By snoadmin
LOS ANGELES — Long Beach State forward Edis Dervisevic may have only averaged 2.1 points per game last season as a reserve, but he made a case for a starting job Saturday with a memorable performance against Detroit Pistons forward Austin Daye.
Dervisevic outplayed his NBA counterpart through the first three quarters, however, Daye helped lead Hank’s Blazers past the senior’s Hank’s Cheaters II squad in a 71-63 comeback victory at a Drew League summer game at Washington Park gym.
Dervisevic finished the game with 11 points, 10 rebounds, five assists and four steals.
“He did a good job, but it didn’t last throughout the whole game, because I wasn’t going to let that happen,” said Daye who was selected by the Pistons with the 15th overall pick in the 2009 NBA Draft. “But he earned my respect. I mean, he earned a lot of people’s respect.”
Dervisevic was heavily involved on both ends of the floor, guarding Daye on defense, with the two glued at the hip and constantly jawing at each other.
Daye, who averaged 7.5 points last season with the Pistons, was taken out of the game for a breather late in the fourth quarter after one of many heated verbal exchanges with Dervisevic.
Daye’s teammate and fellow NBA player Kenneth Faried’s high-flying leaps kept the crowd on its toes, while Daye’s jump shot seemed to be going down all game.
Faried scored 23 points to go with 15 rebounds, and three steals, while Daye put up 21 points, 12 rebounds and two assists.
“[Daye] reads me and I read him,” said Faried, who was taken by the Nuggets with the 22nd overall pick in the 2011 NBA Draft. “I know what he likes and he knows what I like. This is our sixth or seventh time playing together.”
Despite Hank’s Cheaters II leading for most of the game, Faried put together a 3-point play in the fourth quarter that changed the momentum.
With the victory, Hank’s Blazers clinched the John Williams Division, securing the No. 1 seed in the playoff tournament with a 10-1 record this upcoming weekend when the team will face No. 8 Hank’s Mounties on Friday at 6:30 p.m.
Meanwhile, Hank’s Cheaters II fell to 9-2, and will enter the playoff tournament with the No. 3 seed to face No. 6 Kings of L.A. Saturday at 5:15 p.m.
Dervisevic’s performance also caught the attention of ESPN Los Angeles blogger Pedro Moura.
“[I]t looked like Dervisevic would pull off an epic upset — at least early on, when the 49er was beating Daye on energy plays and sparking his team,” said Moura, who focused his July 31 entry on the match-up.
Dervisevic, who played alongside LeBron James last weekend, could’ve used the two-time NBA most valuable player’s help again, or at least the full services of his LBSU and Drew League teammate Casper Ware.
Ware was at James’ summer camp in San Diego, and did not arrive until the start of the fourth quarter, but still managed to score eight points in only eight minutes of play.
Ware’s performance was highlighted with a teardrop shot that went over the top of the backboard, from back to front, soaring into the fans that were sitting behind the basket after speeding down the right side of the lane.
“I had to step up,” said Dervisevic, who made sure his team was on the same page by remaining vocal with his guys on the court. “Casper told me to hold it down until he got there because he was stuck in traffic.”
Among Dervisevic’s many highlights was a behind-the-back pass on a fastbreak that turned into an uncontested layup, and evoked an eruption from the crowd late in the third quarter.
“The first quarter I was playing like a bum, and then I told the coach I would slow it down and take over,” Dervisevic said. “We had to get the crowd behind us because we feed off of energy.”
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