Can Terrence Ross take the next step in year 2?
Not much has gone well for the Toronto Raptors. Their only success as a franchise was led by a much younger Vince Carter – though he had little help whatsoever.
Arguably the biggest mistake the Raptors made was letting Tracy McGrady ink a deal with the Orlando Magic.
Not too long after that the Raptors traded Carter, the best player in their short history.
Toronto has selected a series of lottery players since 2004, when Carter joined forces with Jason Kidd and Richard Jefferson in New Jersey. However, virtually none of them have panned out.
Andrea Bargnani was taken first overall in 2006 by Toronto, but he was traded to the New York Knicks this summer – but both fans and management were unpleased with his durability and lack of production.
Enter Terrence Ross, the 22-year-old shooting guard from the University of Washington, who posted a sub-par rookie season after being taken eighth overall in the 2012 NBA Draft.
Ross only played 17 minutes a game in 73 games, and he provided an average of just six points a contest. As a shooting guard, it’s not expected for him to deliver dime passes on a consistent basis, so the fact that he averaged less than one assist a game is not concerning.
What is concerning is that he wasn’t exceptionally productive on the defensive end either. Two rebounds and about half a steal a game depicts poor effort, but let’s take a look at why Toronto shouldn’t hit the panic button on Ross just yet.
He’s playing alongside two extremely talented wing players in Rudy Gay and DeMar DeRozan who constantly demand the ball. Ross didn’t play much, so an increase in minutes could prove beneficial for Ross and the Raptors.
He’s 22 and has a 37.5- inch max vertical. Ladies and gentlemen, that’s called athleticism. Is he LeBron James or Kobe Bryant? There’s a better of JaVale McGee winning the MVP next year.
But Ross does have a lot of potential. No one is saying Ross will be the next McGrady or Carter, especially with DeRozan and Gay still in the picture. But there is a definite chance of Ross turning out to be a productive part of Toronto’s future teams.
He shot 33 percent from three last season on almost 200 attempts. If he can develop into a deadly deep threat and focus on the defensive end, Ross’ name could become better known by the rest of the league.
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