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Pistons’ Saddiq Bey puts up historic performance in win over Celtics

When Saddiq Bey finished playing on Friday night, the Detroit Pistons rookie ended up accomplishing something only a few players have done before him and you wouldn’t have noticed it listening to the 21-year-old speak.

Bey produced a career-high 30 points and 12 rebounds in 27 minutes of work in a 108-102 victory over the Boston Celtics. He went a perfect 7-of-7 from beyond the arc, setting the all-time franchise record for 3-pointers by a rookie in a single game.

He is the fourth rookie in NBA history to score at least 30 points with seven 3-pointers, and is just the 19th player ever to go a perfect 7-of-7 from beyond the arc.

For Bey, picking up the win meant more than hitting those marks.

“I’m more happy that we got the win,” Bey said. “It is a blessing to be able to play this game each and every day for a living. I try to stay even-keeled as much as possible, stay humbled and know that I have to continue to build off it and help my team win.”

Bey started off the season hot from deep, shooting 43.1% over his first 10 games. During his next 10 games, though, Bey went just 21.9% from 3-point range.

He appears to be finding his touch once again from long distance.

Over his last three games, including his historic outing on Friday, Bey is converting on 80% of his attempts (12-of-15) from 3-point range. He never lost faith in his shot and neither did the team.

“I’m so proud of him,” head coach Dwane Casey said. “The young man is a worker. He is diligent, serious about his craft. You love it. I love Villanova guys — Kyle Lowry, he was great. Jay Wright does a great job of teaching and any Villanova guy is going to be well-prepared for the NBA. … I’m really proud for (Saddiq) and happy for him to see that bucket open, it was closed there for a little while. He didn’t lose confidence and we didn’t lose confidence in him.”

Bey has played a key role with the Pistons and has emerged as one of the top rookies to this point of the season. He has also likely established himself as one of the best shooters in the class and a case can be made that he is the best of his rookie peers.

The accolades likely don’t mean much to Bey, but his play as of late has helped the Pistons pick up a couple of wins and that is certainly something he will appreciate.

This post originally appeared on Rookie Wire! Follow us on Facebook!

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