Is it time to start to be worried about Scoot being a bust?

[DusterBuster]

I’m pretty legit concerned at this point. It’s still so early, but I’m not seeing any signs of him being a premier player in the league or anywhere near the DRose level talent he was comped to predraft. Not seeing anything special he brings on the floor, even in a glimmer of where it could be.

At this point, I think his ceiling is probably somewhere in the DeAaron Fox level? - maybe that’s too much even?…. Which would still be acceptable but a pretty far cry from what was hyped and wouldn’t be the best PG in this draft class.

My hope for Scoot is Chauncey gets him back in the starting lineup. You’ve gone this far investing in him with that pick, don’t half ass it now.

[BlazersBroncos]

The thing that worries me is the lack of plays that 'pop'. Its not even the struggles that I really care about, its that there are not many, if any, 'wow' plays thrown into the mix. He has been so bad we convince ourselves he played a good game when he preforms at a level Skylar Mays is capable of.

I am worried. 100%. Its too early but you want to see something. I have seen nothing. His best stretch were those 3's in the IND game, think about that - a #3 pick touted as close to Rose as an athlete has so far been most impressive when making a handful of open 3 pointers. I struggle to find another highly touted PG that was THIS bad early and ended up really good - but I probably am missing someone.

Muiday was always the floor and its hard to not see the similarities more and more as he continues to struggle.

[JRoy]

Yes.

It is normal for young players to struggle but there is normally something you can identify as a strength that might allow a player to succeed in the league.

I see very little to be excited about with Scoot.

[taufblazers33]

Bust

He is too small and cannot shoot

[DeBlazerRiddem]

Yes.

It is normal for young players to struggle but there is normally something you can identify as a strength that might allow a player to succeed in the league.

I see very little to be excited about with Scoot.

Yeah, one has to be discerning in how they judge rookies but you look for those moments that show who they are going to be some day.

For Scoot, his highlights have been some open 3's, a couple nifty but risky interior passes and effort (if not real good impact) on defense. Those aren't the hall-marks of a star or super-star, those are the hallmarks of a role playing PG.

Which a high level role playing PG isn't the worst thing. If Shaedon can take off and be that #1 alpha scorer then you almost want a role playing PG in the back-court next to him rather than another player trying to be a star. Let him shine and do the dirty work, keep the other 3 players involved and a threat while the defense's expend their energy keeping Shaedon out of the play with their best defender.

But that outcome would be a massive bust for a hyped up #3 pick. I agree if we re-do the draft today Ausar is my pick for us instead. What we need to see from Scoot is a high level ability to get to the rim and finish such that he can make defenses react for kick-outs to open players. That is his path toward stardom if he does have one, but so far his ability to drive and dish is hampered by his left hand and weak finishing such that no one has to treat him like a threat there.

[red_power]

Simply put we need to hold down our expectations about him for a while. He's young but he needs to improve A LOT because he doesn't play like even an NBA-level player at this point.

And yeah.. Overall it seems to be very concerning honestly.

[The Sebastian Express]

Nineteen year old in his eleventh or twelfth game, coming off injury, who had seven assists last night and helped put the team in a position to come back to win gets a thread asking if he's a bust.

Good times.

[red_power]

But his split stats are straight garbage. PER 36 minutes he scores 12 PTs shooting 33% from the field. He dishes out 6.1 ASTs committing 5 TOs. Those are ugly numbers. He doesn't make many steals too, can't shoot 3s, doesn't draw many fouls etc etc etc.

I honestly think had he not been a fresh no. 3 pick he would have already been put on the furthest side of the bench behind even Skylar Mays on the depth chart.

[BlazersBroncos]

Nineteen year old in his eleventh or twelfth game, coming off injury, who had seven assists last night and helped put the team in a position to come back to win gets a thread asking if he's a bust.

Good times.

Its early, but you expect to see SOMETHING within 12 games that flashes 'thats why he went #3!!!".

I havent seen a single moment of that so far. Lets be real, while early he is posting almost historically bad stats for a Top-3 pick going back a decade or more.

[JRoy]

Nineteen year old in his eleventh or twelfth game, coming off injury, who had seven assists last night and helped put the team in a position to come back to win gets a thread asking if he's a bust.

Good times.

Its early, but you expect to see SOMETHING within 12 games that flashes 'thats why he went #3!!!".

I havent seen a single moment of that so far. Lets be real, while early he is posting almost historically bad stats for a Top-3 pick going back a decade or more.

Exactly.

Something that might convince that he was worth the pick.

[Moonbeam]

No, it’s far too early still. I don’t think it’s wise to consider anyone a bust until Year 3 at the earliest.

[DeBlazerRiddem]

No, it’s far too early still. I don’t think it’s wise to consider anyone a bust until Year 3 at the earliest.

It's not like we are saying he is already a bust, but it's fair at this point to be scratching our heads a little bit and asking if our team maybe got suckered in by some undeserved hype. I always worry about that when picking a highly touted prospect.

To be clear, I think Scoot has a really high floor. He has enough going for him that he will at the very least have a solid career as a prototypical PG. He isn't likely to wash out of the league/bounce around on vet mins like a Mudiay or a Dennis Smith. Not saying he couldn't but I think he will have enough opportunity in Portland and enough drive to set himself up for more of a Mike Conley/Kyle Lowry type career, where he is maybe most effective in his later years as a 3rd option.

Which is fine, a bit disappointing for a #3 pick so depending on your definition of bust, but that is where I am starting to temper my expectations based on what I have seen, the signs of something more that I could get excited about just haven't been there. I hope he is able to show that and we can all go "haha what a bunch of chicken littles" but he is not looking like a guy I want taking the last shot of an important game any time soon.

[monopoman]

Since Scoot has gotten contacts he has played much better, and as I pointed out before in games where Scoot has played we are playing far better as far as a team goes.

So whatever the **** Scoot does out there he is contributing to wins even without him doing extremely well from a scoring perspective.

[Dame Lizard]

What's disappointed me about Scoot the most is that he's avoiding contact driving to the rim. He's got the perfect body to be drawing fouls.

It's clear that he's going to have a very shakey rookie year. Hopefully after an offseason of shooting + handles practice, he is much improved in Year 2.

[Pattycakes]

Nineteen year old in his eleventh or twelfth game, coming off injury, who had seven assists last night and helped put the team in a position to come back to win gets a thread asking if he's a bust.

Good times.

Exactly. He’ll be perfectly fine. I’d rather see him needing shooting work but running a great offense right now over anything, that’s literally all I’m looking for atm - we have plenty of guards who can already shoot anyhow. We need the full time distributor/driver to basket out of Scoot.

[Blaze the Nugz]

Bust is relative to expectations. If you expected Scoot to make an All NBA team, I think he will probably be a bust from such a perspective.

I think Scoot will be a solid starting PG in the league -- perhaps top-15. Not a great result for a #3 pick, but not the worst case like recent top-3 picks such as Wiseman or Bagley. He needs more floor spacing around him to open up the paint for penetration. His shooting will probably improve at least a little, as will his decision making. I could see him averaging 10+ assists per game at some point in his career.

[BlazersBroncos]

Is a pass first PG who cant shoot even still a thing in this league? This isnt the days of Mark Jackson and Rod Strickland. If a guy isnt a freak like Ja or even Fox then shooting is a necessity. Scoot doesnt look nearly as functionally athletic as either of those guys (Or Rose, the comp thrown around alot pre-draft).

There isnt a thing Scoot has shown so far to separate himself from other highly drafted non-shooting PG's that didnt make it (Muiday is my top comp - then DSJ). I hope I am wrong, but he needs to either suddenly start exhibiting generational athleticism when attacking the rim (As Ja, Rose and even Fox have) or pull a workable jumper out of his ass to become even close to being worth a Top-3 pick.

[Brandon-Clyde]

I see his floor as prime Rajon Rondo. If he can learn to shoot acceptably well he could be all star level.

[The Sebastian Express]

So you expected the guy who we knew wasn't a shooter but needed to develop one to develop a shot nine games into his rookie season?

What I see is a young kid with great passing ability and change of pace who defers to his older teammates a significant deal. A lot of energy and hard worker on the court who needs to continue to work on his shot and touch around the rim. All which are fixable because his mechanics aren't broken, especially in the catch and shoot.

[monopoman]

Yeah it's kinda funny people frustrated with his shot when that was a known weakness. I also don't think we know the full lengths of his athleticism, sure he isn't as fast as Rose but I imagine that could still develop somewhat. There also are shades of being nearly that fast that can work out, Lillard is not as fast as Rose but yet he is very good at attacking the basket.

Part of that is people have to respect his shot but another aspect is he is very good at hesitating and his first step is pretty damn good. Smart play can counteract a portion of this supposed insane athleticism you need to be a great player without a good outside shot.

Another way to get more space is being a very good passer, where at that point they are as worried about a player passing the ball as they are about driving to the rim or something. So again this is not a zero sum game where if Scoot is slower than a prime Rose he can't be a all-star level player. This is even more true when Rose is arguably the most athletic guard in the history of the NBA before his injury woes, so if Scoot was that fast he would be arguably the greatest ever at that alone.