lol yeah, have to love those that question his work ethic. Think I'll trust what John Lucas has to say about it more than internet "analysts". Could play devil's advocate and ask how many others on the team have set up a 4am on court workout on the plan ride home after a bad game like JG did (right before he dropped his career high 42). Guess if we haven't heard about like we did when Green did it, no one else did it, huh? (for all we know, others have too!) It's crazy. We know several of our guys have very good work ethics. Ime will help those that do, too.
If I had to bet he is going to be as good as those last 30 games. He should just not be a starting PG playing with 19-20 year olds. The only way that scenario makes sense is if you were trying to get one last high pick. That is what i choose to believe. On a successful team I could see KPJ coming off the bench for about 22-27 minutes a night. Hopefully dominating other bench players. It would also seem that KPJ that is relectunt to pass would pair well with Eason and Garuba two guys that do not need the ball. Otherwise let Green/Jabari have someone at the guard spot that makes quick decisions and knows how to be a pro. I don't think John Wall was that either. Harden/VanVleet if Scoot Henderson is starting you NEED a high caliber PG on the bench. Which it's the case I don't know where KPJ fits in anymore unless he is off the ball quite a lot.
Agree with pretty much all of this. Maybe not KPJ being quite as good as those last 30 games but definitely better than he'd been prior to that, both in his career and the first half of this season. It's scary how similarly KPJ finished this season and Jalen finished his rookie season (their final 32 games each season). TS% - KPJ 59.9, JG 59.2 FG% - KPJ 46.3, JG 47.4 3PT% - KPJ 39.4, JG 39.3 2PT% - KPJ 53.2, JG 54.6 PPG - KPJ 19.5, JG 20.7 MINS - KPJ 34.0, JG 33.9 I mean that's crazy. The only thing that really stuck out to me was JG's +/- was -133 to end his rookie season in those 32 games while KPJ's was -233 this season. But we know this year's team was worse than last year's in many areas, so I don't put much in that. I don't see him continuing to be at 60ish TS% but definitely should be well above where he'd been his entire career before that. Think he finally has figured some things out here at the end of his 4th season. Many do around that time.
Porter's assists are down, his turnovers are up, his TS% is below Green's and Green is the one underperforming?
His assists are down due to sharing responsibilities with Jalen Green.... and KPJ's TS% is A LOT higher than Green's. You might want to double check where you get your information from.
There are a lot of people around basketball now that have been very down on KPJ. A surprising amount honestly, the only recent player I can think of that has been so disliked has been Westbrook. I don't want to speak for anyone else, but Vecenie and Thorpe and Hollinger have alluded to the fact that they do not think that he is a winning player, and will only hurt the development of the Rockets younger players. From my perspective, whatever harm KPJ would have on the younger Rockets has already happened, and if KPJ is a problem - Udoka will handle it, so I am not really concerned about next season because Silas is gone and I trust Udoka on issues of development and discipline. I think if Porter is long for the Rockets, it will be as a 6th man. He is more of a shooting guard to me, and with his shooting skills, I think he could be an effective Eddie Johnson or Ricky Pierce type player, but he would have to embrace the roll.
Shouldn't be hard, Udoka said he's looking for shooting and KPJ is the best on the team at that plus he said "youth is not an excuse" which might be bad news for some.
Man, you are going back to NBA ancient history with those player comps! For the young kids on the board, let's say he's more Jordan Poole than Tyus Jones.
He is looking for shooting because the team lacks it. The problem is that our best shooter is not good and overall the team is very bad. It is irrelevant whether kpj is the best shooter or not. Also I am sure he will look for defense, making the correct passes, not making stupid decisions, not quitting plays and many other things. All the players will have a reality check. Silas was a joke. The ones that might have a harder time to adapt are the ones that had least accountability and kpj sits on the top of that list.
I fully expect Green to outperform KPJ in training camp, preseason ball. I also expect it would be his job to lose since he has much greater potential, and Ime Udoka is not an idiot. Very little chance KPJ begins the season as starting SG.
The next season will make or break KPJ. I just don't see a middle ground with him. He has all the tools you would want from a modern guard. He has good size and athleticism, a consistent and good shot, good handles, can pass, and play good D in spurts. But as talented as he is, he's equally unpredictable and a huge character question mark. For every mercurial talent that succeded, there are 10 that flamed out. I can't compare him to Artest or Draymond, because those guys play with much higher energy, especially when challenged. KPJ so far has leaned towards the opposite. I keep thinking that in a tight and hard fought playoff series, with questionable reffing and borderline critical pressure, both mental and physical, he would check out and fold. I think that many of us don't really understand how hard is to win. Harden is an example of a guy that has historic talent, and was an absolute terror during the regular season. Basically a one man wrecking crew. But on the biggest stage he consistently came up short. KPJ right now is maybe the most talented guy on the roster, but is he the guy to take us on a deep playoff run eventually? The answer is a resounding no. He was misused (as was pretty much everyone), and put in a lead guard position to secure the tank. I get that We were trying to see if can do the job, but it's clear to even his biggest supporters that he's not a lead playmaker. That doesn't mean that he's a bad player, but it does mean that he can't be the head honcho. He's the best catch and shoot player on the team right now, so why on earth was he only taking 1.9 c'n's 3's per game? It's only logical to design a scheme for him to double that number at the bare minimum, but We couldn't/wouldn't do it. Instead We let him be the lead playmaker, which clearly is too overwhelming for him. But the biggest mistake We made was to enable his behaviour. Visibly sulking and not getting back on D, becoming extremely passive when things don't go his way, quitting the game midway and going home, optional practice etc etc. That's unacceptable for a guy that was given a chance when no one else would give it to him, but I blame Stone and Silas for his behaviour the past two seasons. I would love for KPJ to buy in and click with Udoka, and accept the role he sees fit for him, but I'm concerned that KPJ's reaction to a different role and approach won't be pretty or end well. He could work as a spot up wing that has the ability to attack when the closeouts are aggressive. Move him off the ball and use his energy on shooting and D. He's strong and rangy, and his lateral quickness is good, so he can be a plus defender if consistent and motivated. Alternatively, he can be a good sixt man option. A guy that can come in and lead the second unit with 3 and D wings and a lob option at the 4/5. I like the idea @peleincubus has, KPJ would work best with guys like KJ, Tari and Garuba next to him. Get a guy like Drummond at the 5 to be his rim running C and let him run high screen and rolls.
There is no primary playmaker to create catch and shoot opportunities for KPJ. As flashy as Sengun's passes were he was actually quite turnover prone. Green has a long way to go as a ballhandler. You can't run plays that are the most efficient without the appropriate personnel. CP3 shoots 52.3% on catch and shoot threes on only 1.5 attempts, Booker shoots 44.4% on only 2 attempts. They're way more efficient on the catch than off the dribble, but take less than a third of their attempts that way. Why? Because they are Phoenix's primary ballhandlers and get a ton of attention. Those shots don't come easily. Also, not all catch and shoot opportunities are the same. CP3 might shoot 52% on spot ups, but that doesn't mean he's great at curling around screens like Steph Curry. I don't know if shooting on the move is really in KPJ's skillset, most players don't have that.
I think subjectively weaponizing the phrase “youth is not an excuse” is bad. The stupid things that KPJ did this year are certainly not because he is a wise veteran. The team likely has 3 positions covered for phase 2. Center is covered. Wemby, Sengun or Smith. Some people might argue on Jabari there. I think that if we do not get Victor and we decide that Sengun is not the long term starter, then Smith is a good option. As long as he adds 15 pounds or so. Shooting guard is covered. Green should start off of what we have invested and his ability to develop in creating his own shot, or a good shot for others. However, if Green does not show development on both sides of the ball this year, we audible to Porter. If Green is to be deserving of #2 pick, he should pass up Porter this season. 6th man will be Porter or Green.
