Last Thursday night the rookie D.J. Kennedy led Erie Bay Hawks to victory against Fot Wayne Mad Ants, ending the game 95-83. Kennedy finished with a game-high 27 points and eight rebounds with 11 out of 17 field goals. The 6'6" swingman also dished out 4 assists for a final valuation index of 26.
It's been almost a year since D.J. Kennedy's knee fell apart. On March 10 of last year, Kennedy, a guard for NCAA Tournament-bound St. John's, fell to the floor in the Red Storm's loss to Syracuse. He'd torn his ACL. His season, done. His recovery, six to eight months, if you're being optimistic. His career, on hold.
Now, skip the intervening period and flash forward to today. Three months into his first season in the NBA Development League, Kennedy's turned into one of the league's premier NBA prospects, turning out 22.2 points, 7.3 rebounds and 4.4 assists per game over his last nine contests for the Erie BayHawks, the New York Knicks' NBA D-League affiliate.