Why has everyone given up on Kentavious Cadwell-Pope?

[hadzi dogg]

After an extremely dysfunctional season playing with two inept coaches and sandwiched between two headcases in Josh Smith and Brandon Jennings it seems as if everyone has given up on Kentavious?

In the 11 games that he played 30+ minutes. The pistons are 5-6 with 3 of the losses coming by 3 points or less. His stats in those 11 games:
37.1mpg, 13.4ppg, 4.0rpg, 1.5 apg, 1.7spg, 0.45 topg, 48.8% FG, 42.9% 3PT, 75.6% FT, 125 ORTG, 108 DRTG.

Thats damn good efficiency in games that he actually got playing time as a rookie.

His stats for the entire season are underwhelming, yes. But a lot of players who played shooting guard as rookies recently struggled. Here are the rookie season stats of all the top shooting guards in the NBA today

Klay Thompson 12.5ppg, 2.4rpg, 2.0 apg, 44% FG, 41% 3PT
Gordon Hayward 5.4ppg, 1.9rpg, 1.1 apg, 48% FG 43% 3PT
Dion Waiters 14.7ppg, 2.4rpg, 3.0 apg, 41%FG 31%3PT
Lance Stephenson 3.1ppg, 1.5rpg, 1.8 apg, 33% FG 0% 3PT
Bradley Beal 13.9ppg, 3.8rpg, 2.4 apg, 41% FG, 39% 3PT
Paul George 7.8 ppg, 3.7rpg, 1.1 apg, 45% FG, 30% 3PT
James Harden 9.9ppg, 3.2rpg, 1.8apg, 40% FG, 38% 3PT
Kobe Bryant 7.6 ppg, 1.9rpg, 1.3apg, 42% FG, 38% 3PT
Demar Derozan 8.6ppg, 2.9rpg, 0.7apg, 50%FG, 25% 3PT
Aaron Affalo 3.7ppg, 1.8rpg, 0.7apg, 41% FG. 20% 3PT
Jamaal Crawford 4.6ppg, 1.5rpg, 2.3 apg, 35% FG, 35% 3PT

recent players like Beal, Thompson, and Waiters were all relatively successful as rookies, as they were day one starters next to all star point guards. Everyone else failed to reach 10ppg.

When looking at Kentavious you got to look at a player who went through two different coaches with a team with poor chemistry that added two chuckers in Josh Smith and Brandon Jennings. Cadwell-Pope also dealt with inconsistency in playing time some days playing 30 minutes other days getting 5 minutes of PT. Thats hard on a rookie playing for a team with absolutely no leadership.

In the end I really do believe in Cadwell-Pope. I think he has phenomenal defensive potential and looks like a hard worker with a great attitude. I genuinely think we couldn't have done a worse job developing him last year but i think Van Gundy will do wonders for his game.

[ParrottK]

Without doing any homework or looking at anything else, I'll just suggest that the reason he got extra minutes those games was because he was already playing well in his normal, limited minutes. Had he been playing poorly, or even normally, he wouldn't have had extended runs in those games. So I'm just saying that you can't use a player's best games as an example of how he would play if he got more minutes.

(Disclaimer: I like Kentavious and would like to see him start next season, even if he doesn't produce as much as Stuckey or Singler.)

[MotownMadness]

Im actually really high on KCP still. Its not his fault he was basically playing without a coach on one of the most dysfunctional rosters ive ever seen.

[dVs33]

I definitely haven't given up on him. I really like his upside.

[The Penguin]

I don't think many Pistons fans have given up on him. Outside of Pistons fans have given up on him because the storyline is last years draft class was awful, he doesn't play in a market that'll play up everything he does like THJR, everything Dumars did is a wreck and most people didn't see any Pistons basketball last year.

[E-Z]

Who is everyone?

[haulerch]

I haven't given up on KCP. I like a lot about him. His size, defense, ability to get out and run. I was very frustrated with his inability to hit a shot last year but I believe it will come. Most shooting guards take a while to blossom in the NBA. I hope to see him put the ball on the floor and attack more, but I'd rather him focus on his shot this summer.

I've liked KCP leading up to the draft and still like his game today.

[PrivateZer0]

The worst thing to see is when all the Trey Burke lovers, many of whom I know have little-moderate basketball knowledge, in Michigan start talking trash about KCP without realizing the circumstances. He's a rookie, and I expect him to have a better year under a better coach. He doesn't have an ego and has good skill-sets. If he can hit the 3 consistently and get his confidence up, perhaps we will see more games like the season finale vs the Thunder. He'd also be a great fit in SVG's system.

[ChainLink]

I haven't. The last good thing Dumars did as a Pistons executive was draft KCP over sexier names like Burke and Shabazz. I don't think KCP will be a star but I think he'll be a reliable starter who we can count on for great defense. Like a Tony Allen or a Sefolosha with a better jumpshot.

Again, he won't be the franchise superstar, but he's an important piece to surround Drummond with. I have faith his shooting range will come, he was a sniper in college, he just needs some self confidence.

[Kilo]

I expect he'll have a HUGE season actually. Last season was a gong show here and I think outside of Drummond, Stan Van Gundy will have greatest impact on Caldwell-Pope going forward. SVG is going to crackdown on the horrid shot selections of both Jennings and Smith, and outside of feeding Dre for low post buckets, Pope will get a lot more looks and be encouraged to shoot - with his defense and lack of roster competition at the 2-guard meaning he's guaranteed big minutes.

[Billl]

I don't think people have given up on him, but he sure has a ton of question marks. We had a huge hole on the wing for anyone who could step up and knock down some shots, and he didn't step in and fill it. He's obviously shown a lot of promise as a defender, but most people were hoping for more.

It's really not that unexpected for a rookie to struggle with his shot, so that isn't a red flag. However, he didn't really respond how you hope a young scorer would. He didn't move that well without the ball, got virtually no easy buckets in the halfcourt, and didn't show much ability to put it down and get to the rim. He really struggled not being the focus of the offense. That is a huge hurdle for many college scorers and a lot of them never get over it. Not everyone figures out how to be effective as a low usage player. The term 3andD gets tossed around a lot like that is a floor for many guys, but it is actually pretty rare for a guy to be able to play high energy D all game and then only get a few shots on offense and still be able to drill them.

[mercury]

Just hope they don't prematurely dump him as a throw in to a trade.
I'm a little concerned about SVG having a trigger finger... or as Shaq called him "the king of panic"
Clean slate for everyone (ok I still hate Jennings)

[Spider156]

KCP is another Bowen, another Leonard. The guy is a hard worker and I believe he'll stay with us for years to come. I think SVG likes him and I believe he will use him very well. KCP is our starter and will stay here. You'll see how good he's going to get next year. We have a great starter guys. Just be patient. Cheeks was the worst coach last year. That's HUGE!

[DCintheD]

A lot of people haven't given up on him. It's clear he was misused all season in not getting the minutes he deserved. But it was his rookie season and the kid showed he can play. I believe he can become a very good role player with 1-2 game all star potential some day. He needs to be committed to developing. I trust SVG to use him right.

[hoophabit]

As you can see, most of us are actually pretty pleased with early returns from KCP. Kid defends hard all the time and runs the floor like the wind. Not really bust material. We're all hoping the shooting he demonstrated at Georgia makes a showing, but he's already a useful rotation player.

[King Bugs]

I haven't "given up" but I'm definitely not expecting a whole lot. He really did not look good last season.

I'm not quick to blame poor coaching because every lotto pick we've had have been through terrible coaching and misuse and they all still showed WAY more promise in their rookie seasons. With that, I'm hopeful he can become a "Courtney Lee type" of player.

We need something a lot more dynamic at the 2 than KCP and Singler if we plan on being a competitive playoff team.

[Q00]

I pretty much gave up on him midway through last season. Anything he gives us now is a bonus to me. Best case he could maybe be a Kawhi Leonard /Tayshaun Prince 3rd/4th option type guy. Worst case, energy/hustle guy off the bench.

I'm interested to see what SVG can do with him, after he got Wade at a similar age and helped develop him into a superstar. I don't think KCP has that kind of talent in him, but you never know. His game against OKC was Wade-like, but that was only 1 good game out of 82 and the rest he was garbage. So I'm taking the approach of wasted pick and any positive contributions we get from him is free money.

[HotelVitale]

I don't think many Pistons fans have given up on him. Outside of Pistons fans have given up on him because the storyline is last years draft class was awful, he doesn't play in a market that'll play up everything he does like THJR, everything Dumars did is a wreck and most people didn't see any Pistons basketball last year.

I'm with this. People that didn't see him look at stats and see an awful player, but people that saw him saw the basic tools necessary to succeed. He didn't have a good rookie year and didn't give many reasons to be optimistic, but that's also pretty normal for a rookie wing, so there's no need to panic.

All in all, it'd be stupid to plan around him being a legit NBA starter, but it's as stupid to assume he's garbage. He is what he is: a guy with good size and good tools who hasn't put it together yet.

[Blkbrd671]

Who is everyone?

Our FO apparently see's him as part of our future core, which they should. He's a legit 2 way player. While he still struggles to get his own offense, he can shoot the 3 and pull up midrange. At this point he's already a legit defender. 1 thing piston fans overlook is how quick KCP is.

[Clarity]

No one has given up on him, he didn't really play much.

I think a few had unrealistic expectations for him but that happens with every player. He is an outstanding defender & is a capable catch & shoot player with range that fits perfectly around Monroe & Drummond.