It’s safe to say Marcus Morris has recovered from the initial disappointment of getting traded from Phoenix and leaving behind his twin brother, Markieff.
Through 22 games with his new team, the Detroit Pistons, Marcus Morris is well on his way to the best season of his career, since leaving Kansas for the NBA in 2011.
For starters, well, Morris is solidified as a starter for Detroit. In the 6-foot-9 forward’s previous four seasons in the NBA, he only started 69 times. Pistons coach Stan Van Gundy has wanted Morris out on the floor for tip-off every game this season.
And rarely does Van Gundy ask his versatile forward to take a rest. Roughly a quarter of the way through the regular season, Morris is averaging 36.4 minutes a game. That’s the sixth-highest mark in the league right now and far beyond his previous career-best 25.2 minutes per game last season in Phoenix.
With that newfound responsibility, Morris is averaging what would be career highs in points (14.3), rebounds (6.0), assists (2.1) and steals (1.2). Though Morris’ shooting numbers — 39.9% from the floor, 28.8% from 3-point range — have dropped below his career averages (42.6% overall, 35.7% on 3-pointers), obviously Van Gundy thinks enough of him to keep him on the court.
.@MookMorris2 continued his strong play with 23 tonight. Check out his night. #DetroitBasketballhttps://t.co/3dbohpV7oJ
— Detroit Pistons (@DetroitPistons) December 5, 2015
[Morris told The Detroit News][1] he’s happy to be with the Pistons (12-10 and in the hunt for the playoffs in the surprisingly competitive Eastern Conference). The new Piston tries to remain aggressive even when shots aren’t falling. Morris said he also wants to take an assertive approach to getting teammates involved and making the right play.
> “That comes with time and with getting
> adjusted to a role. It’s the first
> time I really got to play this many
> minutes and be able to make mistakes
> and play through it,” Morris said.
> “It’s definitely a major help for me.”
Van Gundy uses Morris at both forward spots, depending on who else is on the floor at the time, and the coach told The Detroit News he wants to see even more production from the man he traded for this past summer.
> “Marcus can do a lot of things, and I
> have to create more and more things
> for him,” Van Gundy said. “He’s a
> damn-good passer, too. We’re really
> fortunate to have him. We thought he
> was good when we got him, and he’s
> better than I thought he was.”
The Pistons aren’t exactly the deepest team around, and Morris has found ways to make his minutes valuable and compliment Detroit’s emerging star, big man Andre Drummond.
Look out for @MookMorris2 and I , we got a new mix tape coming out ???????? pic.twitter.com/FFJcoe8LFq
— Andre Drummond (@AndreDrummond) December 7, 2015
[Morris told the Pistons’ website][2] he thinks he arrived for pre-season training camp in the best shape of his career, as requested by Van Gundy. The coach also told his new player ahead of time that he planned to use Morris as a stretch-4 at times, so he should be ready to shoot 3-pointers.
> “A coach can say anything,” Morris
> said, “but if you come and you’re not
> that player they thought you were,
> it’s easy to take it back. ‘Oh, he’s
> not really as good a scorer as I
> thought he was’ or ‘He’s not a great
> defender or the greatest shooter.’ We
> kept in contact a lot this summer and
> he told me exactly what he wanted and
> that’s what I based my summer around.”
It appears Morris and Van Gundy have been on the same page form Day 1, and that has made Morris’ move to Detroit great for all involved.
> “I just feel comfortable and I think
> when any player gets to feeling
> comfortable, your game goes to another
> level,” Morris said. “But I’m not
> taking anything for granted. I’m going
> to continue to work. I’m not blowing
> that off. I’m happy. I’m going to
> continue to be one of the leaders of
> this team, one of the vocal leaders of
> this team. I’m just grateful and
> blessed to be in a situation where I
> can finally play basketball to my
> capabilities.”
—
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[1]: http://www.detroitnews.com/story/sports/nba/pistons/2015/12/05/marcus-morris-repays-pistons-faith-him/76859222/
[2]: http://www.nba.com/pistons/features/marcus-morris-im-here-be-piston-i-feel-im-home
[3]: http://www2.kusports.com/news/mens_basketball/hawks_nba/
[4]: https://twitter.com/BentonASmith
