The NBA All-Star break has come and gone, and former Terps Kevin Huerter, Alex Len and Jake Layman have returned to action for their respective teams as they hope to continue the momentum they’ve built this year into the second half of the season.
Tracking their success for the rest of the NBA season, TSR takes a look at how Huerter, Len and Layman fared each week. Here’s a look at their performances from Feb. 17-March 2.
Kevin Huerter (2018-2019: 27.2 MPG, 9.3 PPG, 2.7 APG, 3.2 RPG)
Huerter has been in and out of the Atlanta Hawks lineup as of late while he battles several lingering injuries to his ankle and back. This is the rookie’s first time experiencing the grind of an 82-game NBA season, so some bumps and bruises are to be expected. He missed Atlanta’s first two games after the break but has been slowly working his way back to the level he was playing at for most of January and the beginning of February. The Hawks eased him in with 23 minutes in his first game back against the Houston Rockets. Huerter finished with seven points, two rebounds, and assist and a steal. He ramped it up a bit in his next outing two days later, in which he played 30 minutes and recorded six points, six rebound, three assists and a steal. However, he was an inefficient 2-for-9 from the field in that game. In perhaps the NBA game of the season so far, a quadruple overtime bout between Atlanta and the Chicago Bulls, Huerter contributed 15 points, two rebounds and a steal in 30 minutes of action. He increased his efficiency in the game against the Bulls, shooting 6-for-12. In the second part of a home-and-home with Chicago, Huerter got a bit of a rest by only being deployed for 23 minutes, but he made the most of them by scoring 12 points, dishing out three assists, swiping two steals, and grabbing one rebound. He remained efficient by shooting 5-for-9 from the field and 2-for-4 from three. Huerter seems to be getting past his growing pains (literally and figuratively) and should be a key piece for the Hawks down the stretch.
Alex Len (2018-2019: 19.1 MPG, 10.2 PPG, 5.5 RPG, 0.9 BLKPG)
Len’s production has been all over the board for the Hawks this year, but his last two outings have been impressive. After averaging 3.0 points, 2.0 rebounds, and having no blocks in just under 13 minutes per game in Atlanta’s first four contests following the break, Len has broken out in his last two, scoring 24 points and ripping down 10 rebounds to go along with two blocks and a steal in the marathon game against the Bulls and following that up with 28 points, nine rebounds, and two blocks two days later against Chicago. Perhaps the most impressive part of Len’s pair of games against the Bulls was the fact that the 7-foot-1 Ukrainian hit seven threes. That’s right, SEVEN threes, including five on Sunday night. Chicago might be a matchup that just works well for Len and his style of play, but he certainly made a case for more minutes with his recent production.
Jake Layman (2018-2019: 18.5 MPG, 8.0 PPG, 3.2 RPG)
Layman had the most momentum of any former Terps entering the All-Star break. He saw his minutes, points and rebounds per game all increase early in February, and the Portland Trail Blazers seemed to be trying to find more ways to get him involved. The emergence of Rodney Hood, who Portland traded for before the deadline, into the fold has cut into Layman’s minutes and production since the break, as both bring similar strengths to the wing. But Layman has had some nice showings of late, including eight points, 11 rebounds and two blocks in 28 minutes Feb. 23 against the Philadelphia 76ers, as well as 13 points, seven rebounds, two steals, and a block in 27 minutes March 1 against Toronto. Sunday against the Charlotte Hornets was a bit concerning though for Layman fans, as he only scored two points in 17 minutes while Hood led the Trail Blazers with 27 points off the bench. It could be that Hood just had the hot hand that day, but it will be interesting to see how Portland distributes the minutes between the two wings for the rest of the season.
