I feel like you are taking the fact that ICO's *can* be used as out and out scams to then mean that there is no legitimate use for an ICO. An ICO is just a way to raise funds that could be required for the project to succeed.
Would you say an IPO is a scam too?
Ctrl+F the word "scam" and see how many times I used it.
I say it is devs short selling their own shit, fair and simple. Would you short sell something you own knowing it will go 10x? Dun think so.