Demar Derozan's potential

[Dave]

Hmm ... Weak ball-handling ability. Very poor passer. Limited shot-creation abilities.

I'm going to say "no".

Edit: DeRozan's limitations offensively limit his upside on that end of the floor. I think his ceiling is Jason Richardson offensively and I would be delighted if DeRozan fulfilled that potential.

Defensively + rebounding, I think DeRozan has huge upside. I think he can become one of the best SGs in the league in each area. Those combinations + solid offense would equal a very good player.

That is my hope for DeRozan.

[Tim W.]

Yes, this is the best he can be if he focuses more on the game than on Twitter and youtube and ...

He needs to improve on defense and become more serious about the game.

Huh? You been reading the article on the front page? You are aware that DeRozan is, by all accounts, a gym rat who is an extremely hard worker when it comes to working on his game, aren't you? Apparently not. This is where stupid rumours get started. Someone writes an article based on pure conjecture and some readers take it as the truth.

[yertu damkule]

geez, let's see if he can become a reliable starter on a decent team before we start with the career projections.

as for T-Mac as his ceiling...as much as his (T-Mac's) recent issues stick in the forefront of our minds, we need to remember that for his 8-yr peak (before he started breaking down), he AVERAGED 26/6.5/5.5 (or thereabouts). everyone remembers that he's never won a playoff series, but take 5 seconds & check his output during the playoffs. if DD reaches 75% of what T-Mac did during his peak, that'll be quite an accomplishment, IMO.

[hateslosing]

He opted into the draft to avoid falling out of the first round. Unimpressive at USC, unimpressive in his rookie year, unimpressive next to sonny weems. The best thing to say about Derozan is he has potential, it will likely be the best thing ever said about him...as good as kobe....priceless

People seem to forget sometimes that he is a Rookie and was our fifth option last season. He is a much better offensive player than people give him credit for and he doesn't take bad shots. Most of the guys who play his position need about two seasons to develop and I think that you folks should give him a chance to develop before throwing him in the trash.

[Nick]

There are allot of players who have potential to be all-stars or even superstars in the league (including Demar). You just gotta get lucky and be in the right place at the right time. Demar hasn't really done anything spectacular in his first year, but with a revamped roster focused on its rookies he will be getting allot of mentoring from good coaches, and is now part of the "core". If he were a Laker, then he would just get buried on the bench, and his chances of becoming a premier player would be pretty much lost, just like Darko. This is why the Triano bashing confuses me, because he's done an excellent job at developing Demar without putting to much pressure on him, giving him a starting role yet limited minutes to push him harder to get more minutes.

[Raptor4Ever]

Huh? You been reading the article on the front page? You are aware that DeRozan is, by all accounts, a gym rat who is an extremely hard worker when it comes to working on his game, aren't you? Apparently not. This is where stupid rumours get started. Someone writes an article based on pure conjecture and some readers take it as the truth.

No, I did not get the idea from the front page. I think he was a gym rat before his rookie season but when he got around Amir and Weems and when he saw everything is being catered to him in a silver platter, his attitude changed.

The prove to my claim is how much his game progress in his Rookie year. It was NONE. He was as lost at the end of season as he was in the opener and no area in his game was improved.

I know criticizing the almighty YOUNG GUNZ in Raptor land is a cardinal sin but I am willing to bet with you he is going to come to this season same DD and with no improvement what so ever. These guys are more into their night life, you tune, tweeter than anything else in life. For god sake, achieve something first before acting like you are ALL THAT .

[Raptor4Ever]

geez, let's see if he can become a reliable starter on a decent team before we start with the career projections.

Nicely Said. None of the Almighty Raptor big 3 , the YOUNG GUNZ, have yet shown that they can even be a reliable starter in this league and some fans are ready to hand them the key to the city and are comparing one to Kobe !!

Wait till the season starts and this team goes 0-15 and then some of you will realize how bad you got fooled by the marketing machine of BC and Raptor Organization.

As it stands right now, Toronto is D-League team talent wise and will be exposed on nightly bases in the hands of real NBA Players.

[Nick]

No, I did not get the idea from the front page. I think he was a gym rat before his rookie season but when he got around Amir and Weems and when he saw everything is being catered to him in a silver platter, his attitude changed.

The prove to my claim is how much his game progress in his Rookie year. It was NONE. He was as lost at the end of season as he was in the opener and no area in his game was improved.

I know criticizing the almighty YOUNG GUNZ in Raptor land is a cardinal sin but I am willing to bet with you he is going to come to this season same DD and with no improvement what so ever. These guys are more into their night life, you tune, tweeter than anything else in life. For god sake, achieve something first before acting like you are ALL THAT .

Wow you sound like a real Raps fan, way to be optimistic. These guys are enjoying Toronto in a subtle way thats appealing to "their fans." I guess you woud rather have Doogie Howser running this team. What are you willing to bet by the way?

[mo-sales]

Its pretty early to make any sort of projections on Derozan's career. He was arguably the worst starter on the team and showed only flashes of potential. He could go either way, but his attitude, commitment and confidence lead me to believe that once he fills out he could be a dangerous force in the league, I say Iggy with a better scoring touch.

Personally I am super excited to see the young gunz in summer league, although even if he plays well it won't really mean anything.

[Tim W.]

No, I did not get the idea from the front page. I think he was a gym rat before his rookie season but when he got around Amir and Weems and when he saw everything is being catered to him in a silver platter, his attitude changed.

The prove to my claim is how much his game progress in his Rookie year. It was NONE. He was as lost at the end of season as he was in the opener and no area in his game was improved.

I know criticizing the almighty YOUNG GUNZ in Raptor land is a cardinal sin but I am willing to bet with you he is going to come to this season same DD and with no improvement what so ever. These guys are more into their night life, you tune, tweeter than anything else in life. For god sake, achieve something first before acting like you are ALL THAT .

I'm not quite sure where you came to these conclusions. One of the biggest things about DeRozan throughout the season was how hard he worked on his game. It was talked about ad naseum. And I certainly wouldn't say his game didn't improve. His shot got more consistent and he was able to drive to the hole more by the end. It's difficult to add to your game during the season, but DeRozan did as good a job as anyone.

I'm also not sure why you're criticizing him hanging around Amir and Weems. Both those players also showed great strides during the season, highlighting how hard they work. I'd be thrilled that those guys hang out together because they clearly help and motivate each other to improve.

As for Twitter and Youtube etc, it's a PASSTIME! I'm sorry, but it does bother me a little when people criticize basketball players for having a hobby, as if it has nay effect on their basketball life whatsoever. It's as if people want them working on their game 12 hours a day, and then watch tape for the rest of the time. Professional athletes, even the hardest working ones, have lots of free time. They are free to use it how they wish as long as it doesn't get in the way of basketball. And it doesn't.

I have a job, two kids, play basketball, write a blog, play guitar and still have time to post far too many times on this website. And I still have time to sleep every day.

Now, personally, I've never understood the attraction to Twitter, but it's obviously popular with young people like Amir and DeRozan. The AmirTV thing is him having fun.