he's absolutely sick. his ceiling is so high. I wouldn't be surprised if he was better than tmac in the end.
A healthy t-mac has a ceiling just as high as anyones. The matter of fact is, health, conditioning, and the mental game are the x-factors for all these super athletes. I hope Durant becomes great. Seems like a good kid to me from the limited things I have heard.
I love Durant but he will never be a TMAC. People forget how great Tmac is because of all the injuries. Fact is, all these super athletic guards/fowards can not handle the ball the way Tmac does, and that is what separates Tmac from the rest of the pack. Other than Magic Johnson, who else that was 6-9/6-10 handled the balled the way Tmac does? Durant has the potential to be a great player, someone in the mold of KG with a better jump shot.
i'm not saying durant is going to be better than tmac but durant can handle the ball REALLY well. have you watched any of his games? he handles the ball like a point guard.
Kevin Durant is special By Jeff Goodman Scout.com Posted Jan 25, 2007 When a team manager broke his ankle in a pickup game after practice, a skinny freshman was the one who bolted downstairs to get a bag of ice. When a bunch of 8-year-old fans were hanging outside the locker room after a game earlier in the season, the very same 18-year-old emptied his locker with sneakers to autograph. Kevin Durant is special. Forget about on the court. He's even more gifted off of it. The ultra-skilled 6-foot-9 Texas freshman has played well enough to be included in Player of the Year discussions, but he doesn't understand all the fuss. In the wake of two consecutive losses - a triple-overtime thriller at the hands of Oklahoma State and another road setback at Villanova - Longhorns coach Rick Barnes approached his prized frosh this past weekend. ``Are you getting tired of all of this attention?" Barnes asked. He wasn't talking about the junk defenses that Durant has had to deal with in recent weeks. It was the media circus that has surrounded him of late because of the manner he started off Big 12 play. ``Yes," Durant said. ``What part are you getting tired of?" Barnes asked. ``I just don't like that they always want to talk about me," was the reply. ``Why can't we talk about the team. It's not just about me." The problem is that it really <i>is</i> all about Durant. If Durant had opted to play for Jim Calhoun, the Longhorns would be closer to 5-13 than 13-5 and those in Storrs would be worried whether they'd make it to the Final Four instead of the NCAA tournament. If the Longhorns can finish anywhere in the stratosphere of the Top 25 and win a couple of games in the NCAA tournament, Durant should be a lock for Player of the Year honors. This is a Texas team that starts four freshmen and a sophomore who averaged 6.4 points per game last season. Alando Tucker is a heck of a player, but just look at the experience surrounding him and what Durant has for a supporting cast. Durant had the worst game of his 18-game collegiate career against Villanova when he finished with a dozen points and eight boards and shot 4-of-15 from the field. However, in his defense, the still rail-thin 220-pound freshman played 52 minutes in a heartbreaker four days prior. Durant has always played second-fiddle to that same guy - Greg Oden. For the last two-plus years of high school, Oden was No. 1 and Durant was always considered a distant second. ``I'm competitive," Durant said. "I don't like settling for number two. I want to be number one." Durant says he wasn't very good prior to his junior season at Oak Hill Academy. His mother, Wanda Pratt, says that's just Kevin being Kevin. ``He's modest," Pratt said. "That's always been the way he is." ``Kevin has never been selfish and never given me any problems," she added. That's not just mom-speak, either. This is coming from a strict woman who believes in discipline. There was the time that her older son, Anthony, had just gotten a job at a fast-food restaurant and wanted to buy Wanda a present at the mall. His friends were unable to go with him and, at 14, he didn't want to go alone. Kevin, three years younger, had a basketball workout scheduled, but he chose to go with his brother and the pair picked up a necklace and earrings set for their mom. While it's highly unlikely that Durant will be chosen first in the NBA Draft next June, it's not out of the question, either. Several NBA executives have said that they'd have to consider taking Durant if they had the top overall pick. ``You'd have to seriously take a long, hard look at it," one NBA personnel director said. "The kid is <i>that</I> good." Durant doesn't want to hear about any of it. Not from the writers, not from Missouri coach Mike Anderson, who said he should go to the league ASAP, and certainly not from the NBA guys. At least not right now. ``He just doesn't have that attitude like he knows everything," Barnes said. "Everybody else wants him to grow up, but he just wants to be one of the guys." The Longhorns staff is already working on next year's schedule and Durant is as giddy as anyone about the thought of playing Duke at Madison Square Garden or UCLA in Pauley. ``He talks like someone who hasn't made up his mind yet," Texas assistant Ken McDonald said. "I think it's real." C'mon, let's be serious. There's no way that Durant spends stays around Austin long enough to be termed a sophomore. ``You never know," Durant said. "As of right now, I'm planning on playing in those games." True, but plans change.
Have you even seen Durant play? He is more in the TMac mold than KG. Handles wise, I don't think I have ever seen a guy with Durant's size handle the ball like he can. Like AzCkr posted, he has the handles of a PG but w/ KG's size. I remember one play where the commentators were shocked that Durant was able to dribble and control a ball that was almost dead on the floor while 2 guards were trying to scrap for it as well. Let's not forget that this kid is only 19, TMac is an unbelievable basketball player, but I won't be suprised one bit if Durant becomes just as good as TMac, possibly better. He is that good.
Durant is good, but let's take a deep breath. If he dedicates himself to developing his basketball skills to the same extent Tracy did, anything is possible. But let's see what happens to him after he hits the NBA (or better said, the NBA hits him). I have no doubt he will be an impact player from the start, but how high he goes is a wild guess. He has the tools to be spectacular, but few players develop their tools to the extent Tracy has. I want Durant to be great. He seems like a nice kid who has his head on right. The NBA needs more like him.
Durant's something else, and is going to be great in the league. I'd say he's a better player than Oden, wrist injury or no. The flipside is big men have such an impact on the game it's tough to say Oden won't have more of an impact. Who can carry a team on their own better, Duncan or Kobe? Jordan's the only swingman that didn't need a dominant center to win it all in the modern era (Wade could be argued). Oden might not be as talented, but his size and frontcourt dominance will probably represent a bigger difference in wins. He's the pick if the Celtics, Sixers, Hawks, or Griz get the pick. The Bobcats are the only ones I could see taking Durant over Oden, personally. Evan
Ive watched a few games, and he does indeed handle the ball well for his size, but its no where close to Tracy Mcgrady like. He handles the ball more like a 2 guard with impressive handles. On the other hand, Tmac and Magic handles the ball just as well as any point guards in the league. Not only do the handle the ball, but they are great distributors. I think that is the biggest difference between Durant and Tmac. Ball handling and decision making are two things that really cant be taught. Durant to me is a hybrid of Tmac and KG.
I agree. Durant is Durant. He's a better shooter and ball handler than Garnett, but doesn't handle the ball as well as Tracy McGrady. I don't think there's anyone in the NBA who provides a really good comparison.
Individually, but in terms of impact and value, I still have him behind TJ Ford. He would have to get past the Sweet 16 this year to change that.
Are you kidding? The other starters on UT are 3 freshman and a sophomore who averaged 6 ppg last year. Durant has led them to a 15-5 record. I'm very partial to TJ, but let's get real here. Remove Durant and add TJ and these Longhorns aren't 15-5. Durant definitely does not need a Sweet 16 appearance to match TJ's impact when you compare the rosters to each other. TJ, great college player that he was, led a very seasoned team into the big dance. Durant has much less to work with.
Ford helped put UT on the map as a bball program. He really helped Barnes transform the program to elite level. He played with Daniel Ewing, but beyond that his team wasn't that loaded. They were nice player, but T.J. made them all better. I guess Royal Ivey has stuck around the NBA also. Those teams were good but not great. Durant's obviously the better prospect because he's 6'10". But its hard to argue that he's had bigger impact than T.J. When Ford was there, there was better competition. specifically, Oklahoma, Kansas, and even Missouri were good teams, and maybe even Iowa State. This is also a down year in the big XII.
TJ played with Daniel Ewing at Willowridge High School, but Ewing went to Duke. That final 4 team had Ivey, James Mouton, Brian Boddicker, James Thomas and Brad Buckman who was a freshman. That team was much better defensively, more experienced and much deeper than this years longhorn team. If you removed Durant and Ford from the two teams. The final 4 team was better. The above mentioned team minus TJ went to the sweet 16 the next year. This year's longhorn team wouldn't make the tournament without Durant.
B Mouton SO D Erskin JR J Thomas SO R Ivey SO F Williams SR S Harris FR J Klotz FR T Ross JR B Boddicker SO Those guys weren't that great. Mouton was the only guy that could come close to getting his own shot. No one near Augustin's class in that bunch; no one that can shoot as good as Abrams. The current UT freshman starters were a stud class. How good are they? It's hard to tell because they don't really get much of a chance to show what they can do.
That was a great defensive team with Freddie, Ivey, and Thomas. It had experience in the defensive system. UT's stud class has not gelled defensively, yet. Next year, UT's stud class will probably be more talented than these guys (I'm still hoping that barnes gets them to play together on defense by the tournament), but most likely Durant will be gone.
James Thomas on this Texas team would make them a contender. He's exactly what this team needs. I think the closest comparison could be Dirk or a really pumped up Derrick McKey.
Just a heads up: ESPN 2 will have a double header tonight starting w/ Oden and the Buckeyes followed by Durant and the Longhorns.
