Despite the uncertainty surrounding his hiring, a rumor surrounded Greg McDermott when he got to town. The word from those in the know was that the new coach had a son and the kid could play a little bit. That kids name was Doug.
Now Doug McDermott was tall, about 6'8", but he was skinny and hadn't been widely recruited, and certainly not by the major D1 programs. He was overshadowed by a high school teammate named Harrison Barnes who just happened to be the most coveted player in the country. As the story went, Doug's own father didn't even recruit him at Iowa State.
When Doug arrived at Creighton, the plan was to redshirt him, allow him to develop. An injury to a returner changed this plan and thrust the younger McDermott into the starting lineup.
As a freshman Doug proved those original rumors to be true. Averaging almost 15 points and 7 rebounds a game The kid could indeed play a little bit. He even earned all-conference honors which was a rarity for a freshman in the Missouri Valley. He by no means was dominant but a solid career like that of Dane Watts appeared well within the realm of possibilities.
Something funny happened though as Doug McDermott continued his career at Creighton. He kept getting better. Like a lot better. Like by leaps and bounds. He started as a post player with great footwork and a soft touch. Then he proved he was an absolute sniper from long range. Then he showed off a Dirk Nowitzki-esque wrong-footed fade away. Now he has improved his ball-handling enough to create his own shot, go coast-to-coast, or even occasionally break the press.
In the matter of three short years Doug McDermott had done the unthinkable. He had raised his ceiling from probay being the next Dane Watts to possibly becoming the closest thing we have seen to Larry Bird.
And I know what you're thinking, here we go again. Everytime a tall white guy comes around who can knock down a jumper, someone has to compares him to Larry Bird. But you have to look past the obvious to see where this comparison rings true.
Like Bird, McDermott isn't just a shooter, he's a shot-maker. What I mean is that it's not just spot up 3s that he knocks down, it's off-balance shots, shots in traffic and through contact, and big shots when his team needs them most. Just like Larry Legend. McDermott certainly isn't the passer that Bird was but everything else matches up incredibly well, including the most important thing that Larry Bird and Doug McDermott have in common. They both seemingly do not care about anything in the world besides basketball.
They say you don't appreciate what you have until it's gone, but that's not always true. Creighton fans know exactly what they've got. He may or may not end up resembling Larry Legend, but he's a legendary Bluejay already.
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