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Forum nameOkay Sports
Topic subjectNo one on Earth thinks Love was personally successful last year, lol.
Topic URLhttp://board.okayplayer.com/okp.php?az=show_topic&forum=8&topic_id=2735386&mesg_id=2791250
2791250, No one on Earth thinks Love was personally successful last year, lol.
Posted by Frank Longo, Thu May-18-23 08:34 AM
Love shot 38% from the floor, 30% from 3, averaged under 3 assists a game despite playing nearly 36 minutes per game, played defense that could generously be described as "inconsistent," and made awful shot selection decisions that consistently cost UNC games last season. They went from preseason #1 to missing the tournament, a never-before-seen accomplishment, and Love was a huge part of that.

He went from being a UNC legend after sophomore year to a player that, following junior year, basically every sane UNC fan wanted off the team.

I think Love could've/should've gone pro after sophomore year, because he could've *maybe* gone somewhere like mid-second round if you thought he could eventually play some point. His problem is... what's his NBA role? Even in sophomore year, though he ended the season shooting 36% from 3 because he got hot, he was *very* inconsistent over the course of the full season, he shot under 40% from 2 (!!!), and he's only 6'4 and under 200 lbs, which isn't really ideal 2 guard size... but it's hard to imagine him as a point guard because he's such a chucker. He's decent at finding open guys, especially in transition, but he doesn't really create for others, and in half court settings, he often looks lost-- content to jack up a contested 28 footer instead of trying to run offense.

So he went back to school to improve his shooting consistency and show he's more than just a chucker. And then he proceeded to shoot worse, pass less, and tank his team.

So he has no choice. He has zero draft stock right now. If he can show next season that he can do, like, 5 APG? Or shoot closer to 38% from 3 somehow? And maybe show more consistent engagement defensively? Then he's got the length and athleticism to maybe get stock back and be a second round type player again. But considering how last season went, that's *quite* a lofty projection.

He'll always have the shot he made against Coach K. But one can't help but wonder if that was a monkey's paw moment for both him and Hubert Davis, as future prospects for both have gotten immediately far grimmer since that moment.