A pair of 40-plus point efforts earned Craig Randall II NBA G League player of the week honors.
The Long Island Nets forward averaged 35.3 points, 4.7 rebounds and 5.0 assists in 42.4 minutes per game last week. Randall’s 44 point effort against Greensboro on Jan. 7 was both a Nets season-high and a league-high, and he became the first player in franchise history to record 40 or more points in back-to-back games.
Randall’s week started with a 40 point game against College Park at the Nassau Coliseum Jan. 5. Randall shot 57.7% (15-of-26) from the field and 42.9% (6-of-14) from beyond the arc, while adding 7 assists and 4 rebounds.
The local tryout player finished the week with a 22 point effort in Long Island’s loss to Greensboro on Sunday.
“He just keeps getting better and better,” Long Island Nets coach Adam Caporn told Netsdaily last week. “My main thing is that I’m just really happy for him, and he’s done everything that he’s been asked to do. Initially his role was (to) be a lockdown defender (and) shoot open shots, he came in his first game and hit a couple of threes, was super aggressive. He’s played a little point guard. We’re trying to evolve his game into a point guard He’s really a versatile player and that was just a great moment for him.”
Nets find themselves in slump of their own
While the Brooklyn Nets have found themselves in a bit of a rough patch, their G League counterparts have started off the year in a similar stretch. After defeating College Park in their season opener, Long Island has dropped its last three games — two to Greensboro and one to Raptors 905.
What has really hurt the Nets early on has been a struggle to hold onto the game late. Monday night, the Nets let a four-point lead slip away in the final 20 seconds of the game.
Isaac Bonga scored the game-winning shot on a three with 4.3 left in the game for a 103-102 loss in Canada.
Up Next
The Nets will return to Nassau Coliseum for their two consecutive games. They’ll face the Wisconson Herd on Wednesday, then face Main Celtics on Monday in an afternoon matinee.
