Kyle “Ball Machine” Anderson, despite my proclamations of him being able to average a triple-double in the NBA (perhaps I was overrating him, in retrospect), had not gotten double-digit assists in a game until tonight. Part of that is minutes, obviously, but the other part of it is that his passing lanes are limited by how insanely slow he is. Kendall Marshall made it work as an incredibly slow human being, but he was the best passer ever, so it’s a different situation.
I saw an article about how his lack of footspeed actually helps him on the court, because defenders are so used to playing people who aren’t stuck in quicksand. I don’t believe it; Anderson looks good in spite of his slowness, and his superior basketball IQ and savvy are what allows him to be moderately successful.
Also, we need to talk about this nickname “Ball Machine”. That needs to go. This is the second time the Spurs’ commentators have come up with a really sus moniker for one of their players.