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PROVO — As the NBA season winds down, former college All-Americans Jimmer Fredette and Damian Lillard continue to battle for their lottery draft bound teams.
Fredette has played in seven of the last 10 games for the Kings, averaging six points in eight minutes during that span. Sacramento lost its last two games heading into tonight’s matchup against Golden State.
Overall Fredette’s season average minutes are down five minutes from last year, but his shooting percentages from behind the arc and the free throw line are both up five and six percentage points, respectively. He is averaging the same amount of points per game.
The highlight of Fredette’s month came on March 10 when he led the Kings to a near win in the game’s final minutes ending in a 115-113 loss to Milwaukee.
Sacramento trailed by 15 with less than four minutes left when Fredette entered the game and scored nine points. This is the prime example Andrew Sweat from the Bleacher Report gives as a reason to fire Kings head coach Keith Smart.
“Jimmer Fredette is the only watchable player on this selfish, me-first, low basketball IQ, losing Sacramento team," Sweat writes. "And for some head-scratching reason, Keith Smart jerks Fredette's minutes around, leaving Jimmer to wonder if he is going to get 20 minutes or a DNP-CD on any given night.”
The Sacramento Kings have the second worst record in the Western Conference, but city officials are attempting to keep the team in California’s capital.
Maynor helping Lillard
| Before | After | |
|---|---|---|
| MP | 38:30 | 38:59 |
| FG-FGA | 7-16 | 8-16 |
| FG% | 41.4 | 47.2 |
| 3P-3PA | 2-6.3 | 3-6.1 |
| 3P% | 33.5 | 44.1 |
| FT-FTA | 3-3.6 | 3-3.8 |
| FT% | 81.7 | 73.9 |
| TRB | 3.2 | 3.3 |
| AST | 6.5 | 6.7 |
| STL | 1 | 0.7 |
| TOV | 3.04 | 2.6 |
| PTS | 18 | 22 |
Off the court, Fredette serves his community, recently making a dream come true for Tyler Hallsey, a boy diagnosed with a brain tumor.
Meanwhile, Damian Lillard continues to show the league he is the best pick in last season's NBA draft.
His numbers have increased since the Blazers traded for backup point-guard Eric Maynor to ease the wear-and-tear on the first-year player.
As of Wednesday, the rookie from Weber State averaged 22 points and seven assists for March and shot nearly 50 percent from the field. His play has earned the praise from many this season including Derrick Rose and Shaquille O’Neal.
“Let me tell you something, America,” O’Neal said in TNT’s post game broadcast. “I know you love LeBron (James). I know you love Kobe (Bryant). But add this kid Damian Lillard to your list. He’s a player.”
Lillard's top performance this month came against the San Antonio Spurs when he scored 35 points and dished out nine assists on March 8 as the Blazers handed the Spurs their second-worst home loss ever, 136-106.
That isn’t the only national air time Lillard has seen. A nationwide Adidas commercial featuring Lillard and his adicolor shoes hit airwaves earlier this month.
Lillard faces off with Deron Williams Wednesday as the Blazers host the Nets with just 12 games left in the regular season.
Andrew Devey is a BYU senior studying communications. You can follow him on Twitter @adevey or watch him following Fredette and Lillard's NBA season at bit.ly/JimmerLillard. His views do not necessarily reflect those of BYU.
