Photo: Zimbio.com
- Troy BallardJimmer Fredette summed up his NBA career nearly perfectly in his return to Salt Lake City playing the Utah Jazz, when in the final seconds of the game, he pulled up and air-balled a contested three that would have won the game.
Unlike his days in Provo at BYU, Fredette has failed to provide Sacramento the same magical moves on the court he had in college. The Kings as a team have struggled this season, but Fredette has almost totally faded into irrelevance after starting off his NBA career strong in his first few games.
Inevitably, the Kings, who traded at the draft to select Fredette at tenth overall, are becoming slightly frustrated with his pedestrian numbers. The former Naismith Award winner has posted an underwhelming 8.8 PPG, 2.0 APG, and is shooting a bleak .365 thus far this season.
The reality of it? Fredette is a work in progress.
NBA scouts had the future of Fredette in the NBA all over the board, with some claiming he would be an instant winner and dominate the association, others saying he would be nothing more than a glorified sixth man. A this point in his career, Fredette is somewhere in the middle.
From day one, the Kings penciled in Fredette as the starting point guard. Mainly, if nothing else, because they simply don't have one. However, it seems that it's usually shooting guard Tyreke Evans taking the ball up the court, as he is the King's best player.
With Evans controlling the ball the majority of the time, it takes the offensive focus almost entirely off of Fredette. At BYU, it was 'Jimmer-Mania' and there was hardly ever an offensive possession where Fredette didn't have the ball in his hands. With the Kings, Evans is the focus, and Fredette has been demoted to a diminished offensive role. Something that he's never had to deal with in his entire career.
Another issue with the Kings? They're not a good team. That's just the bottom line.
For Fredette, that wasn't an issue at BYU. He didn't have a killer team in college either, but the competition was bad enough to where Fredette could just carry the Cougars to wins. That's not the case in the NBA, as every team is good, and Sacramento doesn't have the continuity to hang with elite teams.
There's no doubt that Fredette can light up the scoreboard, just like he did in college, but it only happens in spurts. There are nights where he can give the Kings 20-30 points, but in others he can't get anything going. It's called being a rookie in the NBA.
The Kings may have expected 'Jimmer-Mania' to convert right over into the NBA with instant success, but it wasn't realistic. Fredette needs work on his jump shot, decision making, awareness, and most of all, that horrendous defense. He's just like any other NBA rookie this season, and it will take time to get Fredette back to the same level he was at in college.
Sacramento has the pieces to win long-term with Evans, DeMarcus Cousins, and Fredette. But it won't happen immediately, and the Kings need to be patient with the younger players on the team. Fredette has the talent and the will to succeed, he just needs time to adjust to the NBA.
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