Thursday Quickies: Skal Shines Edition

There's been a lot of talk around the league about who the winner was in the DeMarcus Cousins trade. On paper, it's obvious that the New Orleans Pelicans won. They added a superstar to their roster and didn't give up much. But some would argue that now the Sacramento Kings are moving the ball better and playing more team basketball. However, the winner of the trade might not be either team. It might be one individual player: Skal Labissiere.

Since Cousins' trade, the former Wildcat wing who had a frustrating season at Kentucky has steadily improved on his statistics. Labissiere has posted four double-digit scoring games this season, and all of them have come after Boogie's trade. He's also grabbed five or more rebounds in five games since the trade, including a 13-rebound performance against the Charlotte Hornets. This includes a career-high 15-point, six rebound performance last night against the San Antonio Spurs. On top of all that, his numbers are showing steady improvement. He averaged 5.2 points in February, and he's averaging 6.7 points in March. He's also shooting 61.5% this month.

Many shrugged Labissiere off as a guy with a lot of hype coming into college who didn't pan out. But with more opportunities to perform, Skal is proving that he may be able to find his role in the NBA.

Tweet of the day

Skal Labissiere has 15 points in 15 minutes on 7-10 FG.

— Scott Charlton (@Scott_Charlton) March 9, 2017

The definition of efficiency.

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