Former Wisconsin Badgers star Sam Dekker chose to forego his final season of eligibility and enter the NBA Draft alongside teammate Frank Kaminsky after a strong performance in last year’s NCAA Tournament, but life in the pros hasn’t really been ideal thus far. Dekker was drafted 18th overall by the Houston Rockets and has appeared in just three games, posting a rebound and a steal in six total minutes of playing time.
Dekker has also undergone back surgery and spent most of his rookie year in the D-League but based on a series of tweets posted today, he has no regrets about his decision.
https://twitter.com/dekker/status/704359578461294592?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
https://twitter.com/dekker/status/704359578461294592?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
Dekker is right. Just because his rookie season hasn’t been on the same level as guys like Karl-Anthony Towns or Kristaps Porzingis doesn’t mean that he should feel bad about leaving Madison a year early. Sure, it’d be nice if he had more playing time, but Houston’s rotation at small forward is pretty crowded right now, with Trevor Ariza and Corey Booker holding that spot down.
That said, better for Dekker to hone his craft in the D-League for a year and learn how to play outside of Wisconsin’s swing offense rather than jump in head first and underachieve, and he probably understands that.
On top of that, after averaging 12.1 points per game in three years and playing in two Final Fours, not to mention a hot streak for the ages in last year’s tourney (19.2 points, 58.2 FG%, 42.9 3P%), it’s safe to say that Dekker left college without any sort of regret.
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*Featured Photo (above) credit to USA TODAY Sports
