DJ Carton’s pro experience

[MomofMUltiples]

DJ is going pro (in basketball, I guess). What will his career be like?

[CountryRoads]

As of now, I think Carton would be a stretch to make the TBT team so I don't think his pro odds look great. Will be cheering him on regardless, but I'm not sure there's a good comparison for a player like him currently in the NBA.

[JWags85]

As of now, I think Carton would be a stretch to make the TBT team so I don't think his pro odds look great. Will be cheering him on regardless, but I'm not sure there's a good comparison for a player like him currently in the NBA.

6'2 PG with explosive athleticism? There are plenty.  Collin Sexton for example.  Cole Anthony is around that.

He's not as good or polished as NBA guards, but his skill set and size/athleticism is not that out of place in the league

[Pakuni]

6'2 PG with explosive athleticism? There are plenty.  Collin Sexton for example.  Cole Anthony is around that.

He's not as good or polished as NBA guards, but his skill set and size/athleticism is not that out of place in the league

Ding! Ding! Ding!
DJ is very raw, but he's got the athleticism and traits NBA teams want. He may not be on an NBA roster come November, but he'll be an NBA player.
Put it another way, he's got a way better chance of sticking in the league than any other former MU player definitely going pro this year.

[avid1010]

Ding! Ding! Ding!
DJ is very raw, but he's got the athleticism and traits NBA teams want. He may not be on an NBA roster come November, but he'll be an NBA player.
Put it another way, he's got a way better chance of sticking in the league than any other former MU player definitely going pro this year.

The best prospect on UW-GB's team has the best chance of sticking in the league out of all his teammates as well. 

Unfortunately, I don't see this going well for DJ, and I'm curious as to why he initially was committed to staying and playing for Shaka and come end of semester he's going with an agent.  A complete guess on my behalf...but it seems college isn't a good fit for him.

All that said...hope he reaches his full potential and crushes it.  Seems like a nice kid.

[Pakuni]

The best prospect on UW-GB's team has the best chance of sticking in the league out of all his teammates as well. 

You misses the point.
And what do you mean it won't end well for him? Is going to get murdered? He's going to get paid, and probably paid well, for playing basketball, whether it's in the NBA or elsewhere. That's good!

[Galway Eagle]

No Brendan Bailey option?

[avid1010]

You misses the point.
And what do you mean it won't end well for him? Is going to get murdered? He's going to get paid, and probably paid well, for playing basketball, whether it's in the NBA or elsewhere. That's good!

I get it...I don't think Dawson or DJ play in the NBA...but I hope I'm wrong. 

[JWags85]

I get it...I don't think Dawson or DJ play in the NBA...but I hope I'm wrong.

You need to get past the mentality of "stud college player" requirement for the NBA.  Size, athleticism, and skill set are the most important.  And we've seen, from far less talented MU players, how much a game can improve when you play basketball full time as a job.  His shot, handle, etc... can change more in half a year than 3 years of college ball.  Dawson too

[tower912]

I think he has the highest NBA upside of any MU player in years.   I can see somewhere between a Dwight Buycks and Juan Anderson situation after a couple of years in the G-league.

[Daniel]

Did he get feedback from the nba that was positive?   Seems like a risk and hiring an agent - wow.  Ok.  Well, wish him the absolute best.

[MU82]

DJ's not some skinny little kid. He has an NBA body, and he's a dynamic athlete. I bet he spends time in the NBA. Maybe not right off the bat (though it wouldn't stun me), but I think he'll have more than a cup of coffee.

[Jockey]

6'2 PG with explosive athleticism? There are plenty.  Collin Sexton for example.  Cole Anthony is around that.

He's not as good or polished as NBA guards, but his skill set and size/athleticism is not that out of place in the league

DJ is not even in the same universe as Sexton. Average handle. Funky shot. I thought we were talking about Vander, for a minute. But Vander was a much better defensive player.

[JWags85]

DJ is not even in the same universe as Sexton. Average handle. Funky shot. I thought we were talking about Vander, for a minute. But Vander was a much better defensive player.

I never said he was anywhere near Sexton who was a top 10 recruit and a lottery pick.  But they said there wasn't a good comp for him.  Sexton is, among others.  Carton actually shot better from the floor in his college and dished more assists.

A funky shot can be fixed in a summer.  Especially for someone that shoots relatively well.  He just starts it low, he doesn't have some terrible hitch.  And his handle?  We've seen the terrible situations that Wojo's offense put PGs in.  Nobody had a good or reliable handle in his offense.

I'm happy to have him as an alum.  But if he didn't have the struggles at OSU and spent a full 2 seasons there, I think it's very likely he's talked about a second round pick who makes completely sense to leave.

[TAMU, Knower of Ball]

I think he will a find a place to stick in the Association. Doubt he's ever a consistent starter but will have a few years as a regular rotation player.

[mu_hilltopper]

At no point last season did I think DJ Carton would play anywhere but Europe. 

He was an average player that had occasional better moments.   Poor shooter, prone to sloppy passes and turnovers. 

The only mystery is how he'd play without Wojo, notwithstanding his FR year.

[MUfan12]

I think he will a find a place to stick in the Association. Doubt he's ever a consistent starter but will have a few years as a regular rotation player.

Has the physical gifts. Can he be humble enough to take the bad feedback with the good? We'll see.

[4everwarriors]

DJ is not even in the same universe as Sexton. Average handle. Funky shot. I thought we were talking about Vander, for a minute. But Vander was a much better defensive player.

Can't actually believe I'm agreeing with you here. Carton isn't all that, hey?

[JamilJaeJamailJrJuan]

Can't actually believe I'm agreeing with you here. Carton isn't all that, hey?

No one is saying Carton is all that.  I, for one, would love to watch a tournament level team next year, not one that struggles to win 5 Big East games.  Carton was our highest upside player for next season.  He has NBA athleticism.  He has the ability to take over a college game.  He struggled last season and definitely wasn't a great college player by any means.  But its in there.  IF he turned the corner, he had the ability to be the offensive leader of this team.

Without him, we have 2 upperclassmen - 1 of which most people are ready to move on from and the other is an oft-injured spot up shooter.  We have no experience, and the team isn't going to be good at all.  Who is going to score the basketball? 

Obviously, Shaka is building something here and brighter days are ahead. We're just gonna have to take our lumps in 2021.  But the reason people are disappointed/frustrated, is that DJ gave some hope that next season could be something fun to watch.  Now we're staring directly at a developmental season in all regards.   

[f/k/a humanlung]

If an NBA coach can identify which three minutes of the game where DJ will go "all out", he should have a great NBA career.

DJ has a ton of talent but just disappeared way too much at game time.

[Jockey]

Can't actually believe I'm agreeing with you here. Carton isn't all that, hey?

I can't believe I am admitting that you're not an idiot when it comes to hoops.   

[4everwarriors]

Or with regards to anything else, aina?

[MU1980]

If an NBA coach can identify which three minutes of the game where DJ will go "all out", he should have a great NBA career.

DJ has a ton of talent but just disappeared way too much at game time.

This is exactly why i am not that disappointed to see him go.  Shaka is hopefully trying to build a culture of toughness, hard work and discipline and to have arguably your best returning player only going all out for a few minutes a game does not set a good example for the younger players.  DJ committed to Wojo, most likely because he knew he wouldn't have to play hard the entire game, whereas with Shaka, hopefully there would have been more repercussions for lackluster effort for 25-30 minutes of each game. 

[JWags85]

This is exactly why i am not that disappointed to see him go.  Shaka is hopefully trying to build a culture of toughness, hard work and discipline and to have arguably your best returning player only going all out for a few minutes a game does not set a good example for the younger players.  DJ committed to Wojo, most likely because he knew he wouldn't have to play hard the entire game, whereas with Shaka, hopefully there would have been more repercussions for lackluster effort for 25-30 minutes of each game.

Anything else you want to take wild and completely uninformed speculation on?  This is embarrassing, Buckyville style speculation.  Maybe you should add that Shaka also expects certain academic performance that DJ wasn't interested in

[MU1980]

Anything else you want to take wild and completely uninformed speculation on?  This is embarrassing, Buckyville style speculation.  Maybe you should add that Shaka also expects certain academic performance that DJ wasn't interested in

I am re-reading my post to see where I posted an uninformed speculation, because I really don't like it when others do it. However, I am not seeing it. If you watched any of the games last year, in every single one DJ only played hard for a few minutes per game and when he did he was electric. Having your best returning player from a different regime not playing hard for most of the game would absolutely set a bad example for the new players. DJ did commit to Wojo and not Shaka. Wojo did not seem to mind that DJ only played hard a few minutes a game since he kept playing him big minutes, or perhaps it was because there weren't other options. Shaka will have more options and I said HOPEFULLY there would be more repercussions, but that of course remains to be seen.

When you have two very different coaches and you commit to one, it would seem to make sense that you may not want to play for the other coach. That seems to be the case here. Yes, some speculation, but based on what we saw throughout the season and some basic facts such as DJ having committed to Wojo, not Shaka. Commenting on anything academic related would definitely be uninformed speculation.