I had previously mentioned in passing that Amir Johnson and Alex Acker should be able to put up some numbers with the NBDL Fayetteville Patriots if they got the playing time... but even I didn't expect this.
Acker joined Fayetteville just two hours before tipoff on Friday but still managed to score 28 points, three rebounds, two steals, a block and an assist -- in just 21 minutes off the bench! Johnson, who played his first game since arriving earlier in the week, also came up huge in a short amount of time with 16 points, nine boards, two steals, a block and an assist in 18 minutes off the bench.
Before you get too excited, realize that D-League games tend to be barnburners -- the final score on this one was Patriots 132, Dazzle 120. But still, it's always a good thing to get young players some game-time burn, even if the competition isn't exactly big-league caliber. Don't you wish this league existed a few years ago when Darko was a rookie?
In today's action, Acker added 14 points with five assists and five rebounds in 16 minutes, while Johnson contributed 16 points, nine rebounds, two assists and two blocks in 19 minutes. The duo helped the Pats win 113-93.
Patriots 132, Dazzle 120 box score [NBDL]
Patriots 113, Flame 93 box score [NBDL]