Before I dive too deep into this, I want to formally apologize to Jelani Watson-Gayle. I had tried to do as much research as I could on each player in my roster overview piece, and I want to say sorry I did not do enough of a background check. This is what I had to say about Watson-Gayle in my opening article: “Coach Taylor announced on the Winnipeg Sports Talk podcast with Andrew Paterson that Jelani Watson-Gayle would be the Sea Bears Global player on the roster. Watson-Gayle is a guard who played this season in his home of England. He shot around 40% from three and put up 12 points a game. Not too sure where he stands on the roster, but could be the bench back court mate to Okafor.” Those were my exact words, and because of that I thought it were only fair that we begin my player spotlights series with Watson-Gayle.

Quick Overview

When I do these player spotlights, this quick overview section will be stating some simple counting stats, and my overall thoughts on how I think that player has played. Then in later sections I will get into more in-depth analysis. I will give a quick shoutout to Duncan Campbell’s CEBL Stats Plus resource he provides, as this is where I took the more advanced stats I will refer to below. Here is a link to his Instagram page. I will also be referencing more intricate stats as well, and will do my best to explain them. Here is the Basketball Reference Glossary that can provide a full explanation if need be.

From the CEBL’s official website, through the first 10 games on the season, Watson-Gayle is averaging 13.4 points, three assists, three rebounds, and almost a steal per game. The most impressive part of his stat line are his shooting splits. He is currently shooting a very good 50% from the field, and an astounding 51% from behind the arc. This is all on an average of 21.2 minutes per game, and even that has been rising. Not to mention Watson-Gayle has 4 Target Score Game Winners. A couple notable performances have come against the Saskatchewan Rattlers, but his best was still in the season opener against the Vancouver Bandits. The craziest part about all of this is, Watson-Gayle has yet to even get one start this season. These stats and performances have all come off the bench. If you dive deeper into the more advanced numbers, you can see that he is one of the more important players on the team. According to Stats Plus, Watson-Gayle has the second highest BPM on the team at 5.3 (This means that on an average of 100 possessions, Watson-Gayle makes the Sea Bears 5.3 points better over that amount of time). He also is second on the team in Player Efficiency Rating (PER, which is essentially how effective a player is), at 23.2. That rate also puts him inside the top 10 in the entire league. His 1.5 Points Per Possession (PPP) has him on par with players such as Christian Vital, and ahead of Giorgi Bezhanishvili. By just looking at the numbers you would say Watson-Gayle is having a fantastic season.

In-Depth Analysis

While the numbers tell a good chunk of the story, it doesn’t tell all of it. Watson-Gayle is normally the first off the bench for coach Mike Taylor, and will sub him in as early as he thinks he needs to. Taylor will especially do this if he thinks that Watson-Gayle will be able to steady the ship, control the offence, and score some. While he reads defences as a passer well, he has been at his best when in the pick and roll. His decision making off of the screen to shoot, drive, or move the ball has been his greatest asset. He has also been a catch and shoot weapon to go along with it. Simply put, he has shown to be an offensive juggernaut, that cannot be left open behind the arc, no matter the circumstances. Nor should he just be allowed to drive to the hoop as he has displayed decent finishing.

Final Thoughts

Watson-Gayle has become an offensive key for coach Taylor, and has been used quite a bit. I still don’t feel like we have seen his ceiling, and I do believe another sort of performance closer to the inaugural game is coming. As long as he continues to be incorporated into the Sea Bears offence, I have a feeling Watson-Gayle will continue to put up numbers. I have said it before, and I waited all the way until the end of this article to say it. This guy is the 6th Man Of The Year.