re: Can we call Derrick Williams a bust yet? and where to send stuck players.

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From Michael Beasley to Hasheem Thabeet to Evan Turner, being the 2nd overall pick behind a surefire talent at No. 1 can be burdensome. For Williams, being the consolation prize to Kyrie Irving has to be difficult, and it's a task made more difficult by his lack of positional identity.

Williams has suffered from back spasms that have kept him in and out of the lineup, but hasn't shown much development in the minutes in which he has appeared. His shot selection greatly reduces his efficiency and his insistence on being a wing takes away his inherent advantages.

He's got a powerful frame and great leaping ability, and as an above-the-rim finisher, he'd be ideal as a target in pick-and-rolls. Instead, he pops off his screens and lingers around the perimeter, taking off-balance, off-the-dribble jumpers with limited success. Defensively, he lacks the ability to fight through screens (a must as a perimeter defender), and is often late or absent on weak-side rotations, and listless at showing on screens as a big.

Verdict: Unless something changes drastically, Williams is likely a bust. In order for him to be effective, he has to play with a higher energy level consistently and use his athleticism to be a force on the glass and convert loose balls and offensive rebounds, all the while refining his perimeter shot selection.

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