Real life will eventually happen for all basketball players. DeAndre's career reached its peak with the game he had against Iowa State in the sweet 16 of the 2014 NCAA Tournament. That was the best game he had while wearing a UConn uniform. He played out of his mind.
However, playing in Italy is not a bad gig. It's not huge money but he will do okay and absorb a new culture. He may even end up with an Italian wife. And you can do worse than the food in Italy. DeAndre will have lots of good homemade pastas. Let's not forget there are only 3 great cuisines in the world and Italian is one of them.
I reject the notion that any guy is somehow a failure because he is playing pro ball in Europe. He is a pro player and he will have a good life. Kobe Bryant's father played in Italy for many years and Kobe grew up there and learned his ball there. It's actually a great spot for DeAndre, not that Australia was bed.