Jaylen Wells (Grizzlies) –Wells has been struggling from three this season going up-and-down all year. It appears he was on the upside this past week shooting above 60% in two of the three games. Against the Timberwolves he was electric, scoring 18 points, one rebound, two assists and one steal. All while shooting 80% from three hitting four out of five. Wells followed up his impressive showing by scoring 18 points again, three rebounds and one assists. Wells shot 66.7% from three hitting six out of nine of his attempts. To end the week Wells cooled off a little with 13 points, three rebounds, four assists and one block on 25% shooting from three going two for eight. Wells will be participating in NBA All Star weekend this week, in the Rising Stars game on the Sophomore team.
BRANDON WILLMAN
Jaylen Wells looks for an open teammate as he holds onto the ball during an inbounds play, Jan. 24 2024, in Pullman, Wash.
Klay Thompson (Mavericks) –The WSU great laid a pair of stinkers to start last week but ended strong. In game one against the Celtics, Thompson scored 4 points, one rebound and one assist, on 25% three point shooting. He followed up the bad game with another scoring 5 points, two rebounds and one assist. Thompson shot 16.7% from three. To end the week Thompson was on his A-game scoring 19 points, one rebound, two assists and two steals on 40% shooting from three. However, the Mavericks went winless last week and are 39-43 sitting at the No. 10 seed, hoping to make a strong playoff push. Thompson turned 36 years old on Feb. 8 and with limited time left in his career he will be looking to have a real chance for championship.
Mouhamed Gueye (Hawks) –The forward was previously on a heater, scoring in the double digits and stuffing the box score. Gueye seems to have cooled off and so did his playtime, he played 22 minutes in one game and nine in the other. Against the Heat Gueye had 6 points, six rebounds, two assists, one block and three steals, on 50% three point shooting. Against the Jazz, Gueye struggled with 2 points and four rebounds. The Jazz gave Gueye a tough time in large part due to their length, they have three quality seven footers. While Gueye can shoot the three, that is not his strong suit.
COLE QUINN
WSU forward Mouhamed Gueye (35) jumps over California forwards Lars Thiemann (21) and Kuany Kuany (13) during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game, Saturday, Jan. 15 2022, in Beasley Coliseum.
Cedric Coward (Grizzlies) –While Coward has been great for the Grizzlies most the season he was a little shaky last week. While scoring and defense are some of Coward’s best attributes the one thing he needs to improve upon is 3-point shooting. Coward is shooting 34% from beyond the arc on the season but did not shoot over 33.3% for the week. Against the Timberwolves he scored 14 points, four rebounds and one assist. Against the Kings he laid a dud with only 5 points, seven rebounds, six assists and one block. To end the week Coward scored 11 points, eight rebounds, one assist and three steals against the Blazers. Coward left a game early this week with a right knee injury, potentially making him unavailable for the All Star weekend Rising Stars game.
Isaac Jones (Pistons) –While Jones has not played in an NBA game since mid-November he did land a new deal with the Pistons. The deal is expected to be for two seasons. Jones had been waived by the Pistons to make room for Daniss Jenkins for the Pistons roster but now he is back with their G-league team. With a looming suspension coming for Jalen Duren it is likely Jones will suit up for the Pistons until Duren is back.
SAM TAYLOR | DAILY EVERGREEN FILE
Isaac Jones paced the Cougs with 20 points and 10 rebounds during an NCAA basketball game between WSU men’s basketball and UW, March 7 2024 in Pullman, Wash.
It was a good week for some and down week for others but all the Pro Cougs had their time this week. With NBA All-Star weekend happening this week, there will not be many NBA games and will give the players a chance to rest up and participate in the NBA biggest weekend of the year.