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'He's an amazing player' | Austin Spurs' Devontae Cacok is proving he is ready for the NBA

Spurs' Derrick White and Austin Spurs head coach see how great Cacok is on the court and more.

SAN ANTONIO — In case you may have missed it, Spurs' two-way player, Devontae Cacok, recently shattered the record for the most consecutive double-doubles in Austin Spurs' history.

He recorded 12-straight double-doubles on Jan. 19 only to then set the team record with his 15th consecutive double-double on Jan. 27. He was just two short for the G League record.

An incredible feat but Cacok is giving Austin more than just stats which makes him an enticing prospect for any NBA team.

"He's amazing in my opinion, and a very important player for our group," said Austin coach Petar Bozic. "He's an amazing teammate. He's an amazing player. Every coach will love to have him because he's a super hard worker."

Stats aside, part of making it to the NBA is how well a player can mesh with his teammates and he's proving that with Austin.

"He's great with the group, he's great with his teammates, trying to help and make it easy for them, and for himself," Bozic said. "He's a team player. So he got all the great things that a coach will love that his player got."

Cacok went undrafted in 2019, however, he has NBA experience under his belt. 

He played with the Lakers (2019-21) and was part of the Lakers' 2020 title team. He was also with the Nets for their 2021 training camp.

In the G League, he was named to the 2019 All-NBA G League First Team with the South Bay Lakers.

Now with Austin, he is stepping up as a leader, passing on his experience to his teammates.

"He's vocal as well, and tries to share that experience that he had through two NBA seasons and through the G League because he's very dominant," Bozic said.

He's had a few call-ups to San Antonio this season but landing on an NBA team's roster seems inevitable for the Austin forward. 

Credit: Austin Spurs

He has the skill set to excel on the NBA stage and Bozic is seeing it with each game.

"He showed amazing stretches throughout the season, with a lot of spots on the court where he can be very versatile, and attack face up, and low post, and rebounding, and everything," Bozic said.

Even his San Antonio teammate, Derrick White, sees Cacok's incredible upside when they share the court.

"I watch his G League games and he's just active," White said. "He's one of those players that finds rebounds, and gets loose balls. He was big for us when we were out with a bunch of guys."

In Monday night's game versus Iowa, Cacok recorded 31 points, eight rebounds, five assists and two blocks in 33 minutes. 

Ahead of the game against Iowa, he is averaging 20.4 points per game including 12.6 rebounds and 1.4 steals in 31 minutes. 

Those averages are among Austin's best.

"Obviously, his numbers speak for themselves," White said. "He's extremely talented. He works hard. He seems to always be in the right place at the right time."

With San Antonio, he is averaging 4.5 points per game along with 3.4 rebounds in eight games played.

With the NBA's long season and possible injuries and the looming COVID pandemic, he could see himself get recalled from Austin where he'll have a shot at showcasing his skillset on an NBA court.

But for now, he'll work hard in Austin and continue to leave Bozic pleasantly surprised at what the 6-7 forward from UNC Wilmington can do.

"I'm really surprised because it's unbelievable that someone is great in certain things, and a lot of teams try to stop it," Bozic said. "He's still able to produce and to do it at an amazing level. So that surprises me every game."

Twitter: @KENS5, @JeffGSpursKENS5

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