Next Season Scouting Report: Kyle Singler
By Joshua Lea
In the coming weeks leading up to training camp, Thunderous Intentions will review each individual player on Oklahoma City’s roster, break down their performance from 2014-15 and discuss the expectations for them next season.
Kyle Singler is entering the upcoming season with a clean slate. The former Duke Blue Devil has a new contract with the Oklahoma City Thunder and a new coach to work an offense that might cater more to his strengths over coaches and teams from years past. Last season, Singler didn’t preform up to his expectations. He didn’t put up monstrous numbers and he wasn’t effective on the defensive end of the floor.
But is that really on him? When the Oklahoma City Thunder made the trade for him, dealing Reggie Jackson to Detroit, Singler wasn’t expected to put up Kevin Durant-type numbers. I would consider last season as more of a tryout year for Singler and, as his contract would indicate, he must have impressed.
Last season, he appeared in 18 games for the Thunder, shot 33 percent from the floor and averaged just 3.7 points per game. Singler didn’t see a ton of minutes on the floor under former head coach Scott Brooks, who used him as more of a small forward, often starting him in place of the injured Durant. The rotation and different position contributed to Singler being out of rhythm and causing some hardships, which he admitted to The Oklahoman this past May:
"“I feel during the year I could have been more effective,” Singler said. “I was ready regardless but I thought I could have been a much better player for this team than I was.”"
It would seem that Singler was upset with his play last season. However, the injury bug bit the Thunder pretty hard before Singler arrived so, in a sense, he didn’t really get to play for the Oklahoma City Thunder. Without Kevin Durant and Serge Ibaka, this Thunder team wasn’t whole, so Singler had to play out of his comfort zone, which affected his game. However, there is chemistry with Singler and the rest of the Thunder which was prevalent from the first time they played together after the trade in Charlotte.
This season, Singler is going to be expected to be a valuable backup to Durant at the small forward position. Those aren’t easy shoes to fill as KD is arguably the best player in the NBA. All Singler would have to do is maintain the offense at the small forward spot while Durant gets his rest. The idea here is to not blow a huge lead late in games so Durant doesn’t have to re-enter the game to close it out.
This could be a challenge for Singler, he’s never played alongside of a player of Durant’s caliber. However, there are factors working in his favor this upcoming season. Billy Donovan, taking over as the Thunder’s coach, will likely use a spread half-court offense that could work similarly to what Singler saw at Duke.
Singler thrived with the Blue Devils using the 3-2 motion offensive scheme that Mike Krzyzewski has used for many seasons. In the 3-2 motion, the small forward plays more of a guard position, while the 4 (power forward) plays just above the free throw line as the small forward; both forwards utilize the pick-and-roll or the post entry pass.
The beauty of this is that Singler can work both inside and outside. He can spread the floor and shoot an open three-pointer or get low and make the extra pass or layup. Under Donovan’s spread offense, Singler will be back in the half-court and should have the spread working to the give OKC more room to operate versus the transition pick-and-pop offense the Thunder ran last season.
Next season, Singler has to improve his motion in the offense. He needs to know where to be and when to be there. At Duke, he knew his spots; he knew where to be on the defensive end of the floor. If he can master the ability to run the floor with Dion Waiters and Anthony Morrow, Singler can provide valuable floor spacing and he can be open to knock down the mid-Range jumper or 3-point shot.
Within Donovan’s projected offensive scheme, there is no reason Singler can’t be well worth the money that the Oklahoma City Thunder has invested in him. He’s going to have to make open shots. He’s going to have to improve on the defensive end.
If he can complete those tasks, Kyle Singler can be an important piece for the Thunder next season.