The most clutch guys in the NBA this year were former 'Cats
No one has been more clutch in the NBA this year than former Kentucky Wildcats. The term “clutch” used to be more of a feel than anything else. For example, you probably hear your uncle use the word over and over when reminiscing about how good of a sports star he was in high school; how coach always put the ball in his hands when the game was on the line. But selective memory has a way of making big shots more like big fish tales.
But now, thanks to modern statistics, we can actually define the word, measure it, and have numbers to back up the bragging. And this year’s NBA regular season gave plenty of reasons for former ‘Cats to boast.
The NBA defines clutch time in a game as less than five minutes in the 4th quarter or overtime with the score within five points. Any stats accumulated during this time tallies into the players’ clutch stats. And the most cold-blooded player in the whole league during this crucial period of the game this year has been Kentucky’s own De’Aaron Fox.
Most points in the clutch
De’Aaron Fox scored 194 points in the clutch this season, 35 more than the player who scored the second-most, DeMar DeRozan. This is the most clutch points scored in a single season since LeBron James put up 197 back in 2017-18 when Fox was a rookie.
Fox’s scoring came on 72 baskets (1st in the league) and an incredible 52.9% field goal percentage. His dominance led to the Sacramento Kings finishing as the only team in the NBA to post a field goal percentage of at least 50% in the clutch. More importantly, it led to wins.
The Kings finished 25-19 in games decided in the clutch, ninth best in the league. It ultimately culminated in a third-seed finish in the West and the franchise’s first playoff appearance in 16 years, snapping one of the most dubious streaks in all of sports.
Fox is the odds-on favorite to win the first-ever NBA Clutch Player of the Year award this year, and deservedly so. No team trusted a player more with the game on the line than Sacramento did with Fox, proven by his league-leading 43% clutch usage rate.
In other words, give him the ball and get out of the way.
Most rebounds in the clutch
New York Knick fans were down on Julius Randle after a slight regression last season, but he has been the toast of the Big Apple this year, especially after returning to the All-Star Game. Randle has made big play after big play and put up numbers that the city hasn’t seen since Patrick Ewing graced the hardwood of Madison Square Garden.
More than just impressive totals, he has stepped up in the clutch, especially on the glass. Randle led the league in rebounds in the clutch this season with 56. That is the most since the 2019-20 season, a year in which Randle finished third in this category.
Randle wasn’t the only former ‘Cat bringing down boards in the clutch. Kentucky alumni made up three of the top five on this list, with Bam Adebayo and Anthony Davis tying for fourth.
On the flip side, Randle also led the league with the most clutch turnovers, but when you play with his level of aggressiveness and tenacity, that is the risk you take.
Most 3s in the clutch
De’Aaron Fox made the most field goals in the clutch this season, but he did most of his damage from inside the arc. His 88 clutch points in the paint led the NBA, however, it was another former ‘Cat who led the league in most clutch 3s: the Bucket himself, Tyler Herro.
Herro knocked down 19 3s in the clutch this season, three more than overall NBA 3-point basket leader, Klay Thompson, and did so on 38.3% shooting.
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After winning the 6th Man of the Year award last season, Herro stepped into a starting role this year for the Miami Heat and flourished. In addition to his clutch 3s, Herro led the league in overall free throw percentage at 93.7%. And just because he strives to live up to his nickname, he shot 100% from the charity stripe in the clutch, a perfect 17-17 to be exact. Only Dennis Shroeder and Brandon Ingram shot more clutch free throws and didn’t miss.
Herro looks to keep the ice in his veins cold going into the playoffs.
Most steals in the clutch
Just when you thought, “Surely, a former Kentucky player can’t lead the league in another clutch stat,” enter Tyler Herro’s Miami Heat teammate, Bam Adebayo. Arguably the most well-rounded big man in the league, the two-time All-Star was a defensive machine when the game was on the line this year, coming away with a league-leading 12 clutch steals. No one has had more since Paul George got 13 back in the 2018-19 campaign.
Bam’s 12 clutch steals put him just ahead of his old Kentucky teammate, De’Aaron Fox, who finished second in the league with 10.
To recap, this means Fox led the league in clutch points and finished second in clutch steals. How in the world did that 2017 Kentucky team lose in the Elite Eight, of all ways, in the clutch against North Carolina? Painful. It is no wonder Fox and Monk have said they are out to avenge that loss.
While we are talking about all-around games, three former ‘Cats also finished in the top four in the plus/minus category during clutch time: Tyler Herro, Tyrese Maxey, and Bam Adebayo landed 2nd, 3rd, and 4th, just behind MVP candidate, Joel Embiid.
Game winners
Forget the last five minutes in a close game, former ‘Cats were no strangers to heroics in the last five seconds as well. Kentucky players knocked down a total of nine game-winning shots this season, a truly remarkable display of theatrics.
De’Aaron Fox (who else?) hit three game-winners, Tyler Herro and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander each hit two, and Jamal Murray and Julius Randle each had one.
Even though March Madness has come and gone, don’t dismiss basketball for the summer quite yet. The NBA Playoffs will be filled with Kentucky guys who have been playing at a high level all season long. And with the way these guys play in the clutch, look for a few more dramatic endings at the hands of former ‘Cats.
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