James Wiseman looks healthy. If you watched him run up and down the floor at Chase Center in NBA news: Warriors' overtime win.
NBA News: Wiseman's health appears to be the least of his concerns as he prepares to return to the NBA.
James Wiseman appears to be in good health. It's easy to forget that she tore her right meniscus last April and needed clean-up treatment in December. As you galloped on the G League Ignite in the Santa Cruz Warriors' overtime win at the Chase Center on Sunday.
Wiseman played 21 minutes at Stockton on Thursday night. His first game of action in exactly 11 months, then 20 minutes in San Francisco three days later.
He said after the game that he felt physically fine. And that the final stages of their recovery are more of a mental challenge than anything else.
"My knee is fine," Wiseman said. "It's really just about conditioning and looking at the graphics and everything else that comes with the game. It's really just the mental aspect of it."
NBA news: How Wiseman fared on Sunday
The nerves of the 20-year-old older man got the best of him once again. He got off to a rough start, seeing a basket interference, offensive foul, and a faded shot roll over the backboard. However, their first half figures differed on box scores. He said he felt more comfortable in the second half.
Wiseman scored 10 points and 12 rebounds in his first 11 minutes. During his first season, he had the most rebounds in a game with 11 from 39 games. He defeated himself in the first round.
Wiseman finished the game with 19 points and 14 rebounds. He was on the offensive on both the offensive and the defensive glass, grabbing nine defensive and five offensive rebels. Coming out of halftime, Wiseman also intercepted two shots and played a better defense.
His main focus was on him. He is not a scorer, but he is a good defender who gets rebounds for his Santa Cruz colleagues. Yes, this is music to the ears of Steve Kerr and the Warriors coaching staff.
"I wasn't particularly focused on scoring this game," Wiseman said. "Actually, I am just concentrating on rebounding and defense because when I come back it will assist the team. So that was my main goal for this game."
It's also why Santa Cruz coach Seth Cooper believes Wiseman may most effectively assist Golden State in the near future. For now, his calling card will be rebounding and defence. Cooper was particularly impressed by a particular aspect of the game that also reflected Wiseman's maturity and development as a player.
If he can defend the rim with his perpendicularity and rebounding, that translates almost immediately, and that's something he can rely on to make an impact in an NBA game.