He's on the rise. Not there yet but improving every game. God, I LOVE that mid range jumper ! I think he played with much more poise in this one. Didn't seem to force it so much. Seems to be communicating a lot better as of late as well. I think he'll be damn good bout half way through conference .
Derryck Thornton
- Thread starter Showenuff
- Start date
What there do you want him to be Show? Just out of curiosity. I know ever since CTC you haven't been with him, and that is probably the only thing you and I have ever disagreed on. Haha.
I think he is where he should be expected. Having not been with the team this summer, his progress was slowed. Couple that with the transition from high school to college point guard and frankly I think he is ahead of pace. Someone compared him to Quinn at one point, and he is far ahead of Quinn as a freshman.
We were spoiled with college ready point guards. First with Jason, then Chris, then there was a lull with Sean, but it was still Chris's team, then you had Greg who had a deceiving freshman year thanks to JJ and Shelden, then we had Nolan, Jon and Greg pretending to be point guards and we saw what happened. Then Jon took the spot like a champ, Kyrie came immediately after, Quinn, Austin and Seth tried the spot then Tyus came and redefined it. We were up some years then down others. I think the common denominator is that we had certain guys following some really great point guards and expectations were somewhere they shouldn't have been.
I love that Derryck has not tried to be Tyus. He is his own player and his alpha dog mentality is perfect for the spot. He's not going to be a Hurley distributor, at least not this year, but he is going to be able to push the ball and get it to scoring spots and he has shown he has his own scorer's chops.
I like where he is personally.
I thought he was terrible against Utah and we just played two garbage teams. Now let me add that I still think it was good to see him play well and I think he can build off it. Cut down the fouls and poor turnovers.
His shot is really a thing of beauty and I love where he is picking his shots. On top of that he is smoothly getting to the rack and finishing. I'm hoping his arrow continues to trend up during conference. He is slowly but surely piecing this thing together. I'm thankful that he's on our team.
His shot is really a thing of beauty and I love where he is picking his shots. On top of that he is smoothly getting to the rack and finishing. I'm hoping his arrow continues to trend up during conference. He is slowly but surely piecing this thing together. I'm thankful that he's on our team.
He is slowly becoming a vital part of the offense. I think Jeter screws him out of some assists each game because he has made some nice passes down low that Jeter has bobbled. But I do believe he is progressing well.
Yeah, I think Derryck is probably ahead of where I thought he'd be at this time. He's really good, but he's also following in the footsteps of Tyus Jones....who probably had the best freshman season a PG has ever had at Duke. Unfairly, that may have escalated the expectations for Derryck. But I think he's took it in stride.
I don't think it was Tyus that Derryck was following. I think it was Kyrie. Because of his handle and finishing ability, Derryck faced some Kyrie comparisons nationally early on. Whether it be Tyus or KI though, you're correct, Derryck faced some serious expectations.
dh, I'll openly admit I was worried about him preseason. I still have my worries, but he is progressing along nicely. I find myself wondering about next season. Do you think he starts next season with the likes of Jackson , Tatum Giles , Matt, Grayson etc.? I again am truly falling in love with his mid range jumpers. Nobody loves them as much as I do. I love to see the PG step just inside the perimeter D and drop a nice swisher right in their face, it's a thing of beauty. He strikes ME , as the kind of kid who is still dealing with fear. The pressure of making mistakes and K pulling him, letting the team down and just plain being so young. I think once he completely breaches that "worried in the back of his mind" factor, he's gonna be a scoring machine, kids got a sweet shot for sure.
He is progressing so, so well at this point. I met him after the game Wednesday, and said congrats, and to keep it up - he is really playing well. He replied with something to the effect of "Thank you, things are coming along..." He was very humble and really seemed enthusiastic on meeting as many people as possible. He is quickly becoming my favorite player. I know it is only one game, but Ingram seemed like he didn't want to be bothered AT ALL. Some of the other guys asked to be left alone leaving but at least they would say thank you, and nod/wave at people. Brandon didn't seem to do that at all. Perhaps he is pretty shy?
He doesn't get the moniker "Sleepy" for nothing. Haha. He is a very private person, ask anyone who tried to get interviews for recruiting. That's just him. He's not the standoffish type, but he keeps things close until he gets know you. Chase is the one that got him loosened up with his teammates, much like Lee Melchionni and Shelden.
I think he does start next year, Show. He'll be the only "point guard" like he is on this team. And next year, he'll be asked to distribute more than this year as well. He'll be playing a William Avery role if you're looking for some familiarity. But a year under his belt, Derryck will be much more comfortable. I think you hit the nail on the head when you said he has a fear of failure. K is trying to show him that it's ok to fail and that you learn from it and move to the next play.
He's going to be the tie that binds all of the scoring potential next year's team possesses. You're going to have Grayson (maybe), Matt, Harry, Jayson, Frank, Luke, and Chase all looking for buckets. 6 scorers can be hard to keep happy and that's not counting Derryck himself. It'll be a challenge, but it's the whole reason K brought him in early. That was the plan all along. He knew one year would help Derryck be the guy that has "been there" and those freshmen will have to listen to him. It was a "credibility thing". And that is not speculation by the way.
Thornton is probably right on schedule, considering he got a late start. Sometimes you just don't feel part of a group when you start out behind, but it sure looks like he is starting to feel better about himself. I too really love his midrange shot, he is lethal when he is on.
Make no mistake, as the season wears on, he is going to be a major problem for opponents, and next year, trust me, he will be dynamite! "K" will not be able to keep him off the floor!
Go Duke!!
JC-OFC
Make no mistake, as the season wears on, he is going to be a major problem for opponents, and next year, trust me, he will be dynamite! "K" will not be able to keep him off the floor!
Go Duke!!
JC-OFC
I've learned to be very careful with comparing players, particularly those who have operated in the same system and/or school. Tyus had Oak and Quinn and Kyrie had Nolan and Kyle. Both guards were playing with well established players, plus established chemistry among the players.
Derryck is doing just fine. He is learning what is expected of him. To be honest, this is not a pass first team. Outside of Marshall, Chase and maybe Amile, everyone can create their own shot and at times will look for their shot before they make the pass. Derryck just needed to learn what a good shot is and when to make the extra pass.
What isn't there to like...
Potential to be a stud on the ball defender. Check
Tight handle and ball skills. Check
Can score. Check
Getting better ever game. Check
Has a work rate and attitude where he wants to improve. Check
Decision making and turn overs are part of the game and could be said of any PG especially the young ones.
Potential to be a stud on the ball defender. Check
Tight handle and ball skills. Check
Can score. Check
Getting better ever game. Check
Has a work rate and attitude where he wants to improve. Check
Decision making and turn overs are part of the game and could be said of any PG especially the young ones.
I think he is ahead of Wil Avery at this point as a freshman. Again, Wil had Brand and Chris C, so it will be interesting to see how he does ACC season and next year with Giles, Frank, Jason and a mature group of sophs next year.
Less of a comparison of basketball aptitude and more of the roles they will play. Avery had to take care of 4-5 other guys whose role it was to score and Derryck will be doing the same.
Avery was a back-up combo guard as a freshman, in 1998. He backed up Wojo at the pojnt and Langdon at the two. Sometimes Duke would play all three. Langdon and McLeod were the best players on that team, both first-team All-ACC. McLeod was a fifth-year senior, Langdon a redshirt junior. And Wojo was a senior.
So, Avery wasn't asked to be anything more than a complementary player as a freshman.
Thornton trumps Avery and T. Jones in defense, IMO. He loves to play D. I could see him develop into an Amaker-level defender.
So, Avery wasn't asked to be anything more than a complementary player as a freshman.
Thornton trumps Avery and T. Jones in defense, IMO. He loves to play D. I could see him develop into an Amaker-level defender.
Good stuff, thanks Jim. Again though not my point. Thornton is being prepared for a role similar to the one Will held as a soph. He was brought in early not just because Tyus left, but because he gets a year to learn how to navigate college so he can be a leader with his boys Harry and Jayson. He maintained in his recruitment that he wanted to be with them even if it meant staying a year.
His role is what is being prepped not his skills. That's a byproduct.
I agree, but I don't see Derryck 'taking care' of anyone as a pg this year, next year yes. He seems to be just another weapon on the floor this year.
I give Coach K a great amount of credit this year. It's a good mix of players, their roles and talent. Each perimeter player has the ability to score 15pt plus points a game, so it may, this year just come down to out scoring our competition, not being more talented or skilled. The team's Defense is a must, and like it was said in a previous post, Derryck's defense is ahead of our previous pgs.
This is what I've been saying! Haha. I need to not type so much so I can get my actual point across.
Obviously this is not Derryck's year for distribution. He needs to score for this team to have success. This is a credibility and adjustment year. Next year Derryck will be able to do things like tell the young guys what K means when he says something and they don't quite understand. Or he gets to talk while others listen because he's been through it for a year. And on top of that, he gets to be the guy who sets up Jayson and Harry among others.
So NO, this season is not the year we need his distribution skills. That comes NEXT year. This is his leadership development season.
Capiche?
