It’s late March of 2017. A 6’10” 247-pound Derrick Favors backs down a much smaller Rondae Hollis-Jefferson and bullies his way into a 19-point, 12-rebound game in a victory over the Nets.
Kenny Atkinson had recently made an adjustment to turn Hollis-Jefferson into a small-ball 4. Hollis-Jefferson recalls the struggles of covering a bigger player, somewhat of a wake up call for the then second-year pro.
He simply says, “Wow” when asked about that night covering Favors.
One season later, following his third year in the league, Hollis-Jefferson started 59 of 68 games at the 4, taking the biggest leap of his career.