Derek Simpson

[KnightLife1994]

First and foremost I have some words to eat - about 2 months ago I claimed that Paul needs to facilitate the offense because “our offense was at its best when the ball is in his hands.” Good lord was I horribly wrong (maybe at the time I was right but certainly not at the end of season.)

Now onto Derek - he is the player that I wanted Paul to be and what I incorrectly expected from. He is quick off the dribble which allows him to dish to cliff, look to score or draw guys in to kick out for a 3. He was underused at the end of the season IMO.

He is where the offense needs to flow through next season and beyond. Someone like Griffiths will feast with a drive and kick point guard.

I am proud of this young man Derek. We have a point guard, folks.

 

[RW90]

I've said it in other threads, but will say it again. I'd like to see more distribution to his teammates when driving before I give him the keys to the offense.

 

[Joey Bacala]

Main building block around which the other new pieces will fit. Love DS

 

[Greene Rice FIG]

You can go back and have plenty of games were Paul was the man down the stretch and he made winning plays.

Simpson had the wrong read in the final possession in OT. It was an essentially a 2 on 1 and then center committed to Derek. A lot to ask a freshman.

 

[KnightLife1994]

You can go back and have plenty of games were Paul was the man down the stretch and he made winning plays.

Simpson had the wrong read in the final possession in OT. It was an essentially a 2 on 1 and then center committed to Derek. A lot to ask a freshman.

Agreed. He put us in a position to win IMO but we have juniors and senior thats shouldve stepped up to win - not solely relying on Derek.

 

[KnightLife1994]

I've said it in other threads, but will say it again. I'd like to see more distribution to his teammates when driving before I give him the keys to the offense.

I believe - in my opinion - that he really improved in this area. Still only a freshman but he got better as the season went on and he got more comfortable

 

[Greene Rice FIG]

I need more data before I come to any conclusions about him as our starting point guard.

 

[kcg88]

I need more data before I come to any conclusions about him as our starting point guard.

Gonna beg everyone to look up the last six games of Rocket Watts freshman year at Michigan State. People thought he was the next great MSU point guard based on that. Three years later (this year) he struggled at Oakland.

Way way way too soon to tell on Simpson and Pikiell can't let the way he looked in the past 3-4 games (which was definitely better) stop him from recruiting a transfer point guard.

 

[RCBeta79]

Derek is a freshman and is our point guard. He got to the hole, but the last shot did not drop.
Rutgers needs to improve on boxing out both on offense and defense.

 

[RW90]

Agreed. He put us in a position to win IMO but we have juniors and senior thats shouldve stepped up to win - not solely relying on Derek.

Looked like the final play call was iso for Derek though.

 

[RutgersChow]

By mid-season he should have been starting. Palmquist doesn't play for three years, hits a couple of threes and he's a starter - C'mon.

 

[Rokodesh]

Derek (and Cam) are the only killers on this team. Derek is young but he's going to want the ball for the last shot.

 

[RUDivision]

I've said it in other threads, but will say it again. I'd like to see more distribution to his teammates when driving before I give him the keys to the offense.

I agree but a big part of that problem is there is no one to pass it too! They double Cam and Cliff because Caleb and Paul are not shooters. Replace them with shooters his assist numbers will rise. He was tied for team lead in assists tonight to go along w 19 points. Missed late free throw , needs to put on weight, and avoid getting pinned on high screen and rolls. High ceiling

 

[KnightLife1994]

Looked like the final play call was iso for Derek though.

It was which I dont think was the right coaching move

 

[AntiG]

Simpson-Griffiths-Bailey-Ndongo and hopefully Harper and another are going to be legit contenders in a couple of years.

 

[KnightLife1994]

Derek (and Cam) are the only killers on this team. Derek is young but he's going to want the ball for the last shot.

He attacks

 

[MiloTalon13]

If Griffiths plays up to his Rivals rating we may not need a true point guard, with him and Cam doing much of the playmaking.

A key for Simpson will be realizing he is at best the 3rd (hopefully 4th or lower) option on offense and he needs to prioritize getting the ball to shooters and learning more what is a good shot and what isn't.
Per 40 minutes he took more 2's than anyone but Cliff and more shots overall than anyone but Hyatt.

He's also gotta be a MUCH better shooter from 3, he was bad this year from 3.

 

[KnightLife1994]

If Griffiths plays up to his Rivals rating we may not need a true point guard, with him and Cam doing much of the playmaking.

A key for Simpson will be realizing he is at best the 3rd (hopefully 4th or lower) option on offense and he needs to prioritize getting the ball to shooters and learning more what is a good shot and what isn't.
Per 40 minutes he took more 2's than anyone but Cliff and more shots overall than anyone but Hyatt.

He's also gotta be a MUCH better shooter from 3, he was bad this year from 3.

He just needs to facilitate. Doesnt necessarily need to go for 15-20 every night (given we have others who can score which this year we didnth

 

[kcg88]

If Griffiths plays up to his Rivals rating we may not need a true point guard, with him and Cam doing much of the playmaking.

A key for Simpson will be realizing he is at best the 3rd (hopefully 4th or lower) option on offense and he needs to prioritize getting the ball to shooters and learning more what is a good shot and what isn't.
Per 40 minutes he took more 2's than anyone but Cliff and more shots overall than anyone but Hyatt.

He's also gotta be a MUCH better shooter from 3, he was bad this year from 3.

Shooting is not playmaking. We need someone who can make a defense move and then Cam and Gavin move to the vacated spot on the perimeter for open looks. Derek can kinda do that but I'm not sold on his passing or vision yet.

 

[KnightLife1994]

Shooting is not playmaking. We need someone who can make a defense move and then Cam and Gavin move to the vacated spot on the perimeter for open looks. Derek can kinda do that but I'm not sold on his passing or vision yet.

Exactly this. Im also not sold that he can kinda do that. Nothing against the rest of the team but who is he facilitating to except cam?

Theyre all horrific shooters. So if the option is him go into the lane and look to shoot a midrange or floater honestly ill take that over paul hyatt mcconnell clunking a 3

 

[Rufaninga]

I need more data before I come to any conclusions about him as our starting point guard.

We were senior laden team of guards. Game was on the line, ball was in freshman's hands.
Tells me who to rely on moving forward.

 

[aplus29]

Simpson-Griffiths-Bailey-Ndongo and hopefully Harper and another are going to be legit contenders in a couple of years.

Delquan Warren and Kur Teng

 

[Rokodesh]

If Griffiths plays up to his Rivals rating we may not need a true point guard, with him and Cam doing much of the playmaking.

A key for Simpson will be realizing he is at best the 3rd (hopefully 4th or lower) option on offense and he needs to prioritize getting the ball to shooters and learning more what is a good shot and what isn't.
Per 40 minutes he took more 2's than anyone but Cliff and more shots overall than anyone but Hyatt.

He's also gotta be a MUCH better shooter from 3, he was bad this year from 3.

Why should Simpson take a backseat?. The kid gets to the rim and can hit jumpers. Nobody else on the team can make a god damn layup.

He should be averaging 12+ per game next season. If anything, our offensive efficiency should be much better next year without those hideous fadeaways or turnovers on every possession.

 

[Candiru]

I’d have settled for him to make some late game foul shots last few games of the year.

 

[brucelaw8]

You can go back and have plenty of games were Paul was the man down the stretch and he made winning plays.

Simpson had the wrong read in the final possession in OT. It was an essentially a 2 on 1 and then center committed to Derek. A lot to ask a freshman.

BS.He broke down the D and got a great look, that looked like a make

 

[bethlehemfan]

Derek has great potential imo. Just depends on how hard he wants to work. He needs to get stronger. Seems like a great kid and he’s very talented but he can’t rest on his laurels.

 

[GM]

If Griffiths plays up to his Rivals rating we may not need a true point guard, with him and Cam doing much of the playmaking.

A key for Simpson will be realizing he is at best the 3rd (hopefully 4th or lower) option on offense and he needs to prioritize getting the ball to shooters and learning more what is a good shot and what isn't.
Per 40 minutes he took more 2's than anyone but Cliff and more shots overall than anyone but Hyatt.

He's also gotta be a MUCH better shooter from 3, he was bad this year from 3.

I’ve watched Griffiths, he’s someone who shoots incredbly and can attack closeouts. He’s not someone you want handling the ball a ton, especially how skinny he is going to be coming in.

 

[KnightLife1994]

Why should Simpson take a backseat?. The kid gets to the rim and can hit jumpers. Nobody else on the team can make a god damn layup.

He should be averaging 12+ per game next season.

Agree here. He will be a legit 2nd option behind griffiths and you could flip flop him and cam for 2/3 option truthfully

 

[MiloTalon13]

Exactly this. Im also not sold that he can kinda do that. Nothing against the rest of the team but who is he facilitating to except cam?

Theyre all horrific shooters. So if the option is him go into the lane and look to shoot a midrange or floater honestly ill take that over paul hyatt mcconnell clunking a 3

Exactly - his role must be very different next year AND he has to shoot much better from 3
Can he do that? We'll see. I'll be cheering for him.

I hope we get a mature transfer point guard who we already know can do those things and DS is the third guard.

 

[S_Janowski]

I’ve been very excited about Simpson since the day he committed and he showed more flash/speed this year than I expected.

I think folks need to pump the breaks a bit on anointing him starting PG next year though.

Can he be it - potentially…but that might be asking a lot from the kid by next year and I could easily see a lot of people turning on him if he struggles with his decision making and ball protection.

 

[brucelaw8]

Gonna beg everyone to look up the last six games of Rocket Watts freshman year at Michigan State. People thought he was the next great MSU point guard based on that. Three years later (this year) he struggled at Oakland.

Way way way too soon to tell on Simpson and Pikiell can't let the way he looked in the past 3-4 games (which was definitely better) stop him from recruiting a transfer point guard.

AS a backup

 

[MiloTalon13]

Why should Simpson take a backseat?. The kid gets to the rim and can hit jumpers. Nobody else on the team can make a god damn layup.

He should be averaging 12+ per game next season. If anything, our offensive efficiency should be much better next year without those hideous fadeaways or turnovers on every possession.

Simpson shot 36% overall and 21% from 3. That's why he should be, at best the 3rd-4th option offensively.

 

[brucelaw8]

Why should Simpson take a backseat?. The kid gets to the rim and can hit jumpers. Nobody else on the team can make a god damn layup.

He should be averaging 12+ per game next season. If anything, our offensive efficiency should be much better next year without those hideous fadeaways or turnovers on every possession.

At least 15+

 

[KnightLife1994]

I’ve been very excited about Simpson since the day he committed and he showed more flash/speed this year than I expected.

I think folks need to pump the breaks a bit on anointing him starting PG next year though.

Can he be it - potentially…but that might be asking a lot from the kid by next year and I could easily see a lot of people turning on him if he struggles with his decision making and ball protection.

Judging by pike’s portal history, Simpson will be our starting PG

 

[MiloTalon13]

Agree here. He will be a legit 2nd option behind griffiths and you could flip flop him and cam for 2/3 option truthfully

Based on what? Certainly not how Simpson played this year.
Simpson 36% overall 21% from 3. Cam 44% overall, 42% from 3
That's an enormous difference

 

[MiloTalon13]

I’ve watched Griffiths, he’s someone who shoots incredbly and can attack closeouts. He’s not someone you want handling the ball a ton, especially how skinny he is going to be coming in.

He brought the ball up the court for his EYBL team and his HS team. He won't be a primary point guard, but he will play point at times. Again, if he lives up to the ranking.

 

[Rokodesh]

Based on what? Certainly not how Simpson played this year.
Simpson 36% overall 21% from 3. Cam 44% overall, 42% from 3
That's an enormous difference

Simpson won't be a freshman next year. Silly to use his current stats as a predictor for next season.

 

[MiloTalon13]

At least 15+

10 players in the Big 10 averaged 15+/game this year.

 

[KnightLife1994]

Based on what? Certainly not how Simpson played this year.
Simpson 36% overall 21% from 3. Cam 44% overall, 42% from 3
That's an enormous difference

Over the last 10 games where he started playing real meaningful minutes and down the stretch he shot almost 41%. Last 10 games are really the ones that matter going forward IMO.

Agree his 3 pt shooting needs to be better but we dont need him to be a good three point shooter with Cam and Gavin

 

[KnightLife1994]

Over the last 10 games where he started playing real meaningful minutes and down the stretch he shot 40.5%. Last 10 games are really the ones that matter going forward IMO.

Agree his 3 pt shooting needs to be better but we dont need him to be a good three point shooter with Cam and Gavin

He also averaged over 9ppg in that stretch with 5 games over double digits.