How Dougie Fresh turned stale
Reflecting on Doug McDermott’s young NBA career
Douglas Richard McDermott is an ideal fit on paper for just about any team in the modern NBA: a 6-foot-8, 220 pound forward known for his shooting range who possesses far better athleticism than he’s given credit for. That said, the 2014 NCAA scoring champion and consensus national player of the year didn’t pan out as a Chicago Bull, and he showed no signs of immediate improvement in Oklahoma City despite the Thunder’s desperate need for a player of his kind. Let’s start from the present and work backward to find out what led to Dougie Fresh turning stale.
Recapping McDermott’s time in OKC
When Doug McDermott was shipped to Oklahoma City, the Bulls were the worst 3-point shooting team in the league, and the Thunder ranked only one spot above them. OKC desperately yearned for shooting to create space and free up driving lanes for Russell Westbrook. They thought they got their missing piece in McDermott, but after 22 games, they’d learn otherwise. During that span, McDermott saw a decrease in minutes and a subsequent decreases in points, rebounds, assists and field goal attempts. Those statistical downfalls ring true on a per game basis and when adjusted to per 36 minutes via Basketball Reference. McDermott’s playing time was doled out sporadically by head coach Billy Donovan as well. He logged over 30 minutes in five games and less than five minutes in four games, one of which was a playoff game.
Some expected McDermott to thrive in the playoffs against a team like the Houston Rockets — who simply try to outscore you rather than attempt to stop you. However, Doug couldn’t manage to stay on the court during OKC’s first round series, averaging just 13.2 minutes, five points and one rebound over five games. Despite shooting 53.8 percent on 2.6 3-point attempts a game in the playoffs, a horrid defensive rating of 119 kept him off the floor. In harsher terms: he was a streaky shooter who got exposed on defense almost every time down the court. Unfortunately, this comes as no surprise to Bulls fans. McDermott is under contract with the Thunder for one more year, set to earn ~$3.3M during the 2017–2018 season. He is healthy entering this offseason and would benefit from living in the gym. If Oklahoma City decides not to re-sign Andre Roberson, McDermott may be thrust into a starting role. Regardless, he should have a wealth of opportunities to prove himself with Russell Westbrook passing him the ball.
Revisiting Doug’s departure
With the usual trade deadline rumors running rampant this February, the Bulls decided to pull the trigger on a highly questionable deal. Chicago sent McDermott, Taj Gibson and a 2018 second-round draft pick to Oklahoma City in exchange for Cameron Payne, Anthony Morrow and Joffrey Lauvergne. The Bulls front office rationalized trading away a former lottery pick and a franchise stalwart by stating they believed Payne to be the team’s point guard of the future. We will never know what options were on the table, but it seemed like Chicago could have made several other moves without placing themselves under that kind of scrutiny or forfeiting yet another draft pick.
If there’s a silver lining, it’s that the transaction made good business sense with an insignificant long-term financial impact. The only players still currently under contract with their respective teams are Payne and McDermott, while the other members of the deal are free agents. However, from a basketball perspective, Thunder general manager Sam Presti landed his team a starting power forward, a rotational player and a draft pick. Meanwhile, Chicago saw their return on investment spend the latter quarter of this season either on the bench or in street clothes. Perhaps the only way to assess the trade going forward is to monitor the success of Payne versus that of McDermott. It’s far too early to place definitive judgment on this deal, but for now, the 2017 trade deadline will remain perplexing for some.
(UPDATE: McDermott and the second round pick sent to Oklahoma City were later sent to New York in a trade that brought Carmelo Anthony to the Thunder.)
Why McDermott never got it going in Chicago
It is equally perplexing how the NCAA’s fifth all-time scorer wasn’t been able to carve out a stable role on the Bulls. McDermott was known for more than just 3-point shooting in college. He used his size and smarts to score from all over the court. A draft prospect once compared to Wally Szczerbiak and Kyle Korver (All-Star edition), McDermott couldn’t maintain any form of consistency for a slew of reasons. We’ll continue working backward, from the 2017 trade deadline to the 2014 NBA Draft, to find out why.
Albeit erratic, McDermott showed flashes of what many thought he’d become in 2017 with the Bulls. In 23 games dating from the turn of the calendar year until his last game as a Bull, Doug scored in double figures 13 times. There was the 31-point outburst in Memphis on Jan. 15, 2017. A month later, he had an efficient 20 points on 13 shot attempts. However, in between those two solid performances, there was this:
Stretches like that are what have perpetuated Doug’s inability to stay on the court. He grabbed 7.5 rebounds a game over the course of his collegiate career — impressive for an NCAA wing — but that skill didn’t quite translate to the NBA. His true shooting percentage soared above 55 with Fred Hoiberg at the helm, up from 48 percent under former Bulls head coach Tom Thibodeau. Doug’s offensive improvement, however, wasn’t enough to overcome his career defensive rating of 112.
Many expected McDermott to take a leap this year after playing in 81 games and shooting 42.5 percent on 3.2 3-point attempts per game during his 2015–2016 campaign. However, this one got off to an unfortunate and unlucky start. He suffered a concussion at some point during a game in Brooklyn on Oct. 31, 2016 and was placed in the NBA concussion protocol the following day. Just 12 days later, after having been cleared for almost a week, this happened:
It was only ruled a flagrant foul, though after seeing it numerous times, it probably could’ve been ruled attempted murder. All jokes aside, the play happened very fast and Morris appeared to at least have the intention of going for the ball. As unlucky as it was ugly, McDermott’s second concussion in less than two weeks caused him to miss the next 11 games — nearly a full month. The Bulls and Fred Hoiberg provided vague updates along the way, as his return to the hardwood kept getting pushed back. He was desperate to come back and earn his keep. Doug was cleared for contact on Dec. 3, seemingly emerged from the fog and was reinserted into the lineup on Dec. 8. One month later, it became apparent Doug’s symptoms were much worse than expected. McDermott shed some light on his experience, admitting, “I was still a little timid when I first came back. I’m not going to lie.” Most alarming, his short-term memory issues persisted. Doug claimed to have felt better, but his 3-point percentage plummeted from 42.5 last season to 37.2 this season. It’s reasonable to think a mildly traumatic brain injury, commonly referred to as a concussion, played a major factor in McDermott’s lack of growth in his third NBA season.
Doug’s second NBA season was packed with promise. He reaped the benefits of Fred Hoiberg’s arrival as the Bulls new head coach. He shot the ball efficiently. He was healthy the entire season. He saw dramatic increases in almost every statistical category. McDermott’s playing time increased from 8.9 minutes to 23 minutes a game. His scoring output more than tripled, from just three points a game as a rookie to 9.4 in his second year. In addition to a huge jump in 3-point percentage, his field goal percentage was up five percent and his free throw percentage increased by nearly 20 percent. Looking through the lens of hindsight, the 2015–2016 season revealed serious potential. Despite all that progress, he still couldn’t defend. Doug’s defensive rating of 112 outweighed his offensive rating of 110, per Basketball Reference.
Even under former head coach Tom Thibodeau, McDermott had a defensive rating of 108 — tied for the worst on the team. In fairness to Doug, though, Thibodeau isn’t exactly the best coach to have as a first-year player. Thibs is known for lacking the trust to give minutes to rookies in large part to his defensive perfectionism. Unfortunately, McDermott’s most glaring weakness happened to be his head coach’s biggest pet peeve. Well-executed team defense can sometimes mask the faults of poor defenders, but with only one season under the defensive prowess of Thibodeau, McDermott couldn’t get it going. Just 17 games into his rookie season, Doug began experiencing knee issues. Two weeks later it was determined that McDermott needed arthroscopic knee surgery on Dec. 13, 2014. Subsequent soreness and eventual back issues led to McDermott only playing 19 more games. Including the playoffs, Doug averaged less than nine minutes a game while playing in only 39 of the Bulls’ 94 contests.
What it all means for the Bulls
McDermott was named a consensus first-team NCAA All-American for three consecutive seasons, and his collegiate accolades speak for themselves. The Bulls’ front office has a tendency to hone in on one guy at the draft — Doug happened to be that guy in 2014. Chicago gave up what would eventually equate to five draft picks to get McDermott. First, the Bulls handed the Denver Nuggets two first-round picks and a second-round pick on draft-night in 2014 in exchange for McDermott and veteran Anthony Randolph. Chicago was then forced to trade Randolph, along with two more draft picks, to avoid going over the salary cap. Five draft picks is a hefty load of assets to sacrifice for anything less than a surefire return. Add this one to the list of polarizing decisions made in the Bulls’ recent history.
It would be unfair to blame anything other than bad luck for McDermott’s injuries. The occurrence of an injury is often uncontrollable. Rehabilitation, on the other hand, is entirely controllable. It’s worth mentioning the Bulls have unfortunately had their share of follies when it comes to medical treatment. A lack of transparency and PR nightmares have become commonplace when a Bulls player gets hurt. Bulls fans know all too well that health is a vital component to success. Regardless of who or what is responsible for such processes, it’s fair to wonder if Doug’s multiple injuries were handled with the utmost care. The bottom-line is the Chicago Bulls traded away five draft picks for a player they gave up on before he finished his third season with the team.
Doug McDermott’s future
How much did knee surgery and inconsistent playing time stunt McDermott’s growth as a rookie? Despite signs of improvement his second year, did the turmoil of a coaching change put him even further behind the 8-ball? Exactly how severe were Doug’s concussions and their subsequent effects this season? The questions don’t stop there and the answers aren’t yet clear, if they ever will be. A plethora of what-ifs surround the first three seasons of McDermott’s professional basketball career. It appears he has a window of opportunity entering the final year of his contract. Doug will see more wide-open 3-pointers than he ever has before this upcoming season alongside Russell Westbrook.
It would be easy to highlight the Bulls’ shortcomings as they are evident throughout this story, but I’ll pass on that low-hanging fruit. Rather, these words pay homage to McDermott’s time in Chicago while wishing him success in the future. Before criticizing Doug, take into account what he has endured in three short years, and remind yourself that it can happen to anyone. Concussions don’t happen only in football. Doug’s days in Chicago ended abruptly, leaving many with little time to reflect. A brief history of misfortune explains why the college hoops legend hasn’t found his niche in the pros. Doug McDermott still has time to resurrect his NBA career, and I will be rooting for him.
