Danny Wolf, who had patiently awaited his chance, made the most of a long-awaited opportunity on Wednesday, scoring 12 points off the bench to help the Brooklyn Nets secure a 114-104 victory over the Charlotte Hornets.
Wolf, a 6-foot-11 forward, had played limited minutes in the early part of the season, appearing in only five of the Nets' first seven games. He remained on the bench for the entire first half against Charlotte, but entered the game early in the third quarter with the Nets trailing by nine points.
“Obviously, in the NBA there’s going to be times, especially early in your career, that you might not be in the rotation,” Wolf said following the game. “That was the case when we started the year and everyone emphasizes and preaches you got to be ready, and you hear it over and over, ‘Just make sure you’re doing all your work, doing all your things to make sure that when your number gets called, you’re ready.’ And I tried taking advantage of all the time I had.”
Within three minutes of Wolf's entry, the Nets had erased the deficit and retaken the lead, with Wolf contributing a 3-pointer and two assists during an 11-0 run. He was on the court for the entire fourth quarter as the Nets closed out the win.
Wolf finished the game with 12 points on 4-of-6 shooting from the field, including 2-of-4 from 3-point range. He also added five rebounds, three assists, and no turnovers, posting a plus-17 rating in his extended playing time. His performance came after Noah Clowney left the game with right knee soreness, opening up a role for Wolf.
“Danny coming in and contributing right away, that takes a lot of readiness and a lot of discipline to not play for so many games, come in in the second half and to contribute the way he did,” said teammate Michael Porter Jr. “I mean, I always thought Danny was a special player, and I’ve said that since he got here. I think he could do so many things on the basketball court, and I’m really happy that he got the opportunity.”
Wolf, who appeared in 57 games as a rookie, is shooting a team-best 60 percent from the field and 58.3 percent on 3-pointers this season. Through three games, he is averaging 9.3 points, 4.3 rebounds, and 2.0 assists in 15.3 minutes per game.
His per-36-minute averages rank third on the Nets in scoring (21.9), second in rebounds (10.2), and fourth in assists (4.7), suggesting his impact is significant when given playing time. Wolf's early career at Yale saw him average seven minutes per game, and he also declined an offer to be a walk-on at Michigan under Juwan Howard before eventually playing for Dusty May.
“Our offensive identity is supposed to be playing fast,” Wolf said. “I think there’s times, just with my play style, that I can really help us push the ball up the floor, make simple passes to start the break. Basketball’s fun that way. It’s how it’s supposed to be played.”