The NBA G League Has Left Its Mark All Over These NBA Finals
A look at all the G League angles by the numbers and more
With more and more players possessing G League experience each season (52% of NBA players on end-of-season rosters had such experience at the end of the regular season this year), it was bound to happen that the G League would have made quite an impression on rather high profile teams.
While Kawhi Leonard and Stephen Curry will certainly control the headlines and the narrative, behind the scenes the G League has helped lay down the foundation for both organizations to find their way to the Finals.
16
A combined 16 players between both 15-man rosters have G League experience, an all-time high for an NBA Finals.
TOR:
Danny Green
Jeremy Lin
Pascal Siakam
Norman Powell
Fred VanVleet
Chris Boucher
Patrick McCaw
Malcolm Miller
Eric Moreland
GSW:
Jordan Bell
Kevon Looney
Damian Jones
Shaun Livingston
Quinn Cook
Jacob Evans III
Alfonzo McKinnie
This list doesn’t include DeMarcus Cousins’ rehab assignment, that record number would jump to 17 players with G League experience.
G League Finals
Both organizations are no stranger to the finals (G League that is). Since 2012, the Santa Cruz Warriors and Raptors 905 have made a combined five appearances in the Finals, with each winning a championship along the way (Santa Cruz, 2015 — Raptors 905, 2017).
*Side note: Raptors assistant coach Nate Bjorkgren was the inaugural head caoch of the Santa Cruz Warriors that led them to the G League Finals their first season in Surf City.
Pascal Siakam
Before he was nominated for the NBA’s Most Improved Player Award, Siakam cut his teeth in the NBA G League with a combined 12 games over the G League regular season and playoffs during the 2016–17 season.
Siakam averaged 18 points on roughly 52% from the field in that span and was ultimately named G League Finals MVP for leading the 905 to the championship.
Siakam is the first-ever NBA G League Finals MVP to ever appear in an NBA Finals.
Alfonzo McKinnie
From playing overseas in Luxembourg to finding his way to the G League via a Windy City Bulls tryout, McKinnie has established himself as a valuable rotational player for the Warriors this season.
He spent last season playing for the same Raptors he will now face in the Finals. The oddest part? This sequence of events may not have happened had it not been for the Patrick McCaw’s refusal to sign a qualifying offer with Golden State.
What’s even more interesting? McCaw now finds himself on the Raptors, his third Finals appearance in as many seasons. Safe to say their careers may forever be intertwined (at least for this season).
Nick Nurse
Before he was named the Raptors head coach, Nick Nurse toiled in the G League and ultimately won a pair of championships with the Iowa Energy and the Rio Grande Valley Vipers.
In six seasons between the Iowa Energy and the Vipers, Nurse accrued a 187–113 record (.623) and had 23 players called up to NBA rosters during his days at the helm in the NBA G League.
Nurse also becomes the first-ever former NBA G League head coach to coach an NBA team to the Finals. For more on Nurse, check out our story from last off-season when he was hired as Toronto’s new head coach.
Record Attendance
Both the Raptors 905 and the Santa Cruz Warriors have vied for attendance supremacy in the NBA G League. At one point each team held the title for most attended game in league history. The Santa Cruz Warriors held the mark in 2017 with a crowd of 17,497 at Oracle Arena in a game against the Oklahoma City Blue.
The 905 bested that mark in December of that same year with a record 18,900 fans at the Air Canada Centre. That record still stands today.
Also, Santa Cruz is no stranger to attendance itself, with 78 consecutive sellouts (and counting) currently under its belt.
Showcase Showdown
Both G League cities have hosted a pair of NBA G League Showcases (Santa Cruz — 2015, 2016; Raptors 905–2017, 2018). It shows just how valuable both organizations feel about the NBA G League and what it offers to its talent, its front office, and overall culture to their franchises.
Is it a coincidence the two NBA teams representing their respective conferences in the Finals have left such a mark on the G League? One thing is for sure, their passion for the NBAGL isn’t hurting them when it comes to finding success on-and-off the court.
