Was discussion with a couple guys at the game last night. What do you think is ceiling is? Boozer? please merge this thread if there is another thread with Patterson debate. I'm curious to read some.
I really like him. I don't think he'll be a star, but he'll be a very good player for a long time. He does things that are unusual for a rookie. On offense, he's constantly freeing up teammates with good screens. On defense, he has active feet and he communicates. And he keeps his arms up near the basket, when a lot of young players forget to do basic things like that (ahem ... Jordan Hill). He does remind me of a young Chuck Hayes, while being bigger, longer, and having a solid mid-range jumper. It remains to be seen if he'll have the same nose for the ball and tenacity going after rebounds. I hope he develops that.
Patrick will likely top out at a (since we saw him last night) Millsap-like player. He's a better defender but has less post moves.... which I hope he works on between seasons. You could also compare him to someone like Al Horford or David Lee.
I don't think he will be even a second tier star ala R.Gay or K.Mart. I do believe he will be a very good starter in this league for years to come. I'm thinking he could be a 15/10/1 guy maybe peaking at 18/12/1.5 and that's pretty good.
I really think he could be an all-star.. but the one thing holding him back is his lack of aggression on offense. Often, he's looking to set a screen or to pass the ball instead of making a move on his man. I'd love for Adelman to run some isolations for him so we can see him operate in the block or take his man off the dribble from the perimeter. He's done great defensively but offensively he looks like he's just trying to fit in. The next step for him is to look to takeover. Whether he can do that is anyone's guess.. but I'd sure like to see him try.
He reminds me of how well Budinger played his rookie season... smart player and knocking down shots... lets hope he doesnt suck next year like Bud
I don't think he's any where close to being able to do that YET... that type of move would be something that, if he could develop, could put him in a special class of PF..
Budinger was good when he was hitting shots. That's how it was his rookie year, and that's how it is this year. Patterson doesn't have to be knocking down shots to be a plus on the floor. That's the difference.
It doesn't take something special.. I'm not talking about crossing over anyone. But PPat is obviously fairly quick and athletic.. he should be able to get past his man on the perimeter and take it to the hole. For example, one move that Boozer excels at: as soon as he receives the ball in the high post, he immediately turns and drives the lane. This often catches his man off-guard and he's able to get by him. Patterson looks to be really quick -- he should be able to get past guys if they pressure him on the perimeter. If they relax, his jumper looks to be pretty solid. I'd love for the Rockets to feature him more instead of making him solely a screener and jump shooter.
He can defend,but LTF's comments are very valid. Low post scoring and rebounding will determine whether he will succeed in the league or not. Jump shooting and defense aren't going to be enough.
Who would have thought we would be talking about this type of expectations from a backseat kind of a player? The main key is that he plays well on both sides of the court. I think Morey might look into fielding what Scola can get in a package trade in the offseason, provided that Patrick keeps progressing this season.
Patterson is not going to get any significant playing time anytime soon. The man is talented. I know this. You know this. Most importantly, Morey knows this. Everytime he plays, he's shown flashes of brilliance. That being said, Patterson will not play any significant minutes until post trade deadline because Morey does NOT want to raise his stock. Why you ask? Because he was already ranked by Morey as the top 6 on his draft board while others ranked him lower. Morey sees him as a 'sleeper'. What I mean is that if he is dangling Hill in trade talks, he doesn't want the reply of "We don't want Hill, we want Patterson. " IMHO, that's why Patterson isn't playing, so he can be kept as the Rockets little secret until post trade deadline. Again, it's just one mans opinion.
Probably just looking to fit in right now. The more comfortable he gets the more aggressive he will become.
That depends on your definition of "succeed". He can be a very solid complimentary/role player -- even starter quality -- without being a special scorer or rebounder. He was a mid-first round pick, not a top 5 pick.
This. I'm thinking more 15/8-9/1 though. But I think if he really develops a Landry type skill set with better rebounding, shotblocking and defense, he can become a 2nd tier player at PF and a borderline star. (Big IF) (A 20 and 10 with defense might be able to get you in the all star game as a reserve, if an all star gets injured, or if your team has one of the best records/playoff success. Again big IF)