Devin Vassell might be feeling a little expendable ahead of the new NBA season, courtesy of the San Antonio Spurs giving De’Aaron Fox a max extension. Needless to say, Victor Wembanyama is also expected to be on a max deal, which means the Spurs might be looking to trade off Vassell. While that would seem kind of ideal for the front office, one of the franchise’s veterans, Matt Bonner, believes it would be a terrible idea.
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The two-time NBA champion considers Vassell an underrated and underutilized talent who could determine how the next season could go for the Spurs. Vassell will obviously have to go above and beyond to convince Spurs management of what Bonner already seems to be convinced of.
His last season was far from acceptable, considering the Spurs signed him to a sizeable extension last year. Vassell was at best inconsistent. It didn’t help that his season started with an injury, so he had to sit out the first few games. Yet, Bonner not only remains convinced of his talents, but also of his ability to come good when the team needs him.
“One of my big keys to the Spur success Devin Vassell. I think he’s underrated, he’s sneaky, super athletic on both ends of the floor. You just got to stay healthy. Stay on the floor. When people look at their roster, they forget about him and like he’s a really good player,” Bonner said.
The former NBA champion believes that with Wembanyama leading their attack, Vassell can provide the Spurs with a very good third scoring option and be the “X factor when they need.”
Now, these are really good points, but can he actually do it? The problem with Vassell has been the inability to remain consistent throughout a game. For instance, before the All-Star break last year, Vassel averaged 18.1 points every 36 minutes. Of his 41.1% field goals made, 31.3% were scored from behind the arc.
Compare this to the second halves, he managed 19.7 points during the same time period, with 46.6% coming from the field, and 39.7% from outside the arc. So, there’s no saying which version of Vassell is going to turn up any time he gets on the court. He could very well sleepwalk through a game or play like an All-Star. At this point, nobody seems to have figured out his trigger!
The good news, however, as Bonner said, is that if he can stay fit, Vassell has shown glimpses of the heights he can reach should he get locked in. Hopefully, for the sake of his future with the Spurs, he can!
