Pacific Notes: Bogdanovic, McCaw, James

Rookie Bogdan Bogdanovic may not know the ins and outs of the NBA but he hasn’t struggled to keep up in his first taste of action in the big league, Jason Jones of the Sacramento Bee writes. Through fives games with the Kings, the relatively seasoned 25-year-old first-year swingman has averaged 10.0 points per contest.

Bogdanovic missed the first three games of the season with a sprained ankle but has since earned his way into the starting lineup as the club’s first-unit small forward. While he may slot in as a two-guard eventually, Bogdanovic has gotten by thanks to his basketball IQ and broad shoulders.

“He may not know the ins-and-outs of the NBA game, but he’s a guy that’s really meshed and transitioned well,” teammate Garrett Temple said. “He’s a guy that can really create, he’s a workhorse. You’ve got to kick him out of the gym to get some rest.”

There’s more out of the Pacific Division tonight:

• The Clippers have employed the power of the long ball of late and, thanks to guards like Patrick Beverley and Austin Rivers, looked particularly proficient doing so. Broderick Turner of the Los Angeles Times writes that the franchise is doing its diligence to  keep up with a changing league.
• The Warriors aren’t afraid to mix up their rotation, as evidenced by Steve Kerr‘s decision to run Patrick McCaw as the first shooting guard off the bench as opposed to Nick Young, Mark Medina of The Mercury News writes. McCaw’s stat line leaves much to be desired but he’s a versatile threat on both ends of the ball and the club likes his work ethic.
• After breaking into the Suns rotation and carving out a role as the team’s starting point guard, 27-year-old rookie Mike James could see his two-way contract converted into a standard deal, Benny Nadeau of Basketball Insiders writes. The two-way contract that he signed over the offseason, of course, limits James’ NBA service to 45 days.