Delaware Blue Coats check-in: Louis King catching the eyes of many

We’re over 10 games into the G League season, and the Delaware Blue Coats have amassed a solid 7-4 record — good enough for fifth in the G League’s Eastern Conference. As always, multiple players get opportunities throughout the year, with some of the bigger names showcasing their skill early on.

The Two-Way guys

Both of the Sixers’ two-way players, Julian Champagnie and Louis King, have produced. Louis King, the Blue Coats’ newest player, has shown potential early on. In 11 games, the 6-foot-7 wing has averaged a well-rounded stat line: 14.8 points, 5.5 assists, 4.8 rebounds, and 1.5 steals. Shooting is always a topic with the Sixers, and King has averaged 33.3 percent from three on a healthy 6.5 attempts per game.

Scoring and defense will be the primary subject with any wing prospect, but King’s playmaking is an area of intrigue. It’s unlikely he’ll be asked to do a lot of it at the next level, but there’s a decent sample size to suggest he can hold his own as a secondary or third ball handler.

Champagnie, on the other hand, has struggled a bit with consistency as of late. This is reflected in his shooting splits: 39.3 percent from the field, and 32.9 percent from three through 11 games.

The recent efficiency hasn’t been great, but it’s important to remember that the G League splits its season with a Winter Showcase, followed by the actual regular season. Factoring in the early season games, Champagnie is shooting 46.5 percent from the field and 34.7 percent from three on nearly nine attempts per game. Collectively, he’s averaged nearly 22 points on the season.

Champagnie has shown that he’s a fearless shooter, and the law of averages suggests that his shooting percentages will trend upwards given some time.

Two-way wing talent is always in high demand, and Champagnie has produced well defensively. He’s grabbing nearly five boards a game, and averaging a block per game — impressive for a 6-foot-7 wing.

Jaden Springer bouncing back and forth

We’ve all seen the memes of Jaden Springer bouncing between the NBA and G League — which, in all fairness, can be difficult to deal with from a consistency perspective. After a rocky start, Springer has put together some good games with the Blue Coats.

Springer’s January 12th performance against the Maine Celtics was one of his best games at a professional level yet. Springer amassed a total of 28 points on 11-of-15 shooting, and hit both of his three-point attempts. Most recently, he put together a well-rounded performance against the Lakeland Magic, with 21 points on 42 percent shooting, four steals, two blocks, five rebounds, and two assists.

The sample size for Springer is small, but he has continued to wreak havoc defensively in the G League. He’s averaged a total of 3.6 stocks (steals + blocks) per game, and has averaged 2.8 steals alone — which leads the G league by 0.2.

We all know his defensive talent, and it really comes down to when/if the offense can catch up. Hopefully things keep trending in the right direction for the 20-year old.

Mac McClung continues to impress

McClung has made some serious noise in the G League this season, which is part of the reason he’ll be a participant in the upcoming All-Star weekend dunk contest.

In the regular season, Mac McClung is averaging 17.4 points, 5.8 assists, and 4.6 rebounds in 28.8 minutes per game. Like most G League players, his role has changed quite a bit between being a sixth man and starter. His production, however, has remained consistent for the Blue Coats.

McClung’s potential NBA career partly hinges on his playmaking ability. It’s good to see him averaging a near 3:1 assist-to-turnover ratio, with 5.8 assists to 1.9 turnovers per game.

Team Stats

The Blue Coats are typically towards the top in regards to overall roster talent, and that’s been the case yet again this season. Currently, the team ranks top five in points, assists, blocks, and steals per game:

• Fourth in points per game as a team: scoring 120.4 points.
• Fourth in assists per game as a team: dishing 28.5 assists.
• Fourth in blocks per game as a team: blocking 6.5 shots.
• First in steals per game as a team: 11.3 steals, 0.4 more than second place.

As you can tell, the Blue Coats have been one of the better offensive teams, and actually hold first and second place for most points scored in a G League game this season, scoring 153 and 149 points, respectively.

Two-way play is always in high demand, and the large quantity of stocks has helped this team score easy buckets. They rank fourth in the G League in fast break points, scoring an average of 17.4 per game.

The Delaware Blue Coats next game is Wednesday, February 1 at 8 PM EST. They’ll take on the Birmingham Squadron, the New Orleans Pelicans’ affiliate team.