While Paul George and Russell Westbrook did much of the heavy lifting in a win Tuesday night against the Orlando Magic, Jerami Grant also had a great performance, too.
The fifth-year forward recorded 19 points, 11 rebounds, one steal and one blocked shot in the 132-122 victory as he recorded one of his best all-around games of the season.
Grant has proven to be versatile this season in what has become his best year to date. He is averaging a career-high 13 points, 5.1 rebounds and 1.4 blocks per game while he is also shooting 36.4 percent from 3-point range.
With this strong performance Tuesday night, teammate Dennis Schroder had high praise for him and also recalled playing against Grant while he was with the Philadelphia 76ers.
“I played against him in Philly, he had a huge block against me, too,” Schroder said. “How he has improved over the years has been awesome. I think he is underrated. [There are] not many four-men doing what he does. He’s underrated for sure and he is special.”
The Thunder re-signed Grant to a three-year, $27 million contract last summer and he has proven to be quite a steal so far for the Thunder. Grant gives immense energy on both ends of the floor and that was on display against the Magic.
Of course, as a former member of the Atlanta Hawks, Schroder would have mostly played against Grant in Philadelphia and, as it turns out, there is footage of that “huge block” Grant had against Schroder.
Schroder is probably glad he doesn’t have to face Grant anymore…
