Over the Blazers' first five games, Dalano Banton had been treated to two “DNPs” and a few minutes of “garbage time” from Chauncey Billups. With Portland still losing ground against the Thunder, the former Raptors and Celtics player then played 9 minutes in the fourth quarter, for 11 points and 3 assists.
The Blazers had largely lost (137-114) but the effectiveness of his joker visibly gave ideas to Chauncey Billups. Because in the following match, he revived Dalano Banton again in the fourth quarter, with his team at -22 (87-65) on the scoreboard. Result ? 12 points at 5/7 shooting and almost a hold-up. Because if his last 3-pointer hadn't been a failure, he would have indeed been the hero of the evening for Portland…
0 points in the first three quarters, 48 in the last
However, it was only a postponed game because against New Orleans, and while the match was much closer this time, the Pelicans only leading by one possession (82-79), Chauncey Billups once again revived Dalano Banton in the fourth quarter, after leaving him on the bench for the rest of the game.
And layup after layup, shot after shot, the Canadian scored 20 points at 8/9 shooting in the period, and above all the Blazers won (118-100) behind another big last quarter from their astonishing replacement!
Tom Haberstroh asks : Did Chauncey Billups invent the role of “finisher”, this player who only plays the fourth quarter? We probably won't go that far because, apart from the last match, Dalano Banton was only involved in matches which seemed lost. But this gives strange stats…
Much more than a defensive “boost”
Since the start of the season, Dalano Banton has never played in the first half, and he scored all of his points in the fourth quarter, with incredible efficiency (18/23).
Given Chauncey Billups' answers, this doesn't sound like an established strategy, as the coach explains that he simply wanted a defensive “boost” against the Pelicans when he started his Canadian player, and that he was happy to get much more than that, with his 20 points in the fourth quarter.
“You just have to trust the process. I'm not in coaching meetings but I know you have to stay ready.” Dalano Banton responds to this strange use. “I'm sure the staff believes in my talent, knowing that the matches are all different… So whether it's the first or the last quarter, it's the same for me. I try to have the same mentality, making the right choices. »
