3Peatkb24 wrote:Thanks but I am harder on him than anyone in here and feel bad about it sometimes actually because I do like him and know he's young. It's probably that my expectations for him are so high that when he plays Bad it bothers me.
I understand what you are saying and see what you see, too. When I look at players like Lonzo Ball and Markelle Fultz, I see two point guards who are more naturally suited for the NBA at that position, but watching D'Angelo mature, especially these past four games, I am starting to get excited about him. I think the light bulb may be turning on and, if it does on a regular basis, he has All-Star potential in today's game because he's a combo guard. Look at James Harden as a template in terms of growth. At age 22 with OKC, he averaged 31.4 mpg, 16.8 ppg, 4.1 rpg, 3.7 apg and 1.0 spg with a 49.1% shooting percentage, up from 43.6% the prior season when he was only 21. DLo is averaging only 26.6 mpg at age 20 this season, his second. he is averaging 14.5 ppg, 3.9 rpg, 4.8 apg and 1.2 spg and a paltry 39.4 fg%. But he is only 20 and just starting to feel his oats. Granted, Harden did his damage at OKC as a third wheel from the shooting guard position, so arguably you can't compare the two guards. The point is that Harden really start to blossom until his fourth season when he was given the reigns of a veteran team. Will DLo be THAT type of player in his fourth season? That is where the jury is clearly out and I completely understand your side of the coin that says probably not. We'll see. He's definitely an enigma.