Getty Golden State Warriors two-way player Lester Quinones (C) of the Dominican Republic controls the ball during the FIBA Basketball World Cup group A against Angola.
Golden State Warriors‘ two-way player Lester Quiñones finally scored his first basket in the 2023 FIBA World Cup.
Quiñones had his first good stretch of the tournament as the Dominican Republic swept Group A with a tough 75-67 win over Angola on Tuesday at Smart-Araneta Coliseum in the Philippines.
Quiñones came off the bench for the first time after struggling in his first two World Cup games. He immediately made his presence felt as he went on a personal 7-2 run in a two-minute stretch that gave the Dominicans their first double-digit lead, 20-10.
Lester Quinones is a smooth operator 💯
#FIBAWC x #WinForDominicana 🇩🇴
The 22-year-old forward finished with a tournament personal high of seven points, though he struggled shooting from the field, going 1-of-7. He made 5-of-6 free throws and grabbed three rebounds in 16 minutes.
Quiñones, who had a stellar NBA Summer League campaign, has struggled to duplicate that on the world stage.
Through his first three World Cup games, he’s shooting a horrible 1-of-14 from the floor, including 0-of-10 from the much shorter FIBA 3-point distance. The only consolation in his woeful shooting display is his 9-of-12 trip at the free-throw line.
Quiñones agreed to return on a two-way deal next season, with an opportunity to earn a full-roster spot after averaging 21.9 points, 4.4 assists and 4.1 rebounds in seven Summer League games for the Warriors.
In the days leading to the World Cup, he was spotted in one of the Philippines’ night spots with his Dominican Republic teammate and former Santa Cruz Warriors player, LJ Figueroa.
Chris Paul Expected to Elevate Warriors’ Young Players
Warriors superstar Stephen Curry expects Chris Paul to elevate their young players’ play, including Quiñones’, as they go for their fifth NBA title in eight years.
“There’s a lot of excitement for us like we want to talk about strict X and O’s,” Curry said on the Gil’s Arena podcast. “He connects a lot of lineups for us in terms of being able to help some of the young guys figure out what it means to play winning basketball and be in the right spots. He’s obviously a great leader in terms of his communication, like he’s going to get on you. He’s going to over-communicate and we need that.”
Paul had already linked with Jonathan Kuminga, who declared he’s ready for his breakout season.
“I’ve already seen him helping JK (Kuminga) how to help run the pick and roll, where to be, giving him confidence in those types of scenarios, so that’ll help us in terms of trying to be more cohesive when I’m on the floor, when I’m off [the floor] and Klay [Thompson] being able to run off the ball if [Paul] is running the point,” Curry added.
Charles Barkley Says Stephen Curry Would Have Broken Down in Their Era
NBA legend Charles Barkley believes Curry wouldn’t have lasted in the ’80s and ’90s era.
“Can you imagine if the Bad Boys were beating the hell out of him,” Barkley said of Curry in the Bill Simmons podcast. “Bill, can you imagine that?”
“As much as I love Steph Curry, if you think that he could take those blows that John Salley, Dennis Rodman, Bill Laimbeer, those body checks that they were putting on Michael [Jordan] and Scottie [Pippen] and myself and guys like that, you really think Steph Curry wouldn’t break?”