Tim Duncan says what fans already know about Derik Queen

If you missed the New Orleans Pelicans game Saturday evening against the San Antonio Spurs, then you missed yet another incredibly strong showing from Derik Queen. The rookie big man finished with 13 points, five rebounds, and eight assists as he was finally able to showcase the playmaking traits that made him such a unique prospect. During the Pelicans side of the broadcast, the team color commentator, Antonio Daniels, who spent four years as a player with the Spurs, received a text from his former teammate/the greatest power forward of all time, Tim Duncan. 

In the message, Duncan Queen, it appears that DQ had made a fan out of the five-time NBA champion. Duncan's sentiment about DQ sums up how all Pelicans fans also feel about the team's rookie big man.

For Queen, just eight games into his career, to be getting praised by a player of Duncan's magnitude is insane and speaks volumes about the potential the 13th overall pick possesses. 

What Duncan was probably seeing in Queen was a player who, despite having an off night scoring the basketball, as he shot below 36 percent from the field, still found other ways to impact the game. This is something all great players do, as it’s often best to evaluate a young talent based on their worst offensive performance to see if they can provide something more than just scoring.

DQ passed the test, as he was effective as a screener, did a solid job defending the basket, and helped create open looks for others out of the post, while still managing to occasionally get in his own bag and score.

This performance against the Spurs showed a ton of what I expected from Queen following the draft. Seeing him be that Swiss army knife that can do it all at the five was really cool, and makes it easy to understand how he made a fan out of Duncan.

The impression Queen made on Duncan is only the beginning

Queen is such a unique player and personality that Tim Duncan will definitely not be the last NBA legend he makes a fan of. 

His ability as a passer alone at his size is already going to draw eyes to him. The passes he’s able to make out of the post are ones we only see guys like Domontas Sabonis and Nikola Jokic make. Pair that with his ability to get in his bag and get the team a bucket, as well as his confidence, and you have easily one of the most exciting bigs in the entire NBA.

On top of what he does on the court, he’s also such a likable kid. DQ is never not smiling and consistently shows a willingness to improve and learn from his vets/elders. I have a strong feeling that as this season progresses and more eyes start to watch Queen play for the Big Easy, a long list of legends will emerge as Derik Queen supporters.