maturity in stepping in when asked. He did not try to take on Gallinari’s role, just played to his own strengths.
The third highlight for the rookie was his time in the NBA bubble. If not for COVID-19 we may not have seen Bazley’s true potential this season. He was injured just before the season was put on hold and was able to come back healthy for the final eight seeding games.
During these games, he averaged 13.0 points, 6.3 rebounds, and 1.5 assists per game. He shot the ball incredibly well from deep making 19-of-41 which is good for 46.3 percent. All of these numbers are well up on his season averages.
Bazley also collected his first career double-double in the bubble. Unfortunately, it was in the 27 point loss to the Phoenix Suns. It was also in the middle of his most prolific scoring run, where he scored 20 points in three straight games. He is the first OKC Thunder rookie to do this since James Harden.