There was a poll a while back, but this series has been eye opening. At a preseason game this year, i leaned over to my buddy and said, "Aaron Brooks sucks. He's not going to last long in this league." Ooops. Let's see his stats in this series: Game 1: 19 pts; 7/14 from the field (I won't bother with assists. That's not been his role this series). Game 2: 13 pts; 5/15 shooting Game 3: 7pts; 3/8 shooting Game 4: 34 pts; 12/20 shooting Game 5: 14 pts; 4/11 shooting Game 6: 26 pts; 8/13 shooting Let's consider several things: 1. This is a huge stage. Aaron does not seem to be phased by it much at all. 2. Aaron is a 2nd year player, but really has about 40 games under his belt as a starter. So the question is -- What do we have in AB?
A dude that is only going to get better as he learns the NBA game. Once he learns the short pull up in the lane, it's a wrap for anyone trying to check him.
Lenadro Barbosa, without the brain. He's solid, but He's more likely going to win a 6th man award than a finals MVP award.
His confidence and offseason work will determine how good he really can be. I do see why Morey made the move with Alston...no way we get the big games out of Rafer that we did from Brooks to help us win those games. Brooks ceiling is high if he can just learn a few techniques like change of pace...finishing stronger when hit...and pulling up for the short jumper when necessary. His ability to shoot the 3 ball, plus being one of the fastest players in the league gives him the ability to become something special if he continues to work at it and improve. Many others don't even have that potential. His weakness will always be his size on defense...so players like Billups could make him pay for it. But on this team that is more team defense oriented than individual defense oriented, and also has two of the best wing defenders in the league in Battier and Artest...we are the perfect team for Brooks to thrive and grow into a star on. With some hard work in the offseason, adding a couple of moves to his arsenal...I can see AB being a 20 point 5 assist guy next season....that would be huge because we haven't had that in a point guard in a long time. If we only kept everyone on the current team and Yao is healthy next year...Tmac comes back healthy after the Allstar break..I would think that we might even be favored to win it all next year by the haters...if no other teams make huge drastic changes..but even then...our team will have the chemistry finally that they didn't have in the beginning of this year. Ron in his second year with the team, Wafer second year, Lowry second year, Scolandry and Brooks third year...we will be poised to be a 60 plus win team with a top seed in the Western Conference next year without any changes....barring our cursed injury history repeating.
Some of you called him out early in the season, especially after the Rafer trade. I thought he made some mistakes largely due his inexperience, but overall he progressed well. What this kid can do right now is getting into the painted area to cause havoc and score. What he can't do is controlling tempo, and making right decision, vital skills for a PG. I think he will get there as a PG. Right now, he is about 1/4 of Steve Nash.
an inconsistent promising young guard I think he has all the tools to be a great guard (except of of course height), just depends if he keeps learning from his mistakes.
mutation of tony parker. a cousin, if you will. brooks has the lightning speed of parker, but lacks the natural finishing ability. then again, parker's the best in the league at finishing. anytime a midget pg can lead the L in points in the paint, it is astounding. parker's finish is incredible. parker does not have aaron's natural range, but is better (after years of practice with chip engulland (sic)) at the midrange.
this is the closest analogy imo. avery mentioned this too on espn last night. when ab doesn't hesitate to shoot the ball, he'a at his best. i think adelman said the same thing in the press yesterday.
How does the poll go from "Leandro Barbosa 2.0" (6th man of the year candidate) to "Good, not great, backup PG"? There's a huge gap there, which just happens to be where my answer would fall.
Can explain how he's anything like Tony Parker? You guys must be watching another game or wearing 3D Homer glasses. Tony Parker's biggest weakness when he came into the league and still somewhat right now IS HIS SHOOTING. That's actually Aaron Brooks, BEST ASSET. The only thing they have in common is their speed. I don't see much after that. Parker is much more fearless and aggressive at taking it to the hole. Aaron, usually hesitates at everything he does.
ab was actually kinda cool, meaning he doesn't bend under pressure. that's impressive for young players. he may not be playing well, but he ain't afraid of anyone or anything. (d. rose has the same quality.) but murph is a h-o-f. ab is unlikely to be a h-o-f quality pg. so that comparison is off.
