Enisey has been one of the VTB League’s biggest discoveries at the start of the season. Despite a difficult schedule (they played 4 of Top 5 teams in their first 7 games), the Siberian team has established in the top group. After two losses, the Krasnoyarsk team has won four in a row and now in an unusually high 4th place in the standings.
A key factor in Enisey success was Xavier Rathan-Mayes actions. He set a season-high in points (38 points), scored 30+ points twice and now leads the League in points per game (25.8 points on average).
Xavier also tops the list of the most efficient basketball players in the league (28.0 eff. points). In fact, Rathan-Mayes destroyed any intrigue for the title of the best player of October with his play. Enisey leader has no competitors around him for now.
So what is the secret of his success, the mastermind behind the Krasnoyarsk team’s winning streak and Devin Booker friend.
Amazing scorer
In the first games of the season, the Canadian guard demonstrates simply unique shooting abilities. He is good at long-range shots. Rathan-Mayes shot three-pointers more often than anyone else and leads the League in three-pointers.
And unlike many sharpshooters, Enisey leader doesn’t get his stats from open shots created by his teammates. Xavier is forced to make almost every shot being contested.
In Enisey recent game against Pari NN, the Volga team players were focused on defending Rathan-Mayes. They knew how the Siberian team guard would shoot and prepared for it, but still couldn’t stop him from making key shots in the final quarter.
Despite the lack of easy shots and not good attempts, Rathan-Mayes showed a high percentage of three-pointers made – 42.6% (23 of 54).
Offensive skills diversity
But Rathan-Mayes offensive arsenal is not limited to three-pointers. And that’s exactly what makes the Canadian guard such a versatile scorer. Enisey leader demonstrates a really wide range of skoring skills at the start of the season.
Rathan-Mayes can beat lower opponents in the paint, creates fastbreaks well, scores floaters and hooks. Xavier aggressive drives look even more spectacular than his crazy three-pointers. With all that said, he shows an excellent two-point shooting percentage – 66.7% (32 of 48).
Also, let’s not forget that Rathan-Mayes knows how to pass the ball well. He is currently in the League’s Top 20 in assists (3.5 per game). The Canadian guard is especially connected with Enisey center Mikel Hopkins.
Clutch moments player
Last season, Enisey was almost the worst team in the League in clutches. The Krasnoyarsk team management was looking for players who could score at the desicive moments. Rathan-Mayes was supposed to be just such a player.
So far Xavier is living up to those expectations. He has already made an important shot against Loko and a game-winning three-pointer against Avtodor.
But key moments of a game don’t necessarily only happen in the end. Xavier has already become a key in all of Enisey wins. For example, his 8 points in a row helped to defeat MINSK.
He had at least 2 key moments against the game against Pari NN. At the end of the first half, Xavier helped Enisey cut the difference from 9 points to 3 by th ehalftime. Midway through the final quarter, Rathan-Mayes made two three-pointers and made an assist to Hopkins. He stopped the Volga team comeback and gave the Siberian team a lead lead, which later allowed Enisey to win the game.
Sequence
Another Rathan-Mayes speciality is to make a shot after shot. He was known for this in college. At one time he surprised the basketball world by scoring 30 points in just 4 minutes.
Xavier often lights up at certain moments of the game, and it’s literally impossible to stop him. He had such performance against Loko. The Canadian guard scored 18 points in the first quarter, making 6 straight shots without missing. Th reason for that was Dmitrii Uzinsky tough foul, the Krasnodar team forward tried to stop the Siberian team leader in the opening quarter.
Xavier Rathan-Mayes was the brightest player of the starting month of the sesaon. At the same time, the Canadian isn’t blindly focusing only on his stats. Despite the amount of shots he attempted, he shows a high percentage. His career-highs goes toe-to-toe with the team’s success as he shows himself as a true leader. All of this makes Rathan-Mayes the number 1 contender for the VTB League MVP of October.
