NBA Regular Season: Utah Jazz at Toronto Raptors -- Player Focus Derrick Favors

NBA Regular Season 2012-2013, Game 8:

Utah Jazz (3-4) @ Toronto Raptors (1-5)

Player Focus: Derrick Favors

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C'mon. If you haven't been paying attention you could be under the media's spell that Mo Williams is the leader of this team, and that Al Jefferson is the straw that stirs our drink. Early on this year we've had Mo'splosions in the 3rd quarter, and in our last game was the first game where Al actually had a PPS value higher than 1.10. (This season, from Gm 1 to Gm 7: 1.09, 0.77, 1.00, 1.10, 1.00, 0.44, and 1.35). Over all Al's had 98 points on 91 shots, which is a PPS of 1.01. Mo Williams is much more consistent, but it's inhumane to ask him to some how turn it on all season long and be on fire.

But you, and I, and most of the players on the team already know what's going to happen sometime soon, this season. This year Derrick Favors is going to go from Lion King Cub Simba to Man-eating Lion / King of the Jungle pretty soon.

Let's go over some points:

• He's the most athletic guy on our team
• He's athletic in a position where few are
• He's a big man who plays big
• He's a big man who plays defense
• He's one of the few players on our team to play defense
• He doesn't have a go-to-move right now on offense, but every game he's showing us more and more of what he's been working on in the lab between games / between seasons
• Legit 12' + max reach (from draft combine) which has only increased with his better conditioning and strength
• Andrea Bargnani, Ed Davis, Jonas Valanciunas, Linas Kleiza, Amir Johnson, and Aaron Gray all can't check him; or score on him

Favors is that quantum leap player, and he has the chance to dominate on both sides of the basket. Tonight he needs to take another step towards being The Man on this team. Tonight he can (provided the refs don't short change him on the exchange rate, and give him too many fouls) dominate.