Darryn Peterson's playmaking numbers were flat out bad this year.
12.5 AST%
1.0 AST:TO
1.6 AST/G
And I really don't care at all. He wasn't perfect but was still very good at using his scoring gravity, making quick decisions, and finding open teammates. With Peterson excluded, Kansas shot 51.3% from 2 (200th) and 33.6% from 3 (189th). He's not a PG but he's a much better passer than the numbers suggest. To get an assist, the other guy has to make the shot.
Karl Anthony towns peaked as a T__? player in the NBA? It’s debatable but it’s fairly high and if the Knicks can get peak KAT offense while maintaining the defensive effort/attentiveness, I could see them winning the series.
@MasriNBA Its very sus for sure but I just feel like a player or coach would’ve spilled that info by now. They beat Arizona without him and the season overall was a mess. I would think bill self or players in the least loyal era, would be quick to let everyone know if something wasnt legit
Dylan Harper on this spurs teams is like if Detroit would’ve drafted any of Melo, Wade, Bosh instead of Darko. So rare and also cool to see an elite prospect go straight to being a role player a championship contender. And to be excelling as well. Superstar in the making.
@grinding_tape 100%. For me personally as well I’m still learning exactly how I want to evaluate and process everything. I’ve been an avid draft/summer league/high school/CBB etc. follower for around 15 years but only starting last draft did I begin making a serious big board.
@grinding_tape Then as he begins to grow into a bigger offensive role and potentially gets a 9 figure contract by year 5, we could see him revert back to his old ways. Then the question goes back to can he be the leader on a champion etc. the usual for an offensive driven all star PG today
@grinding_tape Yea it’s interesting. His whole life he’s been enabled to only compete on one side of the ball but the competitive gene does seem to exist. The answer probably ends up in the middle honestly. For reasons you note he’ll probably give pretty good effort early in his career.
@grinding_tape I think good coaching will probably get the job done but it’s not a guarantee he’ll get it. This is where evaluation gets tricky for me because I obviously don’t work for a team so I have no coach to base off of. He’s still in my 5-14 range but I have Flemings as pg1
@grinding_tape Similar to AJ for me - I wonder if 30 pts 10 ast in a loss satisfies them just as much as 18 pts in a win with added defensive effort. I’m sure they’re ok with less shots for an all star teammate but do they understand/are willing to step up in other areas when that happens.
@grinding_tape I think the lack of depth/reliance on him as the entire offensive system was gave the look as avoiding injury. Cal mentioned playing shorthanded a lot and it wouldn’t shock me if Acuff was told to play extra cautious. But even with that you’d like better effort from your leader
Take him too high while trying to force him to be the guy with minimal help and you could end up stalling development. All hypothetical obviously. Ament could come into the league and kill it. Team/FO context matters a ton for him imo though.
Have similar feelings and it’s why I’ve kept him out of my lottery but I do like his potential defensive versatility and his grit/mentality. Pair that with a legit 3pt threat at 6’10” and 19 yrs old and there’s still plenty of room for intrigue.
The Nate Ament love comes from the fact that hes 6’10 and can kinda shoot even though he struggles to create separation and all his off the dribble shots are mostly contested. Nothing to his game is impressive to me
Ament is an example of why “bust” is more of an FO label than player label. He doesn’t draft himself. If he goes in the late teens-20s to a better team and learns from a smaller role, he could eventually grow into something special. Worst case be a version of Jabari smith.