NBA 2019-20: 8 most improved players so far

Basketball is changing everyday, players are working on their skills more than ever, and the game is getting better. NBA, or rather basketball world over these days, is not only about the big and husky men as even small players are making their mark these days.

Presently, everyone has got enough room and opportunities to make an impact on the game with their individual skills. Resilience is now every player's motto to survive and grow. Players who were overlooked by NBA scouts earlier because they were deemed to be less skillful are now making a big impact in the league.

Here, we are going to see the eight most improved NBA players this season so far:

#8 Shai Gilgeous-Alexander

Shai Gilgeous-AlexanderÂ — Shai Gilgeous-Alexander

Currently playing at the Point Guard position for the Oklahoma City Thunder, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was on the All-Rookie second team in the 2018-19 season while playing for the Los Angeles Clippers. Gilgeous- Alexander showed flashes of being an elite level player throughout the regular season (and in the playoffs against the Golden State Warriors as well). But that wasn't enough for him to be a guaranteed future All-Star level player.

However, in the off-season, he got traded to the Thunder and is now one of the most important offensive players on the team, playing alongside Chris Paul, ever since Russell Westbrook joined the Houston Rockets in the off-season. Gilgeous- Alexander's stats this season when compared to his last year's stats show the level of improvement in his game. Last year, he averaged 10.8 ppg, 2.8 rpg, and 3.3 apg. However, right now, he is averaging 18.1 ppg, 5.0 rpg, and 3.1 apg.

Even though the Thunder lost Westbrook, Gilgeous- Alexander is trying to prove that he can be the future face of the team and the team management looks pretty optimistic about that prospect too.

#7 Malcolm Brogdon

With Victor Oladipo out due to leg injury, Malcolm Brogdon emerged as the primary option for the playmaker position for the Indiana Pacers. First, let's compare his current stats with his last season's stats:

Last year, he averaged 15.6 ppg, 4.5 rpg, and 3.2 apg.

This season, he is averaging 18.9 ppg, 4.9 rpg, and 7.9 apg.

Brogdon has now become the leader of the Pacers team. The 2019-20 season didn't look good for the Pacers after Oladipo went down due to his injury. But Brogdon stepped up and became the playmaker for the team. If we look at above-mentioned stats, we can see a significant rise in points per game as well as in assists per game. It means he is leading the offensive end of the floor and is engaged in more ball movement than ever. He has emerged as a potential All-Star candidate this season. Also, as his former college teammate Joe Harris stated :

He's the type of guy that we would've followed Malcolm to do basically anything that he asked us to do

The Pacers' front office did a great job by signing Brogdon this season when the Milwaukee Bucks didn't re-sign him and he has surely repaid the faith.

#6 Domantas Sabonis

Another Pacers player showing up and shining and not just on paper, but on the court too! Us Indians, too, have seen Sabonis' dominance during the NBA Preseason games in India. Now, when Myles Turner also got injured and missed several games, Sabonis took charge of the frontcourt and along with Brogdon's leadership, has turned into a scoring machine while also taking care of the defensive end. His stats for this year so far and for the 2018-19 regular season are:

In the 2018-19 regular season, he averaged 14.1 ppg, 9.3 rpg, and 2.9 apg.

In the 2019-20 regular season, however, he is averaging 18.4 ppg, 13.0 pg, and 3.7 apg.

The Brogdon-Sabonis combo has worked pretty well for the team so far, and it will not be a surprise if the Pacers franchise uses this duo in the playoffs, which they look very likely to reach.

#5 Jaylen Brown

For Brown, the last season had been a rocky one. He didn't have much confidence in himself and, in an interview with The Athletic, stated:

As soon as you start not believing in yourself, it's over. So I had to quiet that voice that was in the back of my head. Everybody has it.

Looks like the voice that Brown was talking about tried to resist the changes he wanted to make in order to improve his game. It appears he has shut it down for good as this season, he has been phenomenal.

The Celtics' front office always had the faith that he could develop into a better player, and had extended his contract for a whopping $115 million. The investment worked out really well this season. If compare his stats from last year and this year (so far), his average for points per game has gone up from 13.0 ppg to 19.9 ppg. He has also become a good rebounding talent, averaging 6.9 rebounds per game as compared to last year (4.2 rebounds per game).

It is evident that Brown has developed his all-around game. He is shooting around 50% from inside the arc and has very low Asset Turnover ratio this year. Since Gordon Hayward injured his left hand, Brown has stepped up to lead the frontcourt along with Jayson Tatum. Right now, the Celtics are 2nd in the Eastern Conference with a 15-5 record and have the least amount of turnovers in NBA history. With Brown on fire, they are surely not going to slow down any time soon.

#4 Andrew Wiggins

While entering the 2019-20 NBA season, no one had confidence in Wiggins. Even ESPN didn't mention Wiggins on their list of Top 100 players in the league. Wiggins was shocked to know this, but still had confidence in himself. In an interview with ESPN's Eric Woodyard, Wiggins stated:

There's not 100 players better than me, so it doesn't matter what people think. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion. My job is to come out here and hoop, and that's what I'm going to do.

He entered the 2019-20 NBA season with very low expectations from the fans and the Timberwolves management, but surprised everyone with his game.

He had finished the 2018-19 NBA season with 18.1 ppg, 4.8 rpg, and 2.5 apg while shooting a disappointing 41% from the field.

This season, he is really proving his claim as an All-Star material, averaging 24.9 ppg, 5.4 rpg, and 3.4 apg. No one saw it coming and suddenly the Minnesota Timberwolves are a potential playoff team this season.

Wiggins now relies more on driving to the basket and 3-pointers as opposed to the deep 2-pointers he used so often in the last season and the change seems to have worked out really well for him.

#3 Brandon Ingram

Everyone had their eyes set on this year's NBA Draft. The New Orleans Pelicans had the rights to pick the first draft and Zion Williamson was in the fray. And they did not dissappoint. But things soon turned awry as he got injured even before the regular season got underway. This prompted the Pelicans to make further changes to their roster and they traded their best player, Anthony Davis, to the Los Angeles Lakers for Brandon Ingram and Lonzo Ball.

Ingram had had a very uncomfortable tenure with the Lakers. Despite being the 2nd overall pick in the 2016 NBA Draft, he couldn't live up to the hype and the Lakers decided to trade him as he was no longer thought to be a good fit for their roster.

But ever since he has put on the Pelicans' jersey, he has started delivering big time. He has already got adjusted to the franchise's basketball environment quite well and is adding some great value to the team as one its leading players.

He is averaging 25.2 ppg, 7.2 rpg, and 4.1 apg through 18 games this season so far as compared to the dismal 18.3 ppg, 5.1 rpg, and 3.0 apg last season. He is now showing All-Star level skills and with this level of performance, Ingram looks set to lead the team for years to come.

#2 Aron Baynes

Without Deandre Ayton, Baynes is the only Center left on the Phoenix Suns' roster and he is doing better than what was expected of him this season. If we look at his stats for this season so far, he is averaging 14.7 ppg, 5.7 rpg, and 2.9 apg as compared to 5.6 ppg, 4.7 rpg, and 1.1 apg during the previous season.

Baynes is doing everything to make sure his team wins games. On the defensive front, he is making crucial blocks, using his body to stop explosive offensive players trying to make driving layups. He is averaging 0.7 blocks per game and also blocked several attempts made by Stephen Curry.

On the offensive front, he is proving to be a very good pick-and-roll player and also sets some very hard screens for his teammates. Right now, his is one of the most improved storylines in the NBA, and it is benefitting the Suns big time.

#1 Devonte' Graham

Drafted as the 34th overall pick in the 2018 NBA Draft by the Atlanta Hawks and then traded to the Charlotte Hornets, Graham wasn't able to prove himself in the first season. While being a really good college player, his transition to the NBA didn't go as planned, and he was packed off to the G-League where he put in a pretty average performance.

Despite this setback, he did put in some effort this past off-season and made his regular season debut for the Hornets against the Chicago Bulls, scoring 23 points off the bench. Suddenly, his game escalated and he became one of the most improved players to enter this season, with his stats skyrocketing (his points per game average has gone up from 4.7 ppg last season to 18.7 ppg this season). Also, he is proving to be a dependable option at the offensive end, averaging 7.7 assists per game and 3.7 rebounds per game and a superb 41.4% from beyond the arc.

After Kemba Walker was traded to the Boston Celtics, the Hornets were expected to perform very poorly, but Graham came as a ray of hope for the franchise as a solid player around which the Hornets can build their entire lineup.

Edited by Anurag Sharma