In our previous installment of this series, we broke down some offensive and defensive strengths as well as the potential role during the upcoming season for redshirt freshman Sean Durugordon. This time, we look at Kansas State transfer DaJuan Gordon.
OUTLOOK
Coach Cuonzo Martin seemingly values one trait above all when looking for players to fill his program: toughness. That gritty, go-getter mentality and the resilience that comes with it. As he analyzes his locker room, one particular player of the mold shines through, almost as a spawn of his imagination. It only took dealing Mark Smith to Manhattan in a pseudo trade with Bruce Weber this past summer, but Martin ultimately landed DaJuan Gordon — a Chicago-raised guard who feeds off of trash talk and his opponents’ head space. Both Martin and Gordon cited each other’s toughness and winning mentality as reasons for the move, and with two seasons in the Big 12 under his belt, Gordon feels slated to play a huge role for Missouri.
OFFENSIVE IMPACT
Gordon’s offensive skill set isn’t dazzling. There are few stepbacks, eurosteps or anything of the sort. He was a handy man within the Wildcats’ offense, and he hardly stepped outside of himself. His 9.1 points per game last season were mostly compiled by plays where he put his head down for dribble drives and tough finishes at the rim, or found himself corralling a long rebound and slithering between the defense to put it back up. Gordon will be a rim threat, and even a potential lob threat on the backside in the halfcourt.
Though his bag isn’t insanely deep, he will likely still get his 3-point attempts off. He was genuinely a passable shooter through his freshman season, shooting 32.9% from deep on 2.3 attempts per game. But he saw a drastic drop last year, shooting 21.7% from beyond the arc on 3.3 attempts per game. There’s no telling if Gordon will demonstrate a similar shooting season, revert back to his freshman ways or even improve on his inaugural season and be a plus shooter for Martin. For what it’s worth, Gordon’s stroke and consistency looked ideal over the summer in Chicago’s Chi-League Pro Am, which featured pros and some of the better players in the area.
If Gordon isn’t beneficial as a shooter, it won’t be anything Martin isn’t prepared for. No one is hanging their hat on the junior guard’s shooting after last season. He offers much more as a slasher and cutter, and anything else is a plus.
DEFENSIVE IMPACT
The defensive side of the ball is where Gordon truly becomes an asset. Even if Gordon wasn’t a skilled defender, his toughness would keep him in front of plenty of players. But the 6-foot-3 guard has a knack of digging himself underneath the ball and clamping down. He’s rough, he’s a pest and he’ll disrupt some plays this season. What’s interesting about Gordon is that he is probably better suited than any other guard when switching onto post players. He was entrusted with some taller tasks last season, and he showed up on multiple occasions. He’ll play defense to the point that it’ll create offense — the essence of what Martin is trying to do. His 1.2 steals were tied for a team-high for Kansas State last season. He enjoyed four games with at least three steals, and snagged a season-high four steals in the Wildcats’ final appearance in the big 12 tournament.
As a rebounder, Gordon is unparalleled by anyone in the Tigers’ backcourt — ironically, it’s a role Smith played last year. His 5.5 rebounds per game were second to 6-9 Antonio Gordon, and quite distant from Kansas State’s next best rebounder, 7-foot Davion Bradford. Whether he’s in the lane or hovering around the basket, his seemingly heat-seeking vision aims for the ball, and he finds himself in the right place often to gain possession. 50-50 balls will be no match for him.
POTENTIAL
DaJuan’s potential is tricky because much of it is based on the jump he makes this season (or lack thereof). His floor or average potential fit with Missouri feels similar to that of the Brooklyn Nets’ Bruce Brown. Brown found himself in an unorthodox role — not just for himself, but a relatively innovative role for the NBA overall — where he defended big men, served as a screener and overall did things most guards would be uncomfortable with in order to accommodate Brooklyn's big three. The move not only trapped teams into making tough pick-and-roll decisions, but it also forced them to guard a 20% 3-pointer in Brown, a decision they certainly wouldn’t otherwise make. While Martin doesn’t have any James Harden, Kevin Durant or Kyrie Irving on his roster, he does have a heap of guards that can score and potentially switch. It’ll be hard for him to choose who plays most, but DaJuan assists the decision making.
It feels like Martin is organizing more lineups than he can count, using this month’s scrimmages as trial runs. I don’t think a lineup with four guards and junior Kobe Brown manning the five spot are out of the question. That lineup could feature DaJuan in that Bruce Brown role. Other lineups might feature freshman Yaya Keita in the middle, Brown at the four and DaJuan occupying the wing, where most of the minutes will be absorbed by him and senior Javon Pickett. If Martin simply wants to play DaJuan as a small forward, he can potentially start. But it feels like Martin is relying heavily on Pickett at the moment — probably more than anyone on the team.
If DaJuan’s shot does become passable or even valuable, the entire outlook changes. He already offers intangibles, toughness, defense and rebounding. We’d then be talking about a player who you have to keep on the floor as much as possible. If DaJuan averaged nearly double digit scoring with a below average 3-point shot, a legitimate stroke could turn him into a prized scorer at his level. No matter the situation, expect him to play big minutes this season.
KEYS TO SUCCESS
DaJuan’s strengths will really need to remain his strengths. With no guard offering the same toughness or tenacity on the glass, he separates himself and makes up for his lack of a jump shot. While he shouldn’t be comfortable with having a bad shooting season, he should continue to rely on what he knows best while he improves his marksmanship.
QUESTIONS
The obvious question: Will his shooting improve? If DaJuan becomes a valuable shooter or even reverts to being a passable shooter, we’re likely talking about his ceiling more than his floor. His perimeter gravity would open up plenty more looks for this group, and both him and Green Bay transfer Amari Davis not shooting well from deep doesn’t bode well for spacing, even at the college level.
OUTLOOK
Coach Cuonzo Martin seemingly values one trait above all when looking for players to fill his program: toughness. That gritty, go-getter mentality and the resilience that comes with it. As he analyzes his locker room, one particular player of the mold shines through, almost as a spawn of his imagination. It only took dealing Mark Smith to Manhattan in a pseudo trade with Bruce Weber this past summer, but Martin ultimately landed DaJuan Gordon — a Chicago-raised guard who feeds off of trash talk and his opponents’ head space. Both Martin and Gordon cited each other’s toughness and winning mentality as reasons for the move, and with two seasons in the Big 12 under his belt, Gordon feels slated to play a huge role for Missouri.
OFFENSIVE IMPACT
Gordon’s offensive skill set isn’t dazzling. There are few stepbacks, eurosteps or anything of the sort. He was a handy man within the Wildcats’ offense, and he hardly stepped outside of himself. His 9.1 points per game last season were mostly compiled by plays where he put his head down for dribble drives and tough finishes at the rim, or found himself corralling a long rebound and slithering between the defense to put it back up. Gordon will be a rim threat, and even a potential lob threat on the backside in the halfcourt.
Though his bag isn’t insanely deep, he will likely still get his 3-point attempts off. He was genuinely a passable shooter through his freshman season, shooting 32.9% from deep on 2.3 attempts per game. But he saw a drastic drop last year, shooting 21.7% from beyond the arc on 3.3 attempts per game. There’s no telling if Gordon will demonstrate a similar shooting season, revert back to his freshman ways or even improve on his inaugural season and be a plus shooter for Martin. For what it’s worth, Gordon’s stroke and consistency looked ideal over the summer in Chicago’s Chi-League Pro Am, which featured pros and some of the better players in the area.
If Gordon isn’t beneficial as a shooter, it won’t be anything Martin isn’t prepared for. No one is hanging their hat on the junior guard’s shooting after last season. He offers much more as a slasher and cutter, and anything else is a plus.
DEFENSIVE IMPACT
The defensive side of the ball is where Gordon truly becomes an asset. Even if Gordon wasn’t a skilled defender, his toughness would keep him in front of plenty of players. But the 6-foot-3 guard has a knack of digging himself underneath the ball and clamping down. He’s rough, he’s a pest and he’ll disrupt some plays this season. What’s interesting about Gordon is that he is probably better suited than any other guard when switching onto post players. He was entrusted with some taller tasks last season, and he showed up on multiple occasions. He’ll play defense to the point that it’ll create offense — the essence of what Martin is trying to do. His 1.2 steals were tied for a team-high for Kansas State last season. He enjoyed four games with at least three steals, and snagged a season-high four steals in the Wildcats’ final appearance in the big 12 tournament.
As a rebounder, Gordon is unparalleled by anyone in the Tigers’ backcourt — ironically, it’s a role Smith played last year. His 5.5 rebounds per game were second to 6-9 Antonio Gordon, and quite distant from Kansas State’s next best rebounder, 7-foot Davion Bradford. Whether he’s in the lane or hovering around the basket, his seemingly heat-seeking vision aims for the ball, and he finds himself in the right place often to gain possession. 50-50 balls will be no match for him.
POTENTIAL
DaJuan’s potential is tricky because much of it is based on the jump he makes this season (or lack thereof). His floor or average potential fit with Missouri feels similar to that of the Brooklyn Nets’ Bruce Brown. Brown found himself in an unorthodox role — not just for himself, but a relatively innovative role for the NBA overall — where he defended big men, served as a screener and overall did things most guards would be uncomfortable with in order to accommodate Brooklyn's big three. The move not only trapped teams into making tough pick-and-roll decisions, but it also forced them to guard a 20% 3-pointer in Brown, a decision they certainly wouldn’t otherwise make. While Martin doesn’t have any James Harden, Kevin Durant or Kyrie Irving on his roster, he does have a heap of guards that can score and potentially switch. It’ll be hard for him to choose who plays most, but DaJuan assists the decision making.
It feels like Martin is organizing more lineups than he can count, using this month’s scrimmages as trial runs. I don’t think a lineup with four guards and junior Kobe Brown manning the five spot are out of the question. That lineup could feature DaJuan in that Bruce Brown role. Other lineups might feature freshman Yaya Keita in the middle, Brown at the four and DaJuan occupying the wing, where most of the minutes will be absorbed by him and senior Javon Pickett. If Martin simply wants to play DaJuan as a small forward, he can potentially start. But it feels like Martin is relying heavily on Pickett at the moment — probably more than anyone on the team.
If DaJuan’s shot does become passable or even valuable, the entire outlook changes. He already offers intangibles, toughness, defense and rebounding. We’d then be talking about a player who you have to keep on the floor as much as possible. If DaJuan averaged nearly double digit scoring with a below average 3-point shot, a legitimate stroke could turn him into a prized scorer at his level. No matter the situation, expect him to play big minutes this season.
KEYS TO SUCCESS
DaJuan’s strengths will really need to remain his strengths. With no guard offering the same toughness or tenacity on the glass, he separates himself and makes up for his lack of a jump shot. While he shouldn’t be comfortable with having a bad shooting season, he should continue to rely on what he knows best while he improves his marksmanship.
QUESTIONS
The obvious question: Will his shooting improve? If DaJuan becomes a valuable shooter or even reverts to being a passable shooter, we’re likely talking about his ceiling more than his floor. His perimeter gravity would open up plenty more looks for this group, and both him and Green Bay transfer Amari Davis not shooting well from deep doesn’t bode well for spacing, even at the college level.
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