I have a lot of doubt about that. Poor ball handler without a naturally aggressive mindset towards scoring - I don't see Ben becoming a star in any circumstances.
The Kings have been horribly dysfunctional but they also gave been a starting job right out of the gate and allowed him to keep it even when he struggled. And game minutes are THE biggest thing for a players growth. I wouldn't say McLemore's lack of development is a one way street.
Look at Kentavious Caldwell Pope.
He came out of college as a below average handler, but better than Ben. Both had problems driving to the rim, but Ben was actually the better finisher. Ben scored nearly 16pts. Compare his per 40 in shot attempts to KCP and there's only 2.4 difference. Don't forget that KCP had to carry a load at Georgia.. Georgia isn't exactly a powerhouse by any standards.
I see both of them very similar, but Ben came out of college nearly better at everything except ball handling.
Both come into the NBA at the same time and they get drafted after one another.
KCP(19.8mins) is terrible his 1st year. Ben(26.7mins) is terrible his 1st year.
2nd year?
KCP(31.5mins) struggles tremendously on offense, but he's shown a lot of signs on defense. He's starting to figure things out.
Ben(32.6mins) has a good offensive year with respectable shooting numbers. He's starts to show signs on defense.
At this point, Ben is better and he's showing a lot more.
3rd year?
KCP(36.9mins) has improved his scoring, but he still struggles shooting the ball. Ball handling has improved significantly from his 1st year. Has become a good defender. Mediocre offense with good defense. Mentality has become more aggressive.
Ben( 21mins) has improved his shooting, but struggles with consistency. Still shows signs on defense, but it's pretty bad with the entire Kings team. He's become a better passer, but his ball handling is unknown. He doesn't get many opportunities to show it off.
What's the real difference between these 2 players? Their teams.
The Kings have not developed Ben properly and it's taken a toll on the entire team. Imagine if Ben had a consistent coach all 3 years of his career.
Year 1: Malone for an entire year
Year 2: Malone for 25 games. Corbin for another 30 games. Karl for about 25 games.
Year 3: Karl for 50 games through a dysfunctional season full of snakes in the grass. Shortest leash on the team for every little mistake when you see Rondo, Gay, Cousins, and Belinelli cruising along.
In a total of 49 games he's played this season, he's only had more than 10 shot attempts in 6 of them.
Yet fans complain that we don't get enough production out of him. Ben only gets 16.2 passes a game right in front of Kofus and WCS. In comparison, Belinelli gets 29.
I just don't think this team has developed him well at all. Yes you can question his bball IQ, but what 20yearold players come out of the NBA with extremely high IQs? You can say the game is too fast for him, that could be a valid point. I just think a lot of our failures at the SG position have to do with our coaching with Ben.
Of the last few years, the only players we really successfully developed is Cousins and maybe Casspi.