[Video] Kostas Papanikolaou Highlights (12 points, 4 threes) vs. Jazz

I'm afraid with Papa that people are expecting him to be a great 3 point shooter, which IMO he isn't. But that's OK. He's good at many other things, so he can still positively impact the team when he's not shooting 100% from the 3 PT line.

I just don't want to see people declaring him as trash when he misses shots, and then declaring him a great player when he hits them. He's not like Casspi, whose only contribution, even in his best games, would be stretching the floor. Papa offers defense, passing, and energy and intelligence on both sides of the floor.

As such, his success in the eyes of Rockets fans shouldn't be so heavily influenced by just hitting threes. But... it sure is nice when he hits them.

 

he is replacing that void in my heart left by the departure of my favorite, non superstar foreigner, luifa.

 

I agree, but much like with Diaw, his strengths offensively will most likely rely on the defense playing him as if his shot is a threat. Even though they know Diaw wants to drive and kick, they still fall for the shot fake almost every time.

I knew Papa was versatile offensively, but I saw him or less like Battier offensively where he was going to be making smart, quick passes, and would be good at feeding the post & could occasionally get hot from 3. I never saw how crafty of a passer he was driving the lane, and never knew he'd be that good at pocket passes.

We will see here in the coming weeks whether or not its just some early success or if he can expand in his role. Unlike Casspi, I see his role getting bigger as the year goes on while someone like Casspi's shrunk as the competition got better.

 

Reminds me more of hedo pt 2. Which i'll take

 

definitely a more flashy version of hedo and scola, I will take it

 

Welcome to Clutchfans!

Yes, Rockets' offensive "system" is based on space and pace, then read and react, and he's doing a great job reading the defenses for himself and his teammates. Coaches praise his basketball IQ and are asking him to handle the ball more.

What's even more telling is how quickly Harden has taken to him, describing him as "playing like a veteran" and trusting him to make his shots.

We hope his game continues to grow this year, because we need him very much to make a playoff run.

 

Cool to see the Kostas with the Mostest being an instant fan favorite. He's certainly an electrifying young Euro, and makes this Clutchfan question, Chandler who? While there's sure to be growing pains, it's hard not to get excited by Papa's versatile skill set and the way in which he competes on the court. It's been truly remarkable to watch Papanikolaou and the precocious pace of play he displays for a rookie. I'm also really digging his plus passing ability. Kostas flashing those Magic Johnson like peripherals.

 

Perhaps posts pertaining to Papa should preemptively prohibit "P" phrases, puns, passages, and partial paragraphs.

 

Hi there guys, Ill give my two cents about Pap coming from a Greek Olympiakos fan so you can have an idea of what to expect.

Pap is more like an all around swiss army knife of a player...what i mean is that he does a lot of work on the court but of course not at the high nba level of athleticism you are used to there.He is a very good shooter but not an amazing one and a very good defender and he reads the game well.Nba is more isolation orientated game than the european one with more spaces but also a lot faster which means that Pap is more likely to create offense for his teammates than finish them himself unless he has good open looks...

And...that is his biggest strength i think that you may need...cause pap is a team player with the real meaning of the word.He isnt a guy who plays for his stats(that i see many nba players do) but mainly for his team and coach....plain and simple the kid wants to win....bad...he has that winning mentality but not the hero ball mentality.If that means not taking a single shot and just do a specific defensive job of the court he ll gladly do it.I see that he is asked to to more things that he is used to back in Europe but the only thing iam certain of, is that he ll work extra hard to get better on all those things cause he has that hunger but also experienced enough to not force the issue but work hard for it.

So in other words i think he can become a really valuable 6th man in the future.The only thing iam curious about is how far his conditioning ll develop.Cause if he gets just a bit stronger and faster his contribution ll skyrocket cause he is a bit of an everythings man....So basically you bought a team glue component there.I believe he ll be fine, after all his team wears red....thats a good start already....

 

What I just saw there was about 24 possible points that were produced and prevented combined from papa....including the defensive steals & block. That's what I call making a huge impact on both ends.

 

Papa is a baller, plain and simple. Guys that you say "this guy just gets it", unlike Covington who appears to have the tools to be a successful NBA player but for whatever reasons skills just do not translate to the next level.

Papa is doing all the little things needed to help his team win. Hope he continuous to develop as he is already the 4th or 5th best player on the Rockets. In other words, this guy has definitely surprise us with just good, solid plays.

 

Will he end up better than Parsons?

 

I don't think so because Parson is more athletic. However, Paps has an uncanny way of getting penetration in ISO situations that Parsons never had. There are many time when Paps successfully initiated the offense from the top of the key. I used to cringe when Parsons was given the ball in that situation. Parson has a really slow first step and would ending turning the ball over most of the time.

 

I honestly think he is just a consistent 3 point shot away right now from being better and I'm not just saying that out of Parsons hate. Parsons shot .337 from 3 his rookie year, but kept working at it and got it up to a solid .385 the 2nd year and .370 last year. I think Pap is just as good if not better at handling the ball, rebounding, and passing out of the box so to speak, while being a clear upgrade defensively despite probably not being quite as athletic as Chandler. Plus his intangibles seem to be off the chart Shane Battier type level. Here is to hoping that he develops that shot and gets his body into more NBA shape. They supposedly have him on a new training regimen for this very reason. Can you imagine how good this guy might be once he gets in better shape?

 

Deoes anyone know if he can post up or if he did it in Europe?

 

IMO Parsons has a higher ceiling due to better athleticism, but KPapa will end up being the better overall player. I am really high on KPapa though so obviously my views are a bit biased.

 

Probably a productive, positive proposition.

 

I think he has the potential to be better, but it's still early days.

 

He's already better.