Even in G League, former Gonzaga big man Drew Timme hits a different gear when calendar flips to March

FRISCO, Texas – March obviously brings out the best in Drew Timme.

The former Gonzaga star and current forward for the G League’s Long Island Nets is averaging 28.2 points this month, including last Tuesday’s 40-point effort – with four 3-pointers – in a game against the Westchester Knicks in White Plains, New York.

Timme’s month started with a Texas homecoming that saw him produce a triple double, followed by a 31-point effort, in back-to-back games against the Texas Legends.

The numbers weren’t the highlight of those two games, however. For Timme, it was getting to play in front of some friendly faces in Frisco, a Dallas suburb about 20 miles north of his childhood home of Richardson.

“Yeah, it was great,” he said. “Got to hang with all the friends and family, they got to see me hoop. It’s always fun to be at the crib, especially when you get to see everyone.

“We were down there for an extended time, which was nice,” said Timme, whose team opened the Texas road trip on Feb. 27 in San Antonio. “I don’t know (how many people were there for me). It was a lot though. And I played in San Antonio, too, so had some other family from down there, too.”

His previous on-court appearance in the Dallas area came on Dec. 26, 2020, when the Zags defeated Virginia 98-75 in Fort Worth. Timme had 29 points and eight rebounds in the blowout win as part of a starting five that included NBA players Corey Kispert and Jaylen Suggs – with Andrew Nembhard and Julian Strawther coming off the bench.

Two of his current teammates, including Reece Beekman, played on that Virginia team – something Timme hasn’t let them forget.

“Yeah, that was a fun game,” he said.

Timme starred for the Zags from 2019 to 2023, leaving as one of the most decorated players in school history. A three-time All-America selection, two-time WCC Player of the Year and the program’s all-time leading scorer, his time as a Bulldog are some of his fondest memories.

“Yeah, I miss it,” Timme said. “That was so fun. The teams, the guys, the coaches.

“You don’t realize (it at the time), you take that stuff for granted for sure. I would love to go back and do it all over again. I had the time of my life there.”

Like most ex-Zags, he said he also learned plenty of life lessons at GU that have carried over into the topsy-turvy world of professional basketball. For one, he said, it was to get out of his own head and simply go with the flow.

“(Coach Mark Few) taught me a lot. He taught me to see the game better and to not think as much,” Timme said. “I’m an overthinker a little bit, especially on the court. He was like, ‘you got to be you and have fun.’

“That was probably the biggest thing, he empowered me to tap into being myself and playing with freedom,” he said. “That helped my game grow exponentially. Even from freshman to sophomore year, I had a big jump.”

In recent years, Gonzaga legends Kelly Olynyk and Domantas Sabonis have seen their jersey numbers raised to the rafters at McCarthey Athletic Center – an honor Timme will most assuredly enjoy someday.

But for Timme, the more pressing issue would be to join them on an NBA court someday soon.

“They’re the blueprint. That’s why you go to Gonzaga … they produce,” Timme said. “They’ve shown that they can do one-and-dones, they can do (guys who stay all) four years, they’ve got a multitude of ways guys can find their way. It’s maybe not the most conventional or easiest route, but they produce and that’s a huge reason why I went there. Everyone’s path is different.”

And Timme’s, so far, has been quite unique. After going undrafted in 2023, Timme played four games for the Milwaukee Bucks’ entry in the 2023 Vegas Summer League. As a G League rookie with the Wisconsin Herd, he averaged nine points, 6.3 rebounds, and 1.7 assists before a broken foot limited his debut campaign to just 12 games.

Timme worked hard to make sure he was healthy heading into this season.

“(Basketball) brings me so much joy, especially me getting hurt last year and having to miss pretty much half the season,” he said. “I just realized how happy the game made me and when it got taken away, how sad I was and how hard I worked to try and get back to the game. It’s like a drug, I’m addicted to it. It’s a great drug (though), side effects aren’t too bad.”

Fully healed, Timme started the season with Stockton, the Sacramento Kings’ affiliate, and averaged 10.3 points, 5.7 rebounds, and 2.1 assists per game before being traded to Long Island in late December. Since then, he’s averaged 22.9 points and 10.1 rebounds.

“Yeah, I think it’s been going really well,” Timme said. “I think I’m getting really close to my ultimate dream (of reaching the NBA), just got to keep working. The system’s been good, the staff’s been good. … I’m feeling really good about myself, I’ve got to keep it up.”

Until he reaches that goal, however, he’ll continue to grind it out in the G League, where the competition is fierce and every player is hoping to make an impression on NBA scouts.

“It’s hard out here,” he said. “In this league, no one wants to see you succeed or anything. Everyone’s looking for a reason to not have you do this, not have you do that or not to take you, so you’ve got to believe in yourself.

“You’ve got to trust your work and everything. You’ve got to have the ultimate confidence because if you don’t, certainly no one else is.”

Stephen Hunt is a freelance writer based in Frisco, Texas.