Another Warriors game, another excellent performance out of Warriors 14th overall pick Moses Moody. The 19-year-old. Last night against the Clippers, Moody posted 10 points and 8 boards on 66% shooting from the field. He was a +6, playing some solid defense on Reggie Jackson and other Clippers perimeter players in his 30 minutes.

Last night is the continuation of a recent trend we’ve seen from Moody. Despite a slow start in the first 2 games back after the All-Star Break, the rookie has posted 11 points, 3 boards, and 1 assist averages in 20 minutes per game. This is including two duds against Portland and Dallas, where he shot 25% in 12 minutes and 33% in 25 minutes from the field respectively in those matchups.

If you don’t include those games, however, Moody has been playing out of his mind: in 22 minutes per contest, he has put up just under 14ppg on 62% shooting and 55% (!!!) from three, including a 30-bomb against the Denver Nuggets in a game that should not have been close, with the Dubs resting almost all of their starters, even though it ended up with Denver only winning by 7.

Moody has shown a ton of value at the 14th overall pick. He was lauded by scouts as the player in the NBA Draft with probably the highest floor straight from the jump. While he didn’t really get the minutes to make that happen early on, Steve Kerr has given him the opportunity to show just what he can do. He responded with 3 straight games where he didn’t miss a shot, and then a game where he scored the most points by a Warriors teenager ever, and then a near double-double with some excellent defense.

He turned some heads as well earlier this season, lighting up the G-League for over 32 points per game in a stretch of 4 contests. To keep it simple, this is certainly a surprise that he’s playing this well, but he’s been ready for this moment for a bit now. He has a very portable skill set and against higher levels of competition, he is able to elevate his game. The only issue so far has been the lack of consistency, but he still takes good shots and overall has a high game IQ.

The biggest issue scouts had with Moody was his self-creation ability. Within the Warriors offense, that hasn’t been an issue however. While he’s still taking most of his shots assisted (a few points under 90% this season) by a teammate, a look at the film shows he’s still creating for himself by attacking with one move and a drive off the catch, or setting and shooting out of a dribble hand-off. He’s efficient with his movements, and is an excellent glue guy despite only being a rook.

As he continues to build good habits and use his early maturity both on and off the court to grow into his own, Moody’s ceiling is looking higher and higher. He’s an excellent combination of win-now capability (a solid shooter who can score in a multitude of ways and good instinctual defender) and potential (still room for growth in his self-creation and a 7-foot wingspan while standing only at 6’6), which makes him an excellent prospect alongside some of the other Warriors young guys.

Moses Moody has made his way into the rotation late in the season, and his maturity indicates he could even be seeing the floor in the some playoff minutes if his play continues to be thoroughly solid. Of the young core, Moody is probably the most NBA-ready in terms of mentality and skill aside from Jordan Poole, which will be important to helping the other young guys grow into their own. While he has and probably will continue to contribute to winning now, the Poole-Moody backcourt of the future is certainly something to be excited about.

(Photo credit: Abbie Parr / Getty Images)