NBA Preseason Roundtable: Ranking the Philadelphia 76ers Roster

13. Jaden Springer (written by Matt Cahill)

For Jaden Springer, this year is going to be massive. As in, this season will determine whether or not he has any kind of future in the NBA. Since he entered the league people have praised him by saying that he was “unscreenable”, and that his defense and his body were both pro-level.

The problem has always been the rest of his game. He has always looked like a poor shooter, both in form and in results, so playing at shooting guard seems unlikely. He was drafted as a point guard, but his handle has always been suspect and he has rarely looked comfortable setting up the offense. For now, that lack of a position appears to leave him on the outside looking in.

Springer’s supposedly tremendous practice defense has only looked average in actual games and that is believed to be his strong suit, which only makes his shortcomings on offense more glaring.

Jaden Springer had noticeable raw talent when drafted at age 19.

Now at 21 he still doesn’t appear to be a guy who can get consistent minutes, even with the improvements to his game that he has made. To make matters worse, he was supposed to be “the man” in this past Summer League, only to be shown up by rookie Terquavion Smith.

For Springer, this has to be the year that he finally proves that he is capable of playing sustained minutes in games that matter, or he will find himself off this team, struggling to stay in the league. For Jaden Springer, it’s now or never.