Devin Carter’s first thirteen games were defined by a desperate, mostly fruitless struggle to secure a permanent spot in the rotation. He was a deep-bench afterthought. Look no further than the 10/30 vs CHI matchup, where a completely empty 12-minute shift—zero points on 0-for-3 shooting—resulted in a dismal -11.8 impact. Even when the coaching staff finally loosened his leash for the 11/13 vs ATL game, his 11 points translated to a barely visible +0.4 impact. He simply forced up too many bad looks. That 4-for-12 shooting night actively stalled the offense and capped his overall value. A month later in the 12/12 vs DEN contest, Carter poured in 15 points on efficient 5-for-10 shooting, yet still managed only a +0.8 impact. Scoring bursts mean nothing if you are bleeding points on the defensive end.

Devin Carter's mid-season stretch was a volatile rollercoaster defined by broken perimeter mechanics and a wildly fluctuating rotation spot. During the 02/04 vs MEM matchup, he reached double figures with 10 points but still dragged the second unit down to a dismal -6.7 Impact score. That negative rating stemmed directly from his horrific shot selection, as he forced up and bricked all six of his three-point attempts. He briefly flipped the script when thrust into the starting lineup for the 02/26 vs DAL game, posting a stellar +9.4 Impact. Even though his outside shot remained totally broken that night, he manufactured winning basketball by crashing the glass for 7 rebounds and dealing 5 assists. Unfortunately, brilliant flashes like that were sandwiched between absolute duds. Just days prior on 02/21 vs SAS, he was practically invisible, logging zero points and a catastrophic -9.3 Impact in six empty minutes of cardio.