Coming into the league in 2011, Kenneth Faried was your typical traditional power forward. He ran the floor hard, defended multiple positions, finished dump offs and lobs, and swallowed up enough rebounds to earn his “Manimal” mantra.
It all peaked for Faried at the 2014 Basketball World Cup, when he was one of two players named to the all-tournament team from a USA Basketball roster featuring nine All-Stars. Even among elite bigs like Andre Drummond and DeMarcus Cousins, Faried’s athleticism stood out. A leap the coming season seemed inevitable.
Unfortunately for Faried, shortly after that tournament, the NBA began to change.