Behind the steady rise of the Raptors guard, who might soon be certified as an actual All-Star.
Fred VanVleet is an emerging NBA star, but not a star in any of the ways that anyone would readily recognize. To wit: Fred VanVleet does not soar over helpless defenders, nor mesmerize them with a killer crossover, nor dazzle us with physics-defying passes. Fred VanVleet is not a 7-foot “unicorn.” He is not a “cheat code.” He is not “breaking the game.” The game will probably survive Fred VanVleet.
The beauty of VanVleet’s stardom is that there is nothing sparkly about it, just a bright, steady pulse of winning plays—pinpoint passes, clutch threes, timely rotations, snarly defense—the stuff that doesn’t go viral on Twitter, but makes coaches happy and the Raptors hum.