Fresh off of a career night, Golden State Warriors rookie Moses Moody earned high praise from head coach Steve Kerr and may have cemented his place on the team for years to come.
Moody, in his seventh start of the season, produced 30 points and three rebounds in 36 minutes during a 131-124 loss to the Denver Nuggets. He scored 22 points alone in the first half and became the first teenager in team history to register a 30-point game at 19 years, 280 days.
He is the sixth rookie this season to score at least 30 points in a game.
The Warriors, facing the Nuggets in a make-up game, opted against sending Stephen Curry, Andrew Wiggins, Klay Thompson and Andre Iguodala to Denver in order to rest with a busy schedule ahead. Without them, Moody stepped up and kept the Warriors in the game.
Kerr believes Moody has a bright future ahead with the organization.
Moses was just fantastic tonight. He was aggressive and got off to a quick start and made some big shots for us. He is a keeper. He is a guy who’s going to be a cornerstone for this team for the Warriors for a long time to come. It’s easy to see that right now in his rookie year.
The 14th pick previously earned a vote of confidence last week when it was revealed by Kerr that he would see a larger role moving forward. Kerr credited the work Moody has put in to this point of the season and believes he can make an impact on games.
The career performance, Moody said, was a byproduct of his hard work.
It is just a testament to the work and all of the sacrifices I’ve been doing. You kinda do those things hoping it is the right thing to do, hoping you’re sacrificing for the greater good. Things like that kinda validate it.
Moody played sparingly for the Warriors during the early part of the season. He has seen a larger role with the team as of late given his ability to knock down shots from deep. The team also loves his competitiveness and size on defense.
The Warriors were very high on Moody after drafting him last year, and the former Arkansas standout appears to be poised to play a key role with the team the rest of the season.
This post originally appeared on Rookie Wire! Follow us on Facebook!
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original source: Steve Kerr gave ‘cornerstone’ Moses Moody the ultimate vote of confidence
