Chris, the All-Star organiser, content producer, YouTube host and producer, commentator and social media observer, had five games to pick from including Reading's high-scoring win against Thames Valley, as he went about singling out his Player and Team of the Week selections.
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Chris will pick a Player of the Week and four other selections to round out his Team of the Week, paying attention to the following criteria:
Other players will also receive a shout out as honourable mentions at the bottom of the piece.
PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Troy Cracknell’s ultra-efficient 16 first quarter points ensured Thames Valley never had a sniff of the lead early on, also building a platform for Reading to seal an important win in front of the NBL Live cameras.
Cracknell, off the back of my final Player Of The Week award for 2022, has certainly kept his momentum rolling into the New Year. The Cavaliers’ defence sent him to the line ten times, including as part of multiple ‘and-one’ plays, and the former Augusta Jags man was clinical to miss only once.
The talented American topped off an efficient outing with an all-important win which moves Reading Rockets closer to a being .500 on the season.
Pinnock was unlucky not to be my Player Of The Week, with a two-way masterclass performance that included some lights out shooting.
The former Loughborough man demonstrated that he has a range of skills, handles for days with four assists, great playmaking ability and most importantly a desire to protected the rock, playing without a turnover whilst nabbing three steals.
Pinnock’s shooting and playmaking opened up the floor for the Rockets, providing better looks for his side that resulted in the hosts shooting over 50FG% as a team.
Essex dominated the scoring in both the first and fourth quarter of their win over Manchester Magic, and in both those frames Chose contributed an impressive 11 points.
His lights out shooting in the fourth produced a large chunk of Essex’s 15 points, without missing a shot, ensuring Magic couldn't get the momentum needed to make a late comeback.
A poor night's shooting (4-15FG) hampered what could have been an ultra-efficient performance as Moya’s (pictured above) stat line once again proves that he is a very dynamic two-way guard during a performance in which he flirted with a triple-double.
Moya clocked up four steals in the final quarter alone, which as part of a team effort disrupted Bradford’s offensive rhythm. Moya’s defending down the stretch was a much-needed tonic with Thunder trailing by one heading into the final act.
Jordan Whelan put in an elite 32-point 14-rebound double-double performance which was almost enough to help the Dragons upset the second seeds.
The elite guard’s seven offensive rebounds contributed to the Dragons outrebounding the opposition at both ends, winning that battle 55-48, and leading to 19 second chance points.
The former BBL star’s influence was finely balanced between both halves as he did everything he could do help his side.
Reading Rockets shot an amazing 56 2P%/57 3P%/88 FT% in the 124-102 win against Thames Valley, collecting a useful 40 points from the bench as everyone who took at least one shot provided points to help down a Cavaliers side that also shot above 50FG% as a team.
Honourable mentions to three-point gun Pete Walker with a perfect three from three triples in the final moments, and to Ben Dixon who only missed one of his five shots from downtown.
In a must win game versus a team struggling for form this season, the Rebels come out on top to boost their play-off ambitions as they downed Manchester 72-62.
It was a team performance with 20 points from the bench in a tight game that Essex started and finished well, ensuring they came away with the road trip dub.
Shaq Lewis (HEM) – 28P/27R/1A/33EFF
Andre Arissol (WOR) – 20P/4R/2A/1S/17EFF
Orlan Jackman (WOR) – 13P/13R/4A/1S/1B/23EFF
Dylan Jones (ESS) – 12P/7R/3A/1S/1B/16EFF
Tyme Regent-Bascombe (MAN) - 21P/9R/1A/3S/25EFF
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Main image credit: Luke Simcock
Team of the Week graphic credits: Luke Simcock, Nick Winter, Harry Collins
