great guy but when you shoot air balls at the free throw line, you might need more time in college. I was shocked when he announced and saddened by the outcome. Coming from the family he does with his father and uncle having such experience. How do you let him make such a bad decision when he had all the opportunity to improve his game and his stock.
Dozier should fire his agent....the whole world could see he needed another year.
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Sadly I don't think you can blame an agent. This is all on him and his family, his dad and uncle, Perry and Terry obviously encouraged and enabled this decision. Somewhere they were getting and acting on really bad advice.
Agree. Easy to blame this on others. It is squarely on PJ and his family. Very poor decision.
agree 100%...PJ is a smart kid surrounded by good people and still made a stupid delusional choice...A 30% 3 pt shooter and 65% ft shooter is all he needed to know..I think it was wise to go draft combine and get evaluated...But hiring an agent before the evaluation was just silly
For the life of me I just do not get the decision to hire an agent. He could have went through this whole process and had the option to return had he just not hired an agent. Coming from a basketball family and having many connections to the sport it should have been relatively easy to navigate this process without an agent.
They must have either
A. Felt 100% convinced he would be drafted, which most believed he would not be a "sure pick"
B. Heck bent on not coming back anyway
They must have either
A. Felt 100% convinced he would be drafted, which most believed he would not be a "sure pick"
B. Heck bent on not coming back anyway
I'm assuming they (PJ, his fam, his agent) knew this was a possibility. Depending on how much his free agent deal is it may still be worth it to him. It's still money he'll get that he wouldn't have got attending school next year. I'm sure he's happy to land on the Lakers.
Don't get me wrong, I'm disappointed he wasn't drafted too and wish he was coming back to school. I just don't know enough about how much he'll make as a free agent vs draft pick
Don't get me wrong, I'm disappointed he wasn't drafted too and wish he was coming back to school. I just don't know enough about how much he'll make as a free agent vs draft pick
I wasn't seeing Dozier as anywhere near ready when he came out, yet we had many people extolling his talent and excellence. I was thinking the draft might prove me wrong. It didn't. In the eyes of the NBA, he was even less ready than I thought he was. Whoever led him in this path may wind up having cost this kid millions, as well as robbing him of the college experience, including an education. Hopefully he can correct that latter omission later.
He will get a small amount of money if he plays in the development league...but he wont get any kind of GOOD money unless he makes an NBA team.
There is really no deal...2nd round and free agent money isn't guaranteed money
I don't think his family understood that this was a possibility (not getting drafted). When they made the decision, I'm sure they were 100% convinced he would be a first round draft pick (or worst case early 2nd).
I doubt that because I never saw a mock that had him first round and you'd think people inside the situation would have better info than fans and journalists on the internet. Also PJ seems to come from a good solid family that has experience with professional basketball.
He wasn't in the mock drafts because he hadn't declared. Once he declared and signed with an agent he was showing as a first rounder on most mock drafts. He went to the combines and his stock start dropping.
I never saw him listed as a first rounder anywhere. Maybe you followed it closer than I did
Sad part is he really COULD have helped his draft stock by returning, hitting the weight room, developing his skills and competing against other future draft picks.
He has chosen the tougher route. Free agency, D-League, overseas. There is decent money overseas, but most of us won't here much from him over there.
He has chosen the tougher route. Free agency, D-League, overseas. There is decent money overseas, but most of us won't here much from him over there.
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anon_n4c0cp5zhdxn7
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I guess the watch party (way to much on the late night news) was somewhat of a downer. Too bad. Wish him all the best.
Word on the draft circuit is that PJ did not get drafted due to a medical red flag with his knee. Hate it for the kid, but he can bounce back. He will get a chance to get paid doing what he loves to do for a living. How many of us can say the same?
Thanks for choosing to become a gamecock PJ and helping lead us to our best basketball season ever! Best wishes to you as you navigate your path. There are plenty of great players in the league who went undrafted. Yeah it may be a different route than what you thought, but that will only help to make you stronger!
Thanks for choosing to become a gamecock PJ and helping lead us to our best basketball season ever! Best wishes to you as you navigate your path. There are plenty of great players in the league who went undrafted. Yeah it may be a different route than what you thought, but that will only help to make you stronger!
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He rode the wave of the Final 4 and it dropped him on the beach.
He was a McDonald's AA coming out of high school so he was on scouts' radar long before the Final 4. Also supposedly his plan the entire time was to play two years then turn pro which Frank knew and was ok with
Question: Would he have turned pro if he knew he wasn't going to drafted? Did he and his family decide to turn pro because they thought he would be drafted early (1st or early 2nd) or was the plan to enter the draft regardless?
True, the agent had nothing to do with him not being drafted. He should have just not hired an agent in the first place.
He will be ok. You're just being selfish and trying say I told you so. Their is a stigma on players that don't leave early these days. Didier will be a millionaire and make a living plying a game. He will be fine and you'll see him playing in the NBA within 2 years as a starter
I think it was a little more of 'B.' than 'A'. He just struck me as a kid who wanted to get a taste of the big money asap. I still contend that he should have stayed another year working on his shooting skills and overall player development.
This is the most credible post I have read on this thread so far.
It seems like either he just didn't want to return to school or the good tournament was what he was hoping to get him in the league and he was off the mark with that gamble. Look, he should have stayed another year with his shooting stats and FT stats where they were. Being a McDonalds AA can only carry you so far. You get in the NFL and throw up bricks or air balls from the stripe you won't last long. Just unfortunate.
***THIS IS JUST A QUESTION BASED ON PURE SPECULATION SO KEEP YOUR DAMN SHIRTS ON***
I wonder if he quit going to classes or something at the end of the FF run and would have been in academic trouble for next season, and therefore thought he had no other choice?
I wonder if he quit going to classes or something at the end of the FF run and would have been in academic trouble for next season, and therefore thought he had no other choice?
We need Paul Harvey alive so he could tell us the rest of the story. You could be right though who knows what really happened.
@E-Cut_22
Yep thanking someone for saying I made a good logical post about PJ improving his draft stock by returning makes me a tater. You nailed it. It's called being nice. Gamecock central could benefit from a few more users trying it
Not saying this is not true but can you give me an example or two? What is his route if the Lakers cut him?
I think this decision was made long before the post season run the team went on. If you remember, there were a few mock drafts back around the first of the year that had him projected in the lower part of the first round. And even in those where he dropped to the second he seemed to always be ranked ahead of Thornwell. Think he would have served himself well to stay another year and shore up his shooting. But it's a free country and he can do what he wants. What I don't understand is choosing the Lakers. His biggest selling point is being able to play point at his height. Lakers just used the #2 pick on a point guard. Figured he would look around for teams that are unsettled at that position.
