Deep Sixer

LAS VEGAS -- It’s only one game but this is also the only time to get a first impression on the 76ers two first round draft choices, Thaddeus Young and Jason Smith. In a deep draft the expectation are high that these two first-rounders will be able to come in and contribute.
Here’s some advice – be patient.
It says here that Young will eventually be a rotation player. Whether it’s in the beginning of November, remains to be seen. Smith may need more time to get used to the rigors of the NBA.
Young and Smith made their debuts in a 65-61 win over San Antonio during Las Vegas Summer League action on Friday.
Neither lit up the box score.
Young had five points, shooting 2 for 6 from the field and grabbing two rebounds in just over 25 minutes. Smith had two points and five rebounds in nearly 25 minutes.
Young was the much more aggressive player of the two, and he showed a willingness to take it to the basket. He made a nice cross-over move that gave him room to hit a baseline jumper, his first as a professional.
Young seems like a player who has an idea of where he wants to go, but doesn’t always know how to get there.
He needs lots of work on his handle, but that will come. His outside shot is no sure thing, but that will come.
What one has to like about him is his aggressive attitude. In short, he didn’t look like a wide-eyed 19-year-old.
Smith on the other hand, seems to be having a more difficult time. Even in workouts prior to coming to Las Vegas, he seemed tentative.
Now this doesn’t mean Smith won’t become the solid player the Sixers think he will. It’s just that it likely will take time.
What’s good about this summer is that the Sixers will be able to give their rookies a steady diet of action. In a two-week span, the Sixers will play 11 games in two different summer leagues.
Even though this is essentially a rookie league with some veterans, it’s still difficult for a first-year player not named LeBron James to put his stamp on things immediately.
It’s just a huge adjustment.
The fact that Young and Smith will struggle should be no cause for immediate alarm. On the other hand, it also shows that anybody who pencils them as immediate rotation players, better have a big eraser.