The Hottest January In the World
What Samir Gbetkom’s uncommonly efficient month means for the rest of his season and Cameroon’s prospects in the Olympic Qualifying Tournament
Antibes combo guard and international Cameroonian Samir Gbetkom started the new year strong after a below average first half of the season. The first three months of the season saw him average 5 points, 2.2 rebounds and 3.4 assists per game on 28% shooting from the field, 18% shooting from three-point range and 74% free throws. His average efficiency rank was 4. In January, those averages leapt to 17.2 points, 4.3 rebounds, 2.8 assists and 14.8 efficiency on 57% field goals, 66% three-pointers and 84% free throw shooting splits.
Gbetkom has been no slouch on defense either even if the counting stats aren’t impressive. He rotates to the right positions and applies good pressure on and off the ball to force turnovers or make life more difficult for the offense.
The reason for the improvements? A position change from the 2 to the 1 that gave Gbetkom more on-ball, primary playmaking responsibilities, and renewed trust from his coach, J.D. Jackson, to give him more minutes. It’s also given him loads of confidence and allowed him to attack mismatches, draw fouls in the paint and shoot with poise off the dribble. Gbetkom is so good at forcing officials to make a call by engaging defenders relentlessly and putting them in positions to foul him. He’s always been good at drawing fouls but in January he lived at the line, attempting 8.0 per game (up from 2.8 attempts per game).
Gbetkom has been clutch too, creating offense aggressively in the fourth quarters of all these close games. The icing on the cake was the last game of the month vs. Denain where he closed the game with clutch FTs and went 3/3 from three and 9/9 from the line.
Interestingly, his assists have decreased slightly from 3.4 to 2.8 per game. Having watched the games, Gbetkom still finds teammates in good positions, and I have a hunch his potential assists have been consistent throughout the year. His coach should be applauded for not boxing him into a typical table-setting role as they lost just one game in January too.
Gbetkom is ramping up as Cameroon gets closer to Olympic qualifications and they’ll need this firepower as they face a tough group featuring Brazil and Montenegro. He played efficiently in his last selection, having averaged 11.5 points on 54.2% field goals, 53.8% threes and 92.9% free throws under coach Alfred Aboya. He’s continuing in the right direction and knows how to sustain this level of play for stretches of time even if the percentages come down to earth. In their pursuit of an Olympic berth, being able to have tandem playmakers that can score in bunches in Jordan Hill and Gbetkom is a strength that Cameroon can take advantage of in July.
Check out Samir Gbetkom’s full highlights in January here.
