Vassell is thriving in his newfound role.
Vassell’s newfound confidence and ability to fill the role he was expected to take on so quickly also earned him the trust of his coaching staff and teammates to make big plays when it matters the most. He is a vital member of the closing lineup and eager to make clutch shots like he did in the Spurs’ big win over the Miami Heat.
Coming off the bench after a knee injury, Vassell recorded 18 points on 7-13 shooting from the field, 4 rebounds, and a season-high 3 steals and closed out the game in dramatic fashion. With only two minutes left in the game, Vassell hit two important mid-range step-back jump shots, including one over Defensive Player of the Year candidate Bam Adebayo, and sealed the victory for San Antonio.
Vassell has been coming off the bench since his return to the lineup in that game, and he appears to be at ease in the sixth-man role, even if he may not be there for much longer. He is still playing plenty of minutes when he comes off the bench while bringing valuable scoring and an energy boost to the second unit. Currently, he leads the league in scoring off the bench with an average of 19.2 points.
A lot of that same energy is also visible in his defense. Sometimes, ballhandlers still beat him on the first step when attacking the rim, but Vassell is in no way a liability to the team defense. He hustles for loose balls, puts pressure on the ball, and gets steals in the passing lanes that lead to easy points. In his last three games, he recorded an impressive three steals each, showing his upside as a defender.
Once he intercepts the pass, Vassell is great at pushing the ball in transition and getting to the rim, even on contested shots, which suggests that he will be able to translate the same ability into drives in the halfcourt offense soon.
The Spurs have had some big wins lately against the Miami Heat and the Cleveland Cavaliers, led by Johnson and Vassell, but right now the team’s focus is less on winning and more on acquiring and developing young talent. Now that Vassell has emerged as a key piece to the Spurs’ future, it is time for him to keep working and keep improving.
If he can become a more complete three-level scorer, it will lift his game to a whole other level. Right now, defenses still drop a lot in pick-and-roll situations, leaving him plenty of room to take his preferred mid-range shot, but that might change soon, and he will have to find ways to work around a different level of defensive pressure.
One thing is for sure, though: Vassell’s breakout as a scorer is adding some hope and energy to a Spurs’ season filled with losses, while he puts out the idea that his ceiling might be much higher than once expected. Vassell is showing potential that many did not see in him when he first entered the league, and he is making people notice him.
Not only will teams give him more defensive attention from now on, but in The Ringer’s most recent top 100 NBA Player Rankings, he is ranked 67th over teammate Keldon Johnson, the reigning Rookie of the Year Scottie Barnes, and even four-time champion Klay Thompson.
Spurs fans will not see many victories this season, but knowing that their franchise has a young talent such as Devin Vassell, who has the potential and upside to eventually usher in a new era of winning, is making it more durable.