Just as much as Skal could be an outlier, DJ could be as well.
Skal was the #2 RSCI player in 2015. Carton is currently around 17-25, depending on the source. TMP might be wrong, but he’s provided sound reasoning why he wasn’t enamored with Carton as a player. To dismiss it purely as sour grapes is your right, but that doesn’t mean it’s not valid.
I posted my opinion on Carton at least twice in the last month. It never changed. I've said the same for at least for six months. One post where I say Lewis is the better guard, and another where I point to the thing I don't like about him. His decision making and feel. IIRC the first was to Tommy Cracker.
It's very simple, he freezes the ball. Watch him, it's not at a Barkley level or anything, but it's one trait I hate in a PG. I nitpick PG play and am picky about them in general. Sue me. It's a thing.
He catches, then reads, and then reacts and it's generally an attempt to score until stopped. He should know the play before he catches, he should be ahead of the play, like Lewis is. Watch KL, he already knows what to do way before he gets the ball or a play develops. He plays within the flow with a feel for the game and makes quick decisions Carton doesn't. He stops the ball.
You can't get much from AAU and HS games it all depends on competition and intensity of play but you can watch footwork and decision making and things like that. Carlton has tools; he's quick, can shoot, and has a good handle, it's why he's highly ranked. But, he's like a person who waits to see the menu before making an order at McDonald's*. You know, one of
those people.
(*if a person was gross enough to eat that swill)