D-League Rewind: Devin Ebanks is ready for another NBA call-up

There are only a handful of games remaining in the D-League regular season, but that has not stopped the league from making lots of acquisitions, trades and other headlines. The Rewind is here to bring you all the useful information you may have missed from the past week around the league and to also highlight players who deserve some shine.

Call-Ups

Once the recently reported call-ups of Axel Toupane and Greg Smith (both from the Raptors 905) become official, there will be 25 call-ups this season. That’s well off the record pace from 2014-15, but there will be many more to come as roster spots in the NBA become available and teams give guys golden opportunities to prove themselves.

Players currently on call ups: Jorge Gutierrez (Charlotte), Phil Pressey (Phoenix), Alex Stepheson (Los Angeles Clippers), Justin Harper (Detroit), Jordan McRae (Cleveland) and Sean Kilpatrick (Brooklyn).

Acquisitions

Ty Walker via returning rights — Iowa Energy

Chris Crawford via returning rights — Canton Charge

Deng Deng via player pool — Texas Legends

Chris Douglas-Roberts via returning rights — Texas Legends

Jamal Jones via returning rights — Delaware 87ers

Baron Davis via player pool — Delaware 87ers

Marcus Thornton via draft rights — Maine Red Claws

Tim Frazier via returning rights — Maine Red Claws

Jarnell Stokes via affiliate rule — Sioux Falls Skyforce

Dwight Buycks via returning rights — Oklahoma City Blue

Ra’Shad James and 2016 6th round pick via trade with Reno — Westchester Knicks

Gani Lawal and 2016 4th round pick via trade with Westchester — Reno Bighorns

Keith Wright via trade with Austin — Westchester Knicks

Wesley Saunders via trade with Westchester — Austin Spurs

Performer of the Week

Nick Minnerath of the Canton Charge earned this award for his play last week. He helped lead the Charge to a 3-0 record (they have won 12 straight!) while averaging 25.3 points and 8.0 rebounds on 61 percent shooting. At 26-years-old, this 6-9 forward has done everything he can this season to prove he deserves an NBA opportunity, and I think he will get one before the season is over.

Minnerath is also on pace to become the D-League’s first ever 50/40/90 player (with qualifying totals) as he currently sits at 51/40/89 through 36 games this season.

The Sioux Falls Tyrant

Usually words like “tyrant” and “juggernaut” carry a negative connotation, but Briante Weber brings light to those terms since he’s both on the basketball court. He rules with an iron fist, oppressing the offensive exploits of his opposition, and somehow, at 6-2, he is the x-factor for his club as well.

Last year, Weber’s final season at Virginia Commonwealth University was cut short after he tore his ACL, MCL and meniscus in his right knee in late January. He subsequently sat out the first half of the D-League season to finish his rehab and recovery but he’s now back, and Sioux Falls couldn’t be more pleased with that news. His return came on the heels of Tre Kelley’s departure overseas and Weber has taken full advantage of the starting role.

For the season, Weber is averaging 10.0 points, 5.0 rebounds, 3.8 assists and 2.1 steals. But over the last five games, the diminutive juggernaut has stepped it up to the tune of 18.6 points, 7.6 rebounds, 6.6 assists and 2.8 steals on 46 percent shooting. Weber came into the league with a stellar defensive reputation and he’s certainly kept that up as he’s a game changer on that end of the court.

It will not be long once his offense catches up before NBA fans get to know Briante Weber. Enjoy him while you can, D-League fans, because Weber is destined for bigger and better things.

O’Brien Gets Post-Call-Up Boost

One of the more surprising call-ups this season was when the Utah Jazz signed forward J.J. O’Brien to a 10-day deal from the Idaho Stampede. That’s not to say O’Brien doesn’t have NBA skills, but at the time he had played 24 games and was scoring less than 10 points per night. The Jazz knew what they had in O’Brien, as he spent summer league and training camp with the team before being allocated to the Stampede, but they needed a regular season look — unfortunately, it only lasted the initial 10 days.

The side effect of the move, however, has been a boost for Idaho head coach Dean Cooper because O’Brien has become a go-to scorer since his return. The switch really is quite amazing, especially when you consider he has not received a substantial boost in minutes.

• Pre Call-Up: 24 games, 33.4 minutes, 9.9 points, 5.1 rebounds and 1.8 assists — 11 double-digit scoring games
• Post Call-Up: 11 games, 38.4 minutes, 20.6 points, 5.5 rebounds and 4.1 assists — 11 double-digit scoring games

Perhaps even more impressive is that O’Brien is scoring 20-plus points on 60 percent shooting in those 11 games. He’s returned to the D-League with a renewed energy and confidence, and the aggressive style he’s playing with has served him well. He’s 79-for-111 in the paint over those 11 games, which is good for 69 percent — league average is 57 percent, so he’s blowing that number out of the water as well.

The scoring numbers get most of the publicity, but he’s also making his teammates better and finding them in places that help them score. His assists before the call-up were at 1.8 per game and he’s more than doubled that number since. He certainly realizes the importance of displaying an all-around game for when another NBA team comes calling.

The Forgotten Forward

Devin Ebanks is playing in the D-League right now, as we speak. He’s still only 26-years-old and he still has all the tools at 6-9 to help an NBA club. Ebanks has shown durability for the Grand Rapids Drive, too, as he’s the only player on the roster to have played all 36 games this season.

Players like Ebanks, who have already gotten an NBA opportunity in the past, sometimes go unnoticed in the D-League because fans, executives and coaches want to find that diamond in the rough. Ebanks can’t be that guy because he’s already a known commodity with three years of NBA experience under his belt. However, three years of NBA experience doesn’t mean he’s received a full shake, either. He’s only played in 63 total games, which is less than one full season in The Association.

Ebanks currently ranks fifth in the D-League in scoring at 21.5 points per game for the Drive. He’s also gathering 7.2 rebounds per game while shooting 44 percent from the field and 35 percent from 3-point range. Proving he can hit the outside shot is essential for him to get another shot in the NBA.

Case in point: In two years at West Virginia, Ebanks shot 8-70 from deep. In his three seasons with the Lakers, he went 8-36. In today’s style of NBA play, small forwards are expected to help stretch the floor as proper spacing is essential for both guards to penetrate and bigs to operate in the paint. This season, Ebanks is 72-207 from 3-point distance, doing most of his damage from above the break (ATB) with 60 made 3-pointers.

While he’s only made 12 3-pointers from the corners, his percentage (35 percent) is the same as from ATB.

One more interesting note on his improved 3-point prowess is that 93 percent of his made 3-pointers have been assisted, proving he can be a catch-and-shoot player on the wing. This also shows that Ebanks is not taking pull up 3-pointers off the dribble and he’s playing within himself.

He’s still got all the physical attributes that made him an early second round pick as a 20-year-old kid, but he’s now got the experience and added 3-point weapon in his arsenal that NBA teams covet greatly.