With a little help, Utah's rookie could top his class.
Darryn Peterson struggled to find an offensive rhythm during the Las Vegas leg of the NBA Summer League. It's not that the Utah Jazz's second overall pick is failing to meet expectations -- he appeared as if a vision of Kobe Bryant in his prime, a basketball savior for a destitute franchise at the Salt Lake City Summer League -- but when facing the uphill climb of defenders being allowed 10 fouls and very little assistance from his teammates, Peterson was compelled to force contested looks and never stepped into a rhythm.
For his poor efficiency, Peterson has put himself at the top of the "bust alert" meter among his top four peers (Caleb Wilson is looking like the steal of the draft already), but when slotted into Will Hardy's ball movement centric offense and a handful of exceptional offensive options, Peterson could be freed up to play a more comfortable, controlled, and refined game at the NBA level.
And though he may be coming off the bench for the Jazz this season, I think the key to unlocking Peterson in his rookie year lies in the hands of Jusuf Nurkic.
Yes, the Jazz's backup center may be the answer to the issues that bubbled above the surface in Peterson's offseason debut, and I don't think that's as ridiculous as you may think it to be.
In his first year with the Jazz, Nurkic averaged 4.8 assists per night -- a career high -- and flexed his playmaking muscles by hitting cutting wings, tossing dime-dropped bounce passes through the swatting hands of the defense, and spacing the floor with his underappreciated shooting touch.
I haven't even mentioned the triple-doubles yet; he had three of them in consecutive nights last season, revealing himself as a Jokic lite -- a Diet Joke.
Giving DP the freedom to move and operate without the ball in his hands could allow Peterson to allow the game to come to him. Having to be "the guy" at every level of competition, it could take Utah's newest rookie some time to acclimate to a secondary role behind George, Markkanen, and Jackson. In fact, discovering the dynamic between himself and Keyonte in Utah's backcourt could be the key to the Jazz's success this season, and ultimately the primary difference between a fringe play-in team and a full-blown competitor in the Western Conference.
But that's a lot of hands for just one basketball. While the Jazz have become known for their team-focused offensive approach in recent years, having strong distributors like Nurkic could teach Peterson a thing or two about playing off the ball.
And with that in his arsenal, the sky is the limit for this budding star.
