Brooks Barnhizer continues to be steal machine in Thunder's Summer League win over Pacers
Barnhizer finished with 17 points on 8-of-10 shooting, five rebounds and two assists. He shot 1-of-2 from 3. He also had six steals and one block.
The Oklahoma City Thunder dominated the Indiana Pacers in a 104-85 Summer League win. It was a blowout victory where everybody chipped in. For Barnhizer, that meant creating a ton of steals again.
Described as a defense-first player, Barnhizer has lived up to his Northwestern reputation. He caused havoc for the Pacers in their passing lanes with six steals. That was two shy of a Las Vegas Summer League record. He's racked up the steals throughout the event.
What wasn't talked about enough was his savvy off-ball decisions. Barnhizer might not have a reliable jumper, but he can read the half-court defense and make the right reads. He was gifted an easy layup by Nikola Topic when he cut to the basket in an open lane.
"I feel like for me, they'll come if I just play hard. I'm not hunting them," Barrnhizer said on his steals. "It's funny. In college, I had a coach named Chris Lowery. He told me, 'If you're doing what you're supposed to do and staying where you are, they'll throw it to you sometimes.' I just really try to play hard and play the defense I'm trying to play."
That's how you can carve out an NBA career. Barnhizer's endless energy on both ends of the floor has produced tangible results. The 23-year-old has been a plus-minus darling. He plays winning basketball and thrives in his role. He knows his bread and butter and sticks to it.
"I feel like I really work on the game and trust your work. I play basketball. I've always grown up playing basketball and I've always worked on it. I kinda like to think reps eliminate fear," Barnhizer said. "I just got to go out there and the law of averages says if you have a good game, a bad one is probably coming at some point. How are you going to stay level-headed through it all and try to stack positive games."
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