Vassell has become one of the oddest cases in San Antonio Spurs history

Devin Vassell's trajectory is the most head-scratching phenomenon I can ever remember from a Spurs player. Peachtree High's own was demonstrating some real ability as an efficient scorer with untapped potential. He was taking a bunch of tough shots and making them, leading fans to believe he'd only improve with easier looks and more training. This year has been a step in the other direction.

It's easy to see why San Antonio signed him to a five-year $135 million extension. He came in playing tough defense as a rookie and improved his offense every year. This felt like the year he would break out and play as a borderline all-star, but he's been struggling to score consistently, and according to Mitch Johnson, it's due to a lack of confidence.

Vassell's shaken confidence is confusing

Over the summer, trade proposals were flying left and right with suggestions on how to improve San Antonio's roster around Victor Wembanyama. They came from everywhere, from here at Air Alamo to Bleacher Report or ESPN. Everyone wants to see Wemby playing with a competent roster as quickly as possible, so it's natural for the team to receive such attention.

However, Vassell's name was often left out of trade proposals. Just about every other player on the roster was thrown into trade scenarios to bring in more established players, but most seemed to understand that Dev was not on the table. His ability to shoot the three, score on all three levels, and play defense made him a perfect fit next to Vic—as long as he kept improving.

This is Devin Vassell's fifth year in the NBA and the first year of extension, earning him $29 million this year. He's averaging 15.4 points (his lowest since his sophomore season. He's shooting the lowest 3PT% of his career, and his overall FG% is the second lowest in his five-year tenure.

Devin Vassell career numbers

I struggle to remember a time when a player who showed the type of yearly progression Vassell was showing just hit a wall and got noticeably worse without injury being a major factor.

He had been given nothing but support from the fans, and the organization gave him their trust. Other than Zach Collins, Keldon Johnson received most of the angst from Spurs fans over the summer, going back into last season. He's seemed to put his head down, charging through the distractions, and now he's playing some of his best ball.

Vassell has all the tools to be a good player, and now he has more opportunities to be great in his role. Bringing in Chris Paul and Wemby's improvement provided more open shots for Dev. Bringing in De'Aaron Fox will ensure he keeps getting those looks. He just needs to knock them down—something he's done for most of his career.