Dale Ellis

Sometimes a simple change of scenery is all a player needs to realize his true potential. After spending his first three seasons with the Dallas Mavericks averaging single digits in scoring, Dale Ellis exhibited one of the league’s most dramatic year-to-year improvements as soon as he was traded to the Pacific Northwest. Making it easy to understand why the Seattle SuperSonics guard would ultimately earn the NBA’s Most Improved Player award that season, Ellis wastes little time asserting his postseason dominance against his former squad, driving hard into the lane to allude one defender before unfurling a finger roll over another. Ellis was in complete control in Game 3 of the First Round, guiding his No. 7 seed squad to a 2-1 series lead (and eventual series win) to the tune of 43 points and 14 rebounds — eight offensive — in Seattle’s 117-107 win on April 28, 1987.

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