Despite the inconsistencies of the Phoenix Suns, their youngster Bol Bol has caught the eyes of the NBA community with his on-court endeavours. The youngster has even garnered praise from Shaquille O’Neal as his limited actions on the court repeatedly assisted his team. Amidst the 51-year-old’s infatuation with the center, the latter credited Kevin Durant for mentoring him specifically during 1-on-1 drills.
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Ahead of the franchise’s home game against the Los Angeles Clippers a few days back, the Sudan-born candidly expressed his gratitude for Durant.
“He has helped me a lot. Even when he doesn’t know like just by watching him. There has been times when we play one-on-one. It’s just been pretty cool, especially that’s my favorite player growing up,” he revealed.
Following this, the 24-year-old shared the details of his preparation publicly as he developed deep into the matter mentioning how the 2x champion’s experience had helped him comprehend the in-game actions better during training.
“There has been little things like he’ll tell me when we play 1-on-1. Take my time. Just like little certain details that I wouldn’t know if it wasn’t for him,” Bol highlighted.
“There’s little things he’ll tell me when we play 1-on-1. Take my time.”
Bol Bol on learning from Kevin Durant. #Suns pic.twitter.com/TEgAwAZyUr
— Duane Rankin (@DuaneRankin) January 3, 2024
Bol’s on-court efforts matched his words as in the game against the Clippers he came off the bench to register 14-5-2 in 19 minutes. In the match before that against the Portland Trail Blazers, he stole the show with a euro-step dunk while scoring a double-double of 11-9-1. The overall growth in his gameplay seems apparent with a significant increase in his field goal percentage and 3-point shooting this season.
Thus, the impact of Durant’s feedback on Bol’s performance remains visible at this stage of the campaign. With both sharing near similar body types, the understanding between them could well have been an instant one. All in all, the youngster is certainly cherishing the learning from his idol as his development follows a rapid upward curve.
Shaquille O’Neal identified the signs long before everyone else
Shaq recently backed the 7ft 3″ player by promoting a clip of his performance against the Clippers. With the caption “We Want More Bol Bol”, the video captured how the endeavours of Bol nearly turned around the outcome of the clash. The 7ft 1″ icon shared the clip on his Instagram story to showcase his support for the Suns’ star after openly praising him just months earlier.
The 4x champion had previously compared Bol’s talents with that of this season’s number-one pick Victor Wembanyama. “Wembanyama is just way more consistent than Bol Bol,” he stated before further adding, “Bol Bol is the first 7 3” guy who has come out we have seen with the handle, shoot the three”.
Despite the appreciation, Shaq had a complaint regarding the center, as he mentioned, “Bol Bol just don’t play hard, that’s all”. Over time though, the 15x All-Star seemed to have dropped that concern as he continues to voice his support. With Durant mentoring him and O’Neal defending him publicly, the ceiling remains high for the 2019 second-round pick.
