Faried The Enforcer?

Rookie Kenneth Faried hasn’t even worn a Denver Nuggets jersey yet, but is already a fan favorite.

And if Faried’s impact in the Drew League is a sign of things to come – the former Morehead State big man won’t disappoint.

ESPN’s Pedro Moura reported that on Saturday night, Faried was called on to be the Hank’s Blazers enforcer and help his teammate and Detroit Pistons forward Austin Daye out.

Daye was in a one-on-one battle with Long Beach State forward Edis Dervisevic, who wasn’t going to go away and his trash talking started to frustrate Daye and so the Blazers coach Rodrick Shannon brought in Faried.

Faried’s defensive appearance forced Dervisevic to alter his game and took the ball out of his hands late. It also freed up Daye to do his work on the offensive side of the ball.

After the game, Faried said,

"“Everybody was getting behind (Dervisevic), because he was the underdog and Austin Daye is, of course, an NBA player. I just wanted to show him, ‘OK, you need to stop now,’ pretty much. I knew I had to shut him down and keep him quiet, make him understand his place. And I did.”"

The Blazers are 10-1 and are in first place among the 24 teams in the Drew League.