Originally Posted by
Pelicanidae
That's my biggest area of observation for Zion this year. He doesn't need to prove to me that he can score at the NBA level: he averaged 29 points per 36 on 62%TS as a rookie, he's proven that to me already.
He also doesn't need to prove to me that he can pass: he's shown that already, although I do want him to get more opportunities on ball to explore that more.
What I want to see from him this year is defensive improvement. He was a really good defender at Duke (4%STL, 6%BLK, 87.4 DRtg, +6.7 DBPM) and while I don't expect him to rack up those stats in the NBA (4%STL rating in the NBA has only been done 35 times ever, and only twice in the last 20 years, for example, and 87.4 DRtg would tie Ben Wallace for the best single season DRtg in NBA history) I do expect him to be a capable defender who can use his strength well and utilise his high level instincts and feel.
Watching him last season, it was clear that he was a step slow - part of that is just to the long layoff from injury, part of it you could argue is the weight, part of it is that the team defense sucked anyway so it's hard to just slot in a new guy, and another part is that he looked hesitant: there were times he clearly considered going for a block but decided not to, I think out of fear of fouling.
This season, with plenty of time to get in shape, the injury behind him, a new coach who puts more priority on defense, and him starting at the same time as everyone else, I want to see that defense start to come out. Nobody is expecting All-Defense sophomore seasons or anything, but he should be at a decent defender this year.