NBA: 5 major takeaways after a tremendously entertaining start to Summer League
By Ryan McCrary
4. Brandon Miller has a long road ahead
Brandon Miller has played three summer league games so far, and he’s been solid, averaging 13 points, seven rebounds, four assists, and two steals per game while shooting 40% from the field and 36.8% from behind the arc.
Unfortunately for him, fans on social media have been very loud about their displeasure with his performance, despite the fact that his production hasn’t been that bad. Sure, his scoring volume and shooting percentages could be better, and his second game vs. the Warriors, in which he scored just six points, was underwhelming. However, he’s been just fine, and the distaste from NBA fans is a bit overblown.
Brandon Miller is likely going to face a lot of criticism throughout his NBA career because many fans believe the Charlotte Hornets made a mistake by drafting him over Scoot Henderson and Amen Thompson. If those two players become stars and Miller doesn’t, you can be sure that Miller is going to be ridiculed for not meeting expectations.
I wholeheartedly agree with the consensus opinion that Scoot Henderson and Amen Thompson are better prospects than Brandon Miller. However, I also believe that Miller is a good player who has been very solid in the summer league despite not shooting as well as you’d hope he would. I also believe that he’s going to be fine and that making any strong judgments about a player based on what they do in the summer league is foolish.
I’m really afraid that fans will be overly critical of Brandon Miller even if he does play well in the NBA simply because they can’t get over the way they felt prior to the 2023 NBA Draft. It’s fair to be somewhat concerned about his shooting numbers from this summer league, but saying he’s been terrible and won’t succeed in the NBA is a major overreaction.