Brooklyn Nets forward Noah Clowney is one of the players that the Nets are hoping can turn the corner in his development with him in the midst of his third NBA season. As one of Brooklyn’s recent first-round picks in the current rebuild, Clowney still has to find a way that he makes an impact on the floor every game, but head coach Jordi Fernandez isn’t worried yet.
“He had a great summer, his body looks great. Obviously, we want him to have a bigger impact as far as making things happen, [but] I’m very happy [with his play],” Fernandez said of Clowney following Friday’s practice, per Dan Martin of the New York Post. Much has been made about Clowney and his body by Fernandez and the rest of the players, but time will tell if Clowney is able to use that added bulk to his advantage down the line.
“I felt like he played very well. Just good shots didn’t go in. The shots looked really good. Just keep shooting it. Don’t overthink it. I just need him to be better defensively and he embraced it,” Fernandez continued when discussing Clowney and the aspects of his game that he feels positively about. “Last game, he was better. We need Noah. Noah is a big presence for our team. [He has] toughness, size, shooting, rebounding [and] winning plays. We need more verticality and he’s a big part of doing that.
Clowney, 21, is having an underwhelming start to his third season in the league as he is averaging 5.2 points, 3.6 rebounds, and 1.6 assists per game while shooting 25.0% from the field and 20.0% from three-point range. While most of Clowney’s counting stats outside of points per game are similar to his production last season, what is troubling about his current play is that his efficiency has decreased significantly year-over-year.
In addition to the former Alabama Crimson Tide’s poor shooting percentages from the floor and from deep, Clowney is also shooting poorly from two-point range (37.5%) and has an effective field-goal percentage of 32.1%. Clowney’s only redeeming values at this point are his defense, as Fernandez alluded to, and his 88.9% free-throw shooting percentage, showing that the touch is still there even though most of his shots are not falling.
