Aussies in NBA: Bairstow finding his feet in the D-League

After what was a pretty rough first outing for Cameron Bairstow in the NBA D-League, he has since bounced back well and is showing promising signs.

Bairstow has now played 3 games for the Austin Spurs, with the team going 2-1. In his first game, he shot just 4/17 from the field, finishing with 10 points and 8 rebounds in 29 minutes. Being assigned to a new team, with new teammates and a different system to that of the Bulls, it's understandable to see why he struggled with his shot.

Since then, Bairstow is looking much more confident and sure of his shot and has been quietly efficient on the offensive end. On the second night of a back-to-back against the Santa Cruz Warriors, Bairstow recorded his first double-double in the D-League and went to work in the post. In 25 minutes on the court, he managed 17 points (6/10 FG, 5/5 FT) and 12 rebounds, with a +/- rating of +16.

Check out the highlights in the video below.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EjiQ_naVBFs

It is clear that a focus for Bairstow whilst in the D-League is to work on his post game. Getting valuable game time, instead of sitting on the bench for the Chicago Bulls, allows him to experiment and work on new moves, whilst refining the rest of his game.

Bairstow's shotchart in his last 2 games.

In yesterday's game against the Reno Bighorns, Bairstow played a vital role in helping Austin come away with the win. When Reno were surging back in to the game, getting to within 6 points with 2 minutes remaining, Bairstow buried a little floater to push the lead back out to 8.

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Bairstow finished with 14 points (6/11 FG), 4 rebounds and 2 assists.

The Austin Spurs next game is Saturday against Jimmer Fredette and the Westchester Knicks.