WASHINGTON, D.C. — T.J. Warren worked on his perimeter shooting about one hour before Wednesday night’s game against the Washington Wizards.
First he drilled jumpers from the baseline, and then he moved out to near the three-point line around the top of the key, draining shots one by one as a staffer for the Phoenix Suns fed him the ball at a nearly empty Capital One Arena in downtown Washington.
The basket has certainly looked bigger than normal in recent days for Warren, the former Wolfpack standout that was drafted 14th overall by the Suns in 2014.
The Durham native Warren, a 6-foot-8 forward, had 20 of his 27 points in the second half on October 26 in a win over the Utah Jazz. Then five days later he had 14 of his 20 points in the fourth quarter as the Suns won over the Nets in Brooklyn.
“You know, that is crunch time. That is when you can win the game,” said Warren, 24, the 2014 ACC Player of the Year. “You have to lock in and execute the right way. Coach [Jay Triano] has done a great job of managing everyone and keeping everyone on the same patch. The fourth quarter is when you lock in.”
The Warren resurgence comes after Earl Watson was fired as the head coach just three games into this season. He was replaced on an interim basis by Triano, a veteran NBA mentor.
“His coaching style complements the way I play and move the ball,” Warren said. “It really fits the type of game I wanted to play; a match made [in heaven] when he got the job and took over.”
Triano knows that Warren can produce at a high level, especially when other teams focus on Devin Booker.
“He is a scorer. He is a guy that gives us another scorer,” Triano said of Warren. “He has a knack for getting to his space. He has the ability to get to the offensive glass and finish at the rim, too.”
Warren culminated the hot streak with a career-high 40 points at Washington on Wednesday as the Suns won 122-116 over the Wizards. The fast start comes after Warren signed a long-term contract extension with the Suns in late September.
“It was a dream come true,” said Warren, standing in a hallway outside of the Suns locker room in Washington in an interview with The Wolfpacker. “I was very fortunate to sign a contract extension with the team that drafted me in 2014. I wanted to continue to prove myself and that was just a stepping stone.”
Warren is averaging 18.0 points and 6.5 rebounds per contest in games through Nov. 2 as the Sun were 4-4 overall after an 0-3 start.
He averaged a career-best 14.4 points and 5.1 rebounds per contest last season and was 28th in the NBA in shooting percentage at 49.5.
Warren keeps in touch with several of his former Pack teammates, including Terry Henderson, who was signed by the Charlotte Hornets in September and plays for their G-League affiliate. Warren also stays in touch with some of his former NC State assistant coaches and head coach Mark Gottfried.
The NBA veteran also has connections with the new coaching staff at North Carolina State.
He said Kevin Keatts, the first-year head coach of the Pack, tried to bring him to Hargrave Military Academy in Chatham, Va.
“He was trying to recruit me to go there,” Warren said of Keatts.
Warren also enjoyed the rivalry games with Duke and North Carolina.
“I had a lot of great relationships. I always think about (those days). It was fun to the school where you grew up in the area,” Warren recalled.
What was his best memory of two seasons with the Wolfpack?
“My best memory is definitely going to the NCAA tournament,” Warren said. “That is every team’s dream headed into the season.”
Editor’s note: Free-lance writer David Driver is a Virginia native who has written about the ACC and NBA for several years. He can be reached at www.davidsdriver.com
