Juan Toscano-Anderson Reflects on His Minutes Off the Bench
Last night’s game versus the Cavaliers saw the Warriors struggle early as they went down by as many as thirteen points in the third quarter. Steve Kerr elected to rotate the lineups which saw Juan Toscano-Anderson getting some key third and fourth quarter minutes. With his effort and the combined team play, the Warriors managed to come back and ended up winning the game by double digits.
JTA finished with 7 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists, and 1 steal in 16 minutes of play, minutes that he hasn’t seen an abundance of since early November. In the past three games before last night’s, his combined minutes were equal to his minutes from the game in Cleveland. It seems that Kerr is having trouble fitting him into the rotation as multiple guys have stepped up and showed they can hoop this season.
His impact on the game is more than just putting the ball in the basket though, he brings energy off the bench and can have a great impact on the defensive side of the floor. He also knows how to stay ready, as he knows his number could be called at any time. After the game he said, “I think the only difficult part is just having the desire to play, I love game, this is my life right here.” So many bench players try to find themselves and their roles on teams and we as the public have to understand that even the last guy on an NBA bench is ten times better than the average baller. He added, “At the end of the day, I’m an adult and I’m understanding of what my job is and what my roles is on this team and I’m accepting of that.”
And his role has been a crucial one at times, look at the Cavs game last night where he helped spark the comeback. Look to last season and earlier this season, where he came from the G-League and proved his worth in the NBA through hard earned minutes. Juan had a good way of looking at it saying, “I could sit here and pout about it, but what good is that going to do? It’s all about perspective, I could be anywhere else in the world, on any other team, a losing team, or even back in the G-League, but I’m on the best team in the NBA.”
“I’m on my hometown team, playing with hall of famers, so it’s perspective, everyone wants to play more, but at the end of the day, as a grown man you have to wake up and do your job every day and mine is to bring a spark off the bench.” Juan’s become a fan favorite because he’s a hometown kid, and I think I speak for most Warriors fans when I say that his effort and love for the game shouldn’t and will not go unnoticed.
It will be tough for him to get back into the rotation, especially when the Warriors are fully healthy, but it’s always a possibility. Just look at Kuminga, most people believed he should be stashed in the G-League but he’s already seen early minutes in key games like against the Nets. The focus for Juan should just be to stay ready and he knows this, “That’s the easy part, I've been through the G-League and been playing basketball for a while, I’m just blessed that my main concern right now is my minutes.” He pushed perspective again, telling reporters that while he is focusing on basketball as his job, other people have much bigger real-life issues to worry about.
This is why Dubs fans love JTA, he keeps it real with the media, is always preaching the bigger picture, and is always ready to go whenever need be. Showing the true heart of a Warrior on and off the court.
(Photo credit: Lachlan Cunningham / Getty Images)