“ We try not to make it a personal matter, because we want to behave the same way against all teams “, start by letting go Nickeil Alexander-Walker. Before adding: “ But I'm human at the end of the day, it always feels good to win. »
Especially visibly against his former team. Last night, the Wolves guard shone against the Jazz, the team that transferred him with Mike Conley last February, when the latter was looking for stability in Utah.
And he puts on a show!
With this hint of revenge in the air, the full-back signed his best performance since wearing the Wolves jersey. Not unhappy from afar (4/8), incisive in penetration, the former Pelicans player showed himself in the creation of his team's play. Like the pass of the evening, delivered behind the back for a dunk by Karl-Anthony Towns on the counterattack.
“ It's really nice, especially when the crowd comes alive, we move on and we have a good attack. You're on a show, you feel the energy of the crowd, that change in gravity, it's a completely different feeling “, describes “NAW”.
“ It's a pleasure to watch him play, he gives us a lot of juice », summarizes Chris Finch. “ He is special. That's what we said last year, that's what we still see today », completes “KAT”, big man of the evening with his 32 points and 11 rebounds.
Behind the interior, to complete the score, we find Nickeil Alexander-Walker, author of 20 points (record with the Wolves), 7 assists and 5 rebounds. A necessary contribution as the Wolves had to do without Anthony Edwards, injured in the hip during the victory against the Thunder two days earlier.
Also present in defense
And to make matters worse, he also got involved in defense by recording 5 interceptions and 2 blocks. Enough to obtain the congratulations of his former coach, Will Hardy. “ Nickeil is a very good player. He really changed his identity by becoming a defender first and foremost. He was able to put pressure on the ball, he was very disruptive going through screens. I had the pleasure of training Nickeil. She is a wonderful person who works hard every day », greets the Jazz coach.
The latter considers that “ his intensity on defense sort of set the stage for their defense. He got in a few more shots on offense, but I feel like his impact – despite being a talented and skilled offensive player – is felt very, very strongly when he's on the defensive end. »
Qualities ultimately little exploited by the Jazz coach, who only offered an average of 15 minutes at the back when he was in Utah. Now at Wolves, he plays more, is a regular starter, and plays above all within the best team in the West.
| Nickeil Alexander-Walker | Percentage | Rebounds | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | MJ | Min | Shots | 3pts | L.F. | Off | Def | Early | Pd | Party | Int | Bp | Ct | Pts |
| 2019-20 | NOP | 47 | 13 | 36.8 | 34.6 | 67.6 | 0.2 | 1.6 | 1.8 | 1.9 | 1.2 | 0.4 | 1.2 | 0.2 | 5.7 |
| 2020-21 | NOP | 46 | 22 | 41.9 | 34.7 | 72.7 | 0.3 | 2.9 | 3.1 | 2.2 | 1.9 | 1.0 | 1.5 | 0.5 | 11.0 |
| 2021-22 * | All Teams | 65 | 23 | 37.2 | 31.1 | 74.3 | 0.6 | 2.3 | 2.9 | 2.4 | 1.6 | 0.7 | 1.4 | 0.4 | 10.7 |
| 2021-22 * | NOP | 50 | 26 | 37.5 | 31.1 | 72.2 | 0.7 | 2.6 | 3.3 | 2.8 | 1.8 | 0.8 | 1.7 | 0.4 | 12.8 |
| 2021-22 * | UTH | 15 | 10 | 33.3 | 30.3 | 91.7 | 0.1 | 1.5 | 1.5 | 1.1 | 1.0 | 0.3 | 0.5 | 0.3 | 3.5 |
| 2022-23 * | All Teams | 59 | 15 | 44.4 | 38.4 | 66.7 | 0.3 | 1.5 | 1.7 | 1.8 | 1.5 | 0.5 | 0.9 | 0.4 | 6.2 |
| 2022-23 * | UTH | 36 | 15 | 48.8 | 40.2 | 69.2 | 0.2 | 1.4 | 1.6 | 2.1 | 1.6 | 0.7 | 1.3 | 0.4 | 6.3 |
| 2022-23 * | MIN | 23 | 16 | 38.4 | 36.1 | 61.9 | 0.3 | 1.5 | 1.8 | 1.4 | 1.3 | 0.4 | 0.4 | 0.3 | 5.9 |
| 2023-24 | MIN | 17 | 22 | 39.6 | 33.8 | 33.3 | 0.4 | 1.7 | 2.0 | 2.5 | 1.9 | 0.8 | 0.9 | 0.7 | 5.9 |
| Total | 234 | 19 | 39.7 | 33.9 | 70.1 | 0.3 | 2.0 | 2.4 | 2.1 | 1.6 | 0.7 | 1.2 | 0.4 | 8.3 | |
How to read the stats? MJ = matches played; Min = Minutes; Shots = Successful shots / Attempted shots; 3pts = 3-points / 3-points attempted; LF = free throws made / free throws attempted; Off = offensive rebound; Def=defensive rebound; Tot = Total rebounds; Pd = assists; Fte: Personal fouls; Int = Intercepts; Bp = Lost balls; Ct: Against; Pts = Points.
