Here are the top performers on May 11 and the stats to highlight their impact.
BEST PLAYER OF THE DAY:
Anthony Edwards MIN SG 36 PTS | 6 REB | 1 STL | 45.2 FPS (vs. SAS)
It took him a while for Edwards to establish his rhythm after returning from injury, but he has made up for it with back-to-back 30-point performances. He was really locked in today, shooting close to 60% from the field, knocking down three threes, and going 7-for-8 from the line. But he was at his most impressive in the fourth quarter, where he took over, scoring 16 points to lead the team to the win.
BREAKOUT:
Miles McBride NYK PG 25 PTS | 4 REB | 1 STL | 32.8 FPS (vs. PHI)
Throughout the season, McBride has been a reliable bench piece for the Knicks. But outside of a few games, he hasn’t been near that level in the playoffs.
Today, however, he completely took over, knocking down seven three-pointers—nearly matching the entire Sixers team and leading all players in scoring.
SLEEPER:
Dylan Harper SAS SG 24 PTS | 7 REB | 3 STL | 40.9 FPS (vs. MIN)
Despite Wemby getting ejected, the Spurs still put up a strong fight against the Wolves and the rookie was one of the main reasons for that. While he was effective in many areas, he was most impressive offensively, shooting 8-for-11 from the field and 7-for-7 at the line to finish with a team-high in points.
ELITE ASSET:
Stephon Castle SAS PG 20 PTS | 6 REB | 4 AST | 38.2 FPS (vs. MIN)
Overall, this was one of his better performances in this matchup. The former Rookie of the Year made his presence felt in several areas, especially on offense, where he scored above his season average while shooting just under 50% from the field and committing just a single turnover.
CATEGORY SPECIALIST:
Josh Hart NYK SG 17 PTS | 9 REB | 1 BLK | 34.3 FPS (vs. PHI)
Obviously, the wing is one of the team’s most important contributors. While he doesn’t always deliver offensively, he impacts the game in other ways that contribute to winning, which was the case in the first two games of this matchup. But he’s starting to find his rhythm on offense, knocking down four threes today and posting back-to-back double-digit scoring games while shooting 50% or better from the field.
PLAYER TO WATCH:
Karl-Anthony Towns NYK C 17 PTS | 4 REB | 10 AST | 40.8 FPS (vs. PHI)
In terms of scoring and rebounding, this was a subpar performance for Towns. Still, he made a significant impact today with a game-high tally in assists. Over his first five playoff seasons, Towns had only a modest impact in that area; however, he has significantly raised his production this year, averaging 6.6 assists through the first ten games.
STREAMER:
Naz Reid MIN C 15 PTS | 9 REB | 4 AST | 33.8 FPS (vs. SAS)
So far in this matchup, Reid has been a major asset for the Wolves. While he struggled from three today, missing all four of his attempts, he still contributed well offensively, raising his series averages to 14.0 points on 52% shooting along with 8.5 rebounds per game. Recently, he has also added a new element to his game, averaging 4.5 assists in his last two outings.
FLOPPER:
Tyrese Maxey PHI PG 17 PTS | 2 REB | 4 AST | 23.4 FPS (vs. NYK)
This was a really disappointing end to their run this playoffs. After dominating the Celtics in the first round, Maxey was unable to deliver anything close to that standard in this series, averaging 18.3 points while shooting 15.8% from three. Still, he’s had an incredible season and he should be poised for more in the future.
