"Stat Just Happened" is our series where we pair an important stat with how it actually unfolded on the floor. Our aim? To answer key questions, uncover hidden truths and peel back the curtain on why some numbers matter more than others.
Today, Raptors forward OG Anunoby takes the spotlight.
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According to Stathead, that's how many players in all of NBA history have averaged 3.0 steals per game for an entire season while also shooting at least 40 percent from 3.
Hall of Famer John Stockton did it for the Jazz in 1991-92 in an era with far more steals and far fewer 3s.
Through 10 games, that's exactly what Anunoby is doing for the Raptors while obviously playing a far different role than Stockton did for the Jazz. Standing 6-foot-7 while tipping the scales at 232 pounds, Anunoby is asked to do far more than Stockton ever was, while also being tasked with the impossible: guard everyone.
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On the surface, Anunoby has long projected as the prototypical 3-and-D role player, the premium archetype that every single team craves in today's position-less style of basketball. Outside of a foundational star, the two most in-demand skills for team building in 2022 are shooting and defensive versatility, and attempting to win big without both is a fool's errand. Case in point? The Lakers, outside of LeBron James.
MORE: Why OG Anunoby thinks he is the NBA's best defender
For years, the basketball community — and Raptors fans — have waited for Anunoby to take the proverbial leap. Yes, he could always shoot. Yes, he could always defend. But incremental improvement is boring, NBA pundits get bored quickly and the 'what have you done for me lately' climate is fueled by the incessant demands to add to the bag.
- It happened after Kawhi Leonard left following the 2019 NBA title.
- It happened after Anunoby signed a new four-year, $72 million dollar contract extension in late 2020.
- And it happened again last year after the Raptors drafted Barnes with the eye on sliding Anunoby into a larger offensive role.
And yet while we all waited for Anunoby to become a player that perhaps he'll never become, in the meantime he blossomed into exactly the type of player every team covets.
Take for instance the six steals he had against the Atlanta Hawks. In fact, watch all of them:
He's everywhere.
Ripping Dejounte Murray on an island. Picking off Trae Young's lazy inbounds pass underneath Toronto's basket. Helping from the corner to blow up a pick and roll. Stealing an outlet pass after a potential momentum-shifting block by the Hawks. Fighting over a screen, hounding Deandre Hunter and immediately converting a fastbreak. Playing free safety and picking off a cross-court pass from Trae Young.
That's just one game, a mere smattering of his wrecking ball demolition tactics on display every game. If you have a few minutes, watch all of Anunoby's steals.
Anunoby racks up steals from every angle and in every situation. He's as much of an off-ball menace as he is on the ball and gives power forwards as many headaches at the cup, as he does with point guards at the top of the key.
Add in a 40 percent clip from beyond the arc on a team rolling deep in high-level passers and Anunoby checks every box every team is searching for. If there was an award for Most Valuable Role Player, Anunoby would be firmly in the mix.
We're only 10 games in, but keep those benchmarks in mind.
3 steals and 40 percent from 3 add up to an incredibly appealing and largely unprecedented mix of two-way talent. And while nobody is holding out hope for a Stockton-type career, it's incredible company for Toronto's Mr. Do Everything.
