Jalen Green has played 20 games so far, here is a look at his first 10 games vs. his last 10 games

He’s on a good path.
https://stathead.com/tiny/ovdHv

 

Just noticed that he has always walked funny when loafing around, and here I thought he was favoring an ankle. Must be the platform shoes

 

We still don‘t know, how good these rookies will be. But it seems like Mobley and Barnes and Cunningham will be players that fill up the stat sheet, while Green will be primariliy a scorer. Does that mean, that those players will be more valuable - maybe but not necessarily. Why is Curry atop most MVP rankings even though players like Durant, Giannis or Jokic have a much more well rounded games? Because the most valuable player on a team is the one, that can get you a basket, when you need it the most. Will Green be that player? I don‘t know - but he had a couple of clutch performances so far, s there is hope.

 

Green is definitely playing better, and it started before the injury. The biggest difference is that the brilliant coach Silas figured out that spacing mattered and Green is getting more room to operate and better quality shots. He can likely get 18-20 points a game in the second half of the season and that will put him in range of what was expected of him as a rookie when he was drafted #2. He has a smaller margin for error than Mobley or Barnes because they do so many other things well..... long term Green needs to improve as a rebounder/passer. He doesn't need to be Harden or LBJ good, but he needs to get 5-6 of each a game.

 

He seems to have a hard time creating good scoring opportunities for himself. He’s started to make some threes, which is good. But, I thought he was supposed to be some kind of offensive wizard.

I’m much more impressed with Christopher at this point and would like to see him get more minutes.

I don’t want to trade Green, and I don’t consider him a bust. Way way too soon to know what he will become.

 

I know this isn't necessarily what you're saying but there is no way he'll be as good as Kobe. Sorry for the negative vibes but Kobe is one of the best ever. Here's hoping JG will reach his ceiling though

 

Looks good, a little less passing and rebounding and a lot better shooting.

His D is pretty weak though he still gets caught ball watching and letting his man run free.

DD

 

Agree 100%. I'm happy to see him make those 3s but on nights those 3s don't fall, can he be an impact player? Driving to the basket and drawing fouls will be one of the challenges for him. I think he'll get there when he gets bigger and adds strength next year. I can see him really breaking out next year.

Yes, Christopher has been impressive for sure. I love this was a 24th pick. Wasn't shot selection a weakness of his? It's been pretty good so far. He's driven to the basket when needed and shot the 3 with confidence when needed. Maybe some guys fit better in the NBA than college and maybe he's one of those.

 

Stupid Silas played Green as corner shooter.

 

I think "Jalen is a bust" is the dumbest topic we've ever debated here on CF.

Just shut the hell up, watch the games and find out.

 

Not at all. I’m just saying it takes time, but the numbers are similar, so it’s ok to be optimistic. Each player was in a different situation, too. Kobe was still coming off the bench and was on a much better team.
It also shows the things that everyone is seeing with their own eyes. Kobe was drawing several more fouls, so he was taking it to the basket more than green is. And he was also committing twice as many fouls, so you can assume he was much more aggressive on defense. But those are things that he will hopefully learn with coaching and film study.

 

Did people know Kobe would be a top 2-3 shooting guard of all time when he was 18/19 years of age?

I don't know why we are pegging Green to some ceiling that no one knows what it is because that's the nature of 19 years old rookies. Even if Green came out gang busters I wouldn't confine him to some arbitrary ceiling of all time greats like Kobe because even rookies who start off gang busters can stagnate and not grow anymore. Ben Simmons is a prime example.

 

Just randomly tossing out receiptless statements hoping it gets by

 

He can create scoring opportunities for himself easily. He is arguably the quickest player in the league and no one can consistently out jump him. The reason he doesn't score more off the opportunities he creates is that he is struggling to finish through contact (which will improve) and we are used to seeing the best player in NBA history at creating his own offense (Harden). He needs to work on his body, and he will.... he doesn't need to get his body as strong as Harden or Wade, he only needs to get stronger like Steph Curry did - and I believe he will do that.

As for Christopher, in hindsight he was a major sleeper. First he was in the top 10 of his class, in what was considered an absolutely stacked high school class at the time. In most classes he would have been 3-5 in his class. So he was an elite high school prospect, and he went to college and played a very limited schedule because of COVID and had inconsistent practice as a freshman and in a small sample size he shot poorly, so that dropped him from a top 10 pick down to a late first. Had he shot better, he could have gone top 5-8. He also has an exceptional NBA body at 19 years old. He has a lot of muscle, a wide frame, good center of gravity and very large hands and a wingspan of nearly 6'10". He also is a very solid athlete. His issue is that he isn't a great creator for other players. He reminds me of Marcus Smart.

 

Gordon-esque with those reb/assist numbers.

 

I feel like I’m watching a completely different player than you. It looks like Green has absolutely no problem getting any shot he wants on the perimeter and can get by pretty much anyone on drives to the rim. His handles and ability to finish through contact will need to to improve but he’s flashed at times every bit the offensive juggernaut he’s supposed to be. He’s played 20 games.

 

He doesnt know, they just dont want to be wrong about him being a bust.

 

It’s not applying any sort of ceiling or expectation. I was just pointing out that he is probably about where we would want/expect a highly touted 19-year-old to be. And the areas where most people have concerns, you can see that Kobe was already far ahead of Jalen. My real point was that it’s wildly inaccurate to call him a bust right now.

 

What is that exactly? Rebounding? Strength?

 

No, Jalen Green isn't a bust. He is playing heavy minutes and he has shown improvement and has a pathway to include even more. The lack of spacing is an indictment of just how clueless Silas is, and confirms that the Mavs offense was because of Carlisle and Doncic. Seriously, Carlisle is one of the greatest spacing coaches of all time and Silas still didn't get the spacing issues?

My concern with Green isn't his shooting or his scoring. My concern is that he needs to get a lot better at impacting the game beyond scoring. Having said that, patience grasshopper....