With the NBA season now in full swing, it has seemed pretty rushed with the shortened schedule. There are less games overall, but it seems like the teams are still playing a lot of back-to-backs, sometimes even three games in five days, so a lot of basketball has been played since December 22nd. I’ve been fortunate enough to watch a lot of these games live, and if I’ve not been able to catch a game, then I got to places like House of Highlights, the NBA’s and Chris Smoove’s YouTube channel to catch up on everything I missed. I couldn’t tell you how many games I’ve watched this season, but what I do know is that I can already tell you who the top steals in the draft are with such a short sample size. They aren’t the most athletic or best scoring players in the draft, but with their role, team fit, and chemistry, they’ve made the list. Let’s get started.
Precious Achiuwa
What isn’t to love about this guy, right? I’ve gone on and on in a previous article that you can read here, but here is what it boiled down to; this guy is a dawg. An absolute monster. Much like Jevon Carter, when Achiuwa plays it is #BulldogSZN. Effort, hustle, heart. Sometimes its more about the intangibles than points per game, and for this Miami Heat team, I couldn’t imagine a better fit for both parties. Achiuwa still has to go through his rookie growing pains, understanding where to be on offense and defense, timing, overall game sense, but he looks so promising. In limited action this season (only 15 minutes per game) he’s averaging 7.8 points and 4.2 rebounds per game while shooting 64% from the floor. I think the biggest thing for Achiuwa is going to be learning from his teammate Bam Adebayo who, along with Jimmy Butler, is the heart and soul of this Heat team. If Achiuwa can get more reps, and more playing time alongside Bam and Jimmy, I don’t see a scenario where he doesn’t become an irreplaceable piece of this franchise. I also believe that, given enough room to grow, we can see him put up comparable numbers to Bam and that should scare everyone in the league.
Payton Pritchard
Boy oh boy, as a Celtics fan, Pritchard has been so fun to watch. Yes, he has made a lot of rookie mistakes. He has had some trouble staying in bounds on plays, but it is getting much better. Pritchard just has “IT”, you know? When he walks on the floor he just knows what to do. He knows when to take his own shot, he knows when and where to pass, and the biggest thing for me is that he plays like its the last game he’ll ever play. He hustles, he plays defense, he dives on the floor. It is the best. Through six games he ‘s averaging 6.8 points, 2.2 assists, and 1.7 steals per game. Let me assure you that this is the best that a rookie has done in quite some time in a Brad Stevens offense. It’s sort of a running joke that rookies not named Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown don’t get a lot of playtime for the Celtics, so it’s nice to see that this rule is being broken for Pritchard. I thought going into the season that Aaron Nesmith was going to see a lot of playing time, but it is Pritchard that has stolen the hearts of the coaching staff and all Celtics fans. He came up big in a win against the Pacers where he put up 10/5/5, and for the season he’s shooting 41.7% from three, which is a HUGE plus for the Celtics offense. The C’s have gotten themselves a gem late in the first round, and given the same opportunity, I believe that he can continue to contribute to wins.
Tyrese Haliburton
Before, and even during, the NBA Draft, I was hoping that if the Celtics were going to move up in the top 10 by packaging the #14, 26, and 30 picks, that we would select Haliburton. I was sold on him in college. I thought that he could score well and efficiently, I thought that he could facilitate an offense, and I thought that he would really thrive in a bench role, at least to start, for this Celtics team. I was right in every sense, but he was that for the Kings this season. In his games so far, he is averaging 10.6 points, 4.4 assists, and 1 steal per game, while shooting 52.9% from the field, 50% from deep, and 87.5% from the free throw line. Aside from one game against Phoenix, he has had 10+ point outings every game, and he has demonstrated that he can produce while on the bench, and while playing with Fox and Hield. He very much looks deserving of a lottery pick. I think the Kings have a really good piece for the future on their roster now, and for Haliburton’s sake, I hope they don’t mess it up like they have everything else.
Round The Game 
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