I saw this making the rounds on twitter and just thought it was a created meme by some rocketsfan, like how they put random thoughts on Tom Hanks shirt.
Ah yes, criticizing players for playing terrible when they are playing terrible is "hating", brilliant.
With young highly drafted players that are perimeter/scoring oriented, you look for certain milestones to see what they can and will be. For a long time Jalen Green's offensive performance depended on how well he shot the basketball from outside. Whether he had a good shooting game or a bad shooting game did not matter to me, because if he was going to be more than a bench scorer or role player, he would need to have a bigger impact on the offensive side of the court. Then we started seeing him become more consistent with his scoring, it was a baby step but it showed a little progression. He plateaued for awhile during the season, and you start to wonder, why isn't he forcing it, like most young guards do. Then recently his body language has changed some, he isn't as tight... and as @fchowd0311 said, he started having 20 point scoring nights when his 3 point shot WASN'T falling, and that was a really positive sign... needs to keep it up, but really good scorers find ways to score and contribute even when they are cold from 3. Then last night, he took it a step further..... he scored without being helped on some plays, and he forced it some with success and took over down the stretch. That is a HUGE leap if he can do that more often. That is what all stars and superstars do. This is where work ethic figures in as well.... he has by all accounts a very strong work ethic. Lots of players say they want to be great or maximize their talent, but it comes down to putting in the work and Green has shown an aptitude and desire to so at a very young age. I don't know how good Green will be, but avoiding a serious injury or bad external influences, he should be a 20 point a game scorer at a minimum and has the potential to be a lot more. Defensively he will do fine, and possible even be average if he can cover point guards. His biggest improvement hasn't been shooting the ball or finishing or from mid range, his biggest improvement has been how he moves laterally. He has always been exceptionally quick in a straight line in the same way Steve Francis was. However, Green over the course of the season has developed horizontally as an athlete. That is the difference between a 20 point a game scorer and a 25 point a game scorer. He still has some physical limitations, and I would rather have Mobley over him and I think that it is reasonable for someone to say they prefer the upside of Barnes or Cunningham as well.... but Green the last month has taken a huge step forward and is in the mix for being a star going forward. Also, while he doesn't have the size or strength of Anthony Edwards, I would take Green over him. I love Edwards potential defensively, and he is a great athlete, but he doesn't move as fluid as Green and I don't think he is as talented an offensive player overall.
Give me a break. You didn't just criticize his play at the time - you made multiple over the top projections about what he was capable of that were absurd even without the benefit of hindsight. This isn't a case of "I was disappointed in his play, but I always hoped he'd get better and I'm happy he has" - it is a case of "I believe so strongly in my own savant-like evaluation capabilities (which the rest of the world cannot see or else they would have hired me by now) that he cannot possibly ever succeed, and anyone who disagrees must be an idiot, which I will tell them about repeatedly." At this point, you might as well start yet another userID. Luckily it won't take us more than a few posts to connect the dots and block you all over again.
Criticism was and is fine but some of you guys left no room for the idea of improvement which was just weird. Even with the early struggles the signs of potential were glaringly obvious and you just ignored it to focus only on the negative. Glad everyone seems to be arriving at the same conclusion now though. Dude has it.
This season has made it abundantly clear to me that some people here really don't have the stomach for a true tear down and rebuild, especially when we brought in 5 TEENAGERS (19 years old) and rolled the dice on their upside. At some point in time this year, all of our 19 year old rookies got dumped on here. Maybe people should step back and away from all the hot takes and adopt a more thoughtful and patient approach to evaluating. Look at what they can do and consider the likelihood that they can improve the things that they can't do. Sometimes it isn't even a can't, it's a not yet. A year or 2 into their careers is really when you can see if they are developing or not. How do you justify giving up on a 19 year old after only 1 month into their rookie NBA season and say you know basketball? How can you do that despite being shown over and over the statistical evidence that clearly indicated that almost every 19 year old NBA player that fits the Jalen Green archetype struggled similarly at the same age?
Just one month ago, some valid "criticism" that wasn't toxic at all towards other users: "If Green knew how to shoot, had some kind of bag where he wasn't just going to get blocked at the rim time and time again, could handle the ball decently to where he wasn't going to just get it stolen from him, could play at least some form of defense (I know you seem to think he's been good, which is hilarious....his 127 defensive rating last night was AMAZING!!!), then everything would be fine." "He's got a weak handle and he's not a creator, so the ball can't really be in his hands much. He's just not really an NBA caliber player right now, but in a few years he might develop into one." "Agreed, the Jalen Green fans are some of the most toxic this board has seen since the Lin fan infestation." "I disagree. I'm part of the solution. See above, the final step is "acceptance", I'm trying to help the cultists reach that point by injecting reality into the conversation from time to time." "If your delusional love for Green has caused you to completely lose touch with reality, yes, you are a cultist. He's literally one of, if not the worst player in the league.....so yeah, if you are heaping glowing praise on him anyway.....and you screech any time someone points out his obvious struggles, it appears to be some weird religious thing compell9ing such absurd behavior."
Having a midrange in your arsenal is always better than not having it. How much you use it depends on how the defense plays you. Of course, if you suck at shooting the midrange, you shouldn't be doing it a lot, just like if you suck at shooting the 3, you should be shooting that a lot too. But then that means you are not a very good offensive player.
No, that's exactly what I did..... but it doesn't surprise me that some of you failed to follow along in conversation. You take a statement like "it's 10 AM" to mean "it'll always be 10 AM". I understand your shortcomings, but it's still annoying when you lash out like this..... even if it's incredibly predictable. That said, what happened to blocking me? If you are too simple minded to follow along in conversation, don't just talk about it, do it. Have the courage of your convictions and take yourself out of the conversation.
And those were all valid statements at the time about the performance at the time..... and accurate statements about the cult who was still worshiping him despite terrible performances. His improvement since then does not make those statements less true at the time they were said.
He's one of the worst players in the NBA was beyond unintelligent and detached from reality. Calling people cultists is the definition of toxic. You boldly claimed he might be an NBA caliber player in 2-3 years and now he's dropping 20 a night for a month later. Not even close to valid and obviously you know nothing about projecting an NBA player's future. Now you can't take the L and want to deflect. Could be a case study for a Psychology 101 student in projection. No accountability whatsoever. Embarrassing.
No, it was a fact. At the time it was said, Green played like the worst player in the league....a statement backed up by multiple metrics showing it to be absolute fact. When talking about raw players like Green, I don't assume development because so many players in the past simply didn't develop. The possibility of him developing into a Zach LaVine type was always there, it just wasn't a given. The last month or so he's shown tremendous progression and should be praised for it..... but you can't rewrite history, he was the worst player in the league getting significant minutes for the majority of the season..... and pointing it out at the time isn't "hating", it's just not being a blind faith cultist.
Do you think him getting significant minutes early on, even when struggling, was a factor in the recent tremendous progress that you are now acknowledging he has made?
It's one of those cliches, but the game does seem like it's slowing down for him. I saw him "go get" a rebound in crunch time last night that you don't really see him do. His performance in OT was a great sign. He frankly had all rights to be pissed off on the no call blatant foul by Westbrook on his drive late in the 4th quarter and could have wilted. I didn't even mind his bad decision to try and throw a lob to Porter -- he really wants to be a good teammate, even when he's locked in.
