NBA Draft 2015: 5 Players Who Will Be Busts
Sam Dekker – Houston Rockets
As the selection of the Houston Rockets with the 18th overall pick, Sam Dekker was obviously considered a bit of a risk, which makes labeling him a potential bust a bit tricky. Mid first-round picks outside the lottery are often somewhat of a gamble, but given Dekker’s hype coming into college and coming out of the NCAA Tournament, he rings as a safer bet than most picks in that range.
Despite all of the praise piled on Dekker in college and as a high school recruit, he has some serious concerns overall and as a cog in the Rockets’ system.
Starting with his fit in Houston, Dekker is likely going to be put on the wing like he was at Wisconsin and play a backup role to guys like Trevor Ariza. While his size and length are enticing when looking at him as a wing player, Dekker’s shot is problematic. Sure, he shot 50 percent from three during the NCAA Tournament, but that small sample size hardly outweighs the 32.8 percent that he shot from three over his sophomore and junior seasons. Nor does it correct the inconsistency in the mechanics of his jumper, either. While he has the ability to slash and finish at the rim, that’s not what he’s going to be asked to do in Houston with their offense centered around James Harden driving.
Beyond just the fit in Houston, though, Dekker is a guy who doesn’t have a single skill that you would call elite. He’s quality in a number of areas, but not elite in any. It’s important to note, though, that one of those areas he’s good in is not passing and facilitating. As a wing at the pro level, even in a role player capacity, not having elite skills and not being someone who can set up teammates seems detrimental to his future in the league.
Perhaps the most interesting factor in Dekker’s future is the idea of pace. At Wisconsin, he played Bo Ryan’s famously methodical style of play. That’s in stark contrast to the up-tempo style that many people see Dekker’s skill set being maximized in. He’ll likely have that chance in Houston or elsewhere around the league, but it’s unknown how he will actually perform in that style when the time comes.
Of these predictions, Dekker is the one most likely to backfire on me. Given what I’ve seen from him leading up to the draft and what I know about players of his type in the league, there seems like a fair chance that Dekker will wind up being a bust when it’s all said and done.
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