TRADE: Mavs trade 10+Bertans to OKC for Dereck Lively II

[Chicagojk]

That one offensive rebound where he kicked it out for a 3 left me feeling a bit underwhelmed. Sure yes, the dude hit the 3 and it was a good play. But was it the best play? The most reproduceable play? Especially considering after the offensive rebound if he had just looked up he could've easily layed/dunked it back in with his left hand.

It's these small things I'm not getting from Lively. His instincts seem off. His block timing is incredible, but he's also a bit wild and I saw many moments when he defended that an NBA player could take advantage of him.

Don't get me wrong, it ain't worth to write him off before he's even played a game but it's obvious he's a project. I hope he turns out good.

I agree.   Even though I have been talking about Lively for a few months, plays like that are a little underwhelming.   In the pros with all the big bodies, sometimes passing out is the best player for an open three.  In college, I want him to not hot potato the ball and look at the basket more.  There are a few times where he doesn't even look to go back up and score when getting a rebound.   I was watching highlights against Syracuse who play that zone.  There were a few times he caught the ball on the baseline and literally did not even look at the rim despite being open.

Scoring 5 points per game as a freshman is also a little concerning.   I am sure there is blame at a lot of places.  But getting to 11-12 points a game should not be hard.  3- 4 dunks, a putback or two and some free throws.    That should have been much more consistent.  Not sure why he was shooting only a few shots a game.  Seemed like a missed opportunity just getting him dunks at the rim.