JR Smith had a pretty decent NBA career. If Jalen Green ends up like JR for the Rockets and signs a middle level contract, I'll be satisfied. But you are right, JR's a much better 3pt shooter. That's probably what will separate a guy like JR and Jalen. In this league, especially if you are a guard, not being able to shoot is a almost death sentence to your career. The only way you can save yourself is to be able to do a lot of other things (defense, rebounding, play making, etc.) very well.
I voted D, and the reason he doesn't get an F is because I can see a real improvement in effort in rebounding and defense. That feels even worse, though, as the way he's playing in 9 out of 10 games, he doesn't deserve the starter spot even with the extra boards he's bringing in. It's not like he's rebounding in traffic like Amen... and trying on defense is the bare minimum, he's light years away from being an elite defender... At least to my untrained eye. I'd be interested in what the advanced stats say about his defense.
What would be cool, would be Green shooting 45/37/80 the rest of the way so everyone could calm down.
My sports app (The Score) just released its NBA rankings, along with what each team needs for the 2nd half of the season. Here's their take on the #21 Rockets. Apparently they're disappointed in Jalen even though they think this is only year 2 of his NBA career: Decide if Green is the answer at the wing. Jalen Green has struggled with consistency as a sophomore. He's averaging 15.8 points in seven games this February on dire 39/15.8/68 shooting splits.
