It’s been almost a year since Bol Bol last played a competitive basketball game, but his G League debut proved why his skillset is well worth the wait.
Bol came off the bench in the Windy City Bulls’ third game of the season and made an impact in the team’s 111-97 victory over the Canton Charge. The 19-year-old had a strong all-around game with eight points, nine boards and four blocked shots on 4-of-9 shooting in just 18 minutes of action. Bol signaled his arrival just a minute after coming on at the 7:18 mark in the first quarter as he dunked on a pick and roll play.
Prior to Friday’s game, Nuggets’ teammate Monte Morris mentioned Bol’s versatility could make him a triple-double threat in the G League.
“Bol is God-gifted, talented. He can dribble, shoot it. He’s a hell of a player,” Morris said after the Nuggets’ 101-93 win over the Nets. “I expect him to go down and kill it, double-double easy, almost triple-double. He’s that skilled. He’s just got to know everyone’s coming for his head. He’s got a big name and they are going to come at you hard. You just have to do what you do.”
Friday’s appearance is the first competitive basketball game Bol has played in since he suffered a foot injury on Dec. 12, 2018 during his lone season at Oregon. Prior to that season-ending injury, Bol displayed a unique skillset that led many to believe he would be a top-five pick in the 2019 draft. The center averaged 21 points, 9.6 rebounds and 2.7 blocks while shooting 56.1 percent from the field and a searing 52 percent from downtown. Concerns over his injury led him to slip to 44th pick of the NBA Draft, where the Nuggets decided to pounce on an opportunity to add another talented young player to the roster via trade. His debut is encouraging sign of just how dangerous he can be on both sides of the court.
Bol wasn’t the only Nuggets player to see action in the G League on Friday. Two-way player PJ Dozier got the start at small forward for the Bulls and almost finished with a double-double – going for 10 points, eight assists and six rebounds. Dozier has been an impressive playmaker in his first three games of this G League campaign. He is averaging 14.7 points, 10.3 assists, 5.7 rebounds, 1.3 steals and 1 block per game while shooting 45.5 percent from downtown.
Vlatko Čančar, Denver’s 2017 second-round pick, also got some playing time for the Erie BayHawks. In his second game in the NBA’s developmental league, the Slovenian had 13 points and four rebounds. Čančar is averaging 10 points and four rebounds in his first two games. Foul trouble is a concern as he’s averaged 4.5 fouls per game.