It was an interesting week for the Palouse products as they were all up and down. The best Coug was Coward once again, his teammate Jaylen Wells continued to struggle but has still made strides on the defensive end. Klay Thomspon has shown some fight this week and that he still has some swagger to his game and trash talk.
**Cedric Coward (Grizzlies) –** The early Rookie of the Year favorite started out the week hot with a 19-point outing against the Spurs. He also had 11 rebounds, marking Coward’s third double-double of the season. Two days later, Coward dropped another 19 points along with four rebounds and four assists against the Kings. To end the week, he had his worst showing with just nine points, two rebounds and one assist. Coward found his way out of his shooting slump shooting more than 44% in two of the last three games from beyond the arc. Coward has taken the lead for the “Alpha” role on the Grizzlies as star Ja Morant has been injured and ineffective all season.
**Klay Thompson (Mavericks) –** The most accomplished Coug of all time had an on and off week. Against the Timberwolves Thompson finished with seven points and two steals, while shooting 16.7% from three. Against the Knicks he had 13 points, two rebounds and two assists on 33.3% from three, nearly doubling his percentage from the previous game. The increase in shooting was short lived as he shot 14.7% the next game and finished with five points, two rebounds and one block.
To end the week things got feisty between the Mavericks and Grizzlies. Since Thompson’s time back in Golden State he has had a beef with the Grizzlies and more specifically Ja Morant, who is always chatting during the game whether he is playing or not. In 2022 when the Grizzlies were a decent team, the Warriors had a beef and Thompson would flaunt his four NBA championship rings to Morant and the Grizzlies who have zero rings to display. Post-game, Morant got in Thompson’s face and pointed his finger and Thompson swatted his finger out the way. Both Coward and Wells did not entertain or encourage Morant’s behavior to Thompson.
“He’s a funny guy with no accountability, just running his mouth,” [Thompson said.](https://x.com/big_business_/status/1992461110822531332?s=20) “He’s been running his mouth a long time. It’s funny you run your mouth when you’re on the bench. It’s kind of been the whole story of his career so far.”
**Mouhamed Gueye (Hawks) –** The third-year player started the week on fire with an 11-point and 11-rebound showing, Gueye’s first double-double this season. However, the great outing was short lived. In the next game, he only played four minutes and finished with zero points and one block. Against the Pelicans, Gueye had his hands full with emerging rookie star Derik Queen, who has been giving every big man trouble. Gueye finished with three points and six rebounds on 33.3% 3-point shooting. Finishing out the week, he had four points with one rebound, one assist and two blocks. Gueye’s play has been inconsistent but his play is not points-driven, when he scores it’s a cherry on top but it is not his role with the Hawks.
**Jaylen Wells (Grizzlies) –** Wells may need to be renamed from a “Three-and-D” player to a role player. His role is to shoot efficiently and guard the other team’s best guard, similar to what the Warriors used Thompson for in his early days. However, to fulfill that role, you have to be able to shoot, which is something Wells cannot do consistently this season. Wells recorded nine points, one rebound and two assists against the Spurs. In the following game, he had 13 points with one rebound and two assists. Against the Mavericks, Wells stuffed the statsheet with nine points, five rebounds and four assists without converting a 3-point shot. In November, Wells is shooting 30.2% from three. While that is not very good, he is up 5% from October.
Pro Cougs had an inconsistent week yet again but there were signs of improvement. Thompson has been showing more positives than he did to begin the season and Coward has continued to make WSU look good. Wells’ shot may not be efficient but his effort on defense makes up for it.