Having a very solid summer league, 17.2 ppg and really happy to see his shooting improvement at 48% and 40% from 3. He shot the 3 near 35% last yr for the Blazers so it seems he is becoming a capable shooter. Kid is only 20 yrs old and could become a very good defender as well. Hopefully this continues and he gets some minutes this season, good stuff so far and yes, it is summer league, but I like what I see
Improving on defense and 3-point shooting, that's the ticket in the NBA. It would be fantastic if he could shoot 40% on his threes in the regular season. I'm pretty sure his defense will get better and better being able to practice with all the new (from last season and this off season) guys.
one of the worries/knocks on him coming into the league was his shooting, looks to me like that is becoming less and less of a concern
I can see Keon possibly becoming as good as Norm with much better D, "IF" that happens the trade becomes much better
How does Keon get the minutes to do that though? Dame/Ant/Nas Ant/GPII/Hart This doesn’t even consider the minutes Sharpe will get.
The best way to get minutes to Keon is going to be by blowing people out. Hit the ground running on game one. Minutes for all the scrubs.
marang said Keon's dad died just a week before training camp for the summer league. Had no idea. Glad to see the kid hanging in there.
Did some more digging on Keon. After a strong showing, I’m increasingly more excited about his development. Didn’t think he’d progress this far on his scoring. As others have said, I think the key is to develop him like a PG. He might not need to be one now, but he’s only one year in and can be molded into one imo. I kind of thought adding GPII would just cut any kind of playing time out for Keon. But in the end, having GPII on the team while Keon is still young might help him develop into a GP kind of defender. Keon already looks like he has instincts to be a really good defender. And 6’3.5 w/o shoes is bigger than the typical PG today. I love how he’s basically on a launchpad within 5 feet from the basket. If he could shoot even 35% from 3 routinely and play defense, there’s no reason he can’t ever become a Marcus Smart kind of player. Even if he could do a little of everything in his prime (elite defender, 3-4apg off the bench, above average shooter), that’s still a very good 3rd guard behind Ant and Sharpe. I think the hope is to try and get him the minutes to see what he can do in year 3. If Ant and/Sharpe both look like they’re here for the long term, you’d hope Nas shows to be the SFotF and a package of Keon, a re-signed Grant, Nurk, and presumably all of your 1st rounders to find a young long term fit at PF/C. Ant/Sharpe/Nas/Keon/Trendon/Walker is a pretty solid core of young guys to build on even if the Dame era fails. If Dame is tired in a few years, an expiring Dame and all of the vets can still fetch a solid haul to add to it.
Keon's shooting isn't close to Norm right now. Norm is real good. Keon may, or may not, get there. We can hope.
True, however you don't play hoops with the top of your head. His posted combine measurements of an 8'1 standing reach & 185 lbs are right in line with those of Lillard and Simons who are average sized PGs. Fingers crossed on the continued development of his PG skill set & a consistent perimeter shot. STOMP
Keon might be even more of an athlete than Ant and while he lacks Ant's smoothness on offense, maybe that will be why he will develop as a lock down defender. He has the tools.
