Wassup in Westchester: Affiliate players dominate as W-Knicks win season opener

The Westchester Knicks kicked off their 2017-18 G-League campaign with a road win at the Windy City Bulls, who presumably play somewhere in Illinois. The W-bockers went up near the end of the end of first quarter, maintained a slim lead at halftime, and really blew things open with a dominant start to the third quarter.

Let’s get to the players, shall we?

Luke Kornet (two-way contract): 18 points (7-13 shooting, 3-6 from beyond the arc), 7 rebounds, 2 assists, 4 blocks.

The former Vanderbilt Commodore put together an old-school Kristapsian line, from a time in years past when the true Unicorn wasn’t dropping 30 points on the regular. I was impressed with Kornet’s defense against Diamond Stone, as well as his knack for finding cutters with the pass. And the kid knows how to block a shot. If only the Knicks didn’t already have like seven centers on the roster.

Xavier Rathan-Mayes (affiliate player): 21 points (8-17 shooting, 3-7 from beyond the arc), 10 rebounds, 8 assists

Rathan-Mayes dang near fucked around and got a triple-double on opening night. Dude is a physical presence at the guard position, and I shall always be in love with guards who rebound. Here’s hoping he continues to can those threes off the dribble.

Trey Burke (affiliate player): 21 points on 8-21 shooting (1-3 from beyond the arc), 3 rebounds, 6 assists

I’ve long advocated for every G-League club to have at least one tiny baller, and it would appear that Trey Burke is that guy for Westchester. I shall enjoy watching his odd, herky-jerky game this season.

Nigel Hayes (affiliate player): 17 points on 4-8 shooting (3-4 from beyond the arc), 6 rebounds, 5 fouls

Isaiah Hicks (two-way contract): 14 points on 5-6 shooting, 6 rebounds, 4 fouls

These guys put up similar lines, with one notable exceptions: Hayes shot the three-ball well, while Hicks didn’t shoot it at all. Also, Hayes got into extremely early foul trouble—like, 2 fouls in the first minute.

And so the W-Knicks are 1-0. GLECF!