“He takes the worst shots ever.” Those are Hall-of- Famer Charles Barkley's words describing San Antonio Spurs guard Devin Vassell. They came during Tuesday night's broadcast of the Silver and Black's blowout to Oklahoma City in a game that doubled as an NBA In-Season Tournament contest for both.

Excluding a game at New York in which Vassell scored four points in just 12 minutes in a return from injury, the fourth year guard was on his way to a season worst 12 points when the outspoken TNT analyst made those remarks during the network's halftime show. The Spurs were down 10 en route to another rout. Their 123-87 defeat meant a third loss of at least 30 points in their first 11 games, matching a 43 year old league mark they would've like to have avoided.

Amid those kinds of struggles, it's easy to pile on a team and the players. When nothing's going right, criticism seems not only worthy but appropriate.

But is Barkley right when he adds, “That's why he's [Vassell] always going to be streaky.”?

Vassell's shooting percentages for Spurs

Spurs' Devin Vassell looking serious

Here's a look at how the 11th overall pick in the 2020 NBA Draft has fared through the nine games he's played in 2023-24. It should be noted that in the games when he's been available for all 48 minutes, Devin Vassell has averaged 13.8 field goal attempts per contest.

His shooting percentages in chronological order this season:

vs. Dallas 52.9%

vs. Houston 53.8%

at Los Angeles Clippers 60%

at Phoenix 41.2%

*at Phoenix 70%

**at New York 33.3%

vs. Minnesota 50%

vs. Miami 41.7%

at Oklahoma City 41.7%

*Vassell was on the court for only 17 minutes and did not play in the second half because of injury.

**The aforementioned game against the Knicks marking Vassell's return from what the team called a mild groin strain. He took just six shots that night.

Shooting percentages in the 50's and in one case, at 60 – especially for a wing player – are very good. He cooled down in a Halloween night win at the Phoenix Suns. Though the second outing in Phoenix comes with an asterisk, it should also be noted that he still managed to reach double digit shot attempts, hitting seven of the ten he took, including a perfect three of three from three-point range.

Then percentages started to trail off. Including that 12-minute return from injury at Madison Square Garden, the former Florida State Seminole has reached 50% only once – the Spurs first Play-In Tournament game when he matched a game-high with 29 points. His two most recent contests have yielded the same 5-for-12 performances from the field, though Vassell hit four of the nine three-pointers he took in Sunday's 1118-113 loss to the Miami Heat.

A gradual ascension

Among the Spurs wing players, only sharpshooters Doug McDermott and Cedi Osman have hit higher percentages of field goal attempts. Both specialists, neither carries the offensive load asked of Vassell, who still finds himself within a percentage point of both.

The shots that Barkley criticizes are some of the very shots the 23-year-old worked on during the off-season. They're meant to be tough. Expect a player whose points per game increased through his first three seasons to continue to expand his game.

Vassell won't play in the Spurs game Friday vs. Sacramento, out with what the team labels “Left Abductor; Tightness.”

So for now at least, Charles Barkley can rejoice in that he'll be spared from watching Vassell take what he deems ‘bad' shots.