Just like wishing the team into picking (or not picking) certain prospects. I enjoy discussing player development, skill building, and pathways to improvement. It's more fun than being cynical and trying to sound wise on a message board for basketball fans. (a bit pathetic)
The shooting seems like a small wart compared to his age. It doesn't concern you? To draft a 20-year-old #4 after he spent a year playing against high schoolers, I'd want to see freaky Giannis or Jokic-like numbers to trust the talent. Amen's numbers would be very exciting if he put them up as an 18-year-old freshman at Kansas. Can anyone think of older prospects with no impressive high-level-play stats who have gone on to be very good NBA players? Forget Keegan Murry, I'm talking about older guys without impressive college, Euroleague, or NBDL experience. I can't think of a single one. Yeah, my concern is that drafting Thompson is like drafting O.J. Mayo or Shabazz Muhammad.
“Older prospects” Just in the last 2 drafts Jaden Ivey, Chet, Evan Mobley, and Jalen Suggs were all top 5 picks between 20 - 20.5 years old when drafted. Same as the Thompsons. Amen played the competition in front him, and dominated it, as he should. Went 19-1, massive raw plus-minus (2x Jokic’s level this year, for reference), 5-0 in the playoffs, on 20/8/8/3/1 per 36, 61% TS.
His efficiency numbers from 2P range were actually completely nuts this season. 66.2% on two-pointers. That's like "dominant center" level 2P% coming from a point guard. Completely ridiculous. His volume stats were 40 minutes were as follows: 23.8 points, 8.6 rebounds, 8.6 assists, 3.4 steals, 1.4 blocks And all this was while sharing the floor with his brother. If you put him on some mediocre D1 college team with no other great scorers next to him and made him the primary scoring option I think he would have shown the kind of dominance you're looking for. I suspect he would have outperformed Brandon Miller @ the same age.
lmao what kind of logic is that? He couldn't dominate against high schoolers most of which won't even get into a D1 school yet you think he would against actual college players? lol what?
You forgot Bucks Legend and Basketballholic Superstar Thon Maker, who played a 5th (or 9th, depending on who you ask) year in high school to get drafted off a ballislife video.
Reading comprehension fail? He was splitting usage with his brother. He was dominating in terms of scoring efficiency. Just lower usage than most college stars get.
He only scored 16 ppg beating up teenagers in OTE. If he also had bad %s he wouldn't be a lotto pick to begin with. Ausar only scored 16 ppg as well even if they are splitting usage it's still too low imo. I would Def be surprised if Amen has this kind of efficiency in the NBA unless he scores purely on gimmes.
Yeah, there's absolutely no way he has this kind of efficiency in the NBA, you are right about that. But it does show he was able to pretty much score at will in the paint in OTE, wouldn't you say? My view, though, is that if you replaced Ausar with some average OTE player (whatever that means lol) Amen would have scored probably ~5-7 more points on just a bit lower efficiency. Same if you had Ausar alone on an OTE team. Amen only took 11.6 shots per game, that is quite low compared to most college stars. Brandon Miller, for example, on a stacked Alabama squad, took 13.9 shots per game. Scoot Henderson took 14.1 shots with the G-League Ignite.
Amen was 1 of the oldest and most athletic players in OTE…a man amongst boys playing against literal children the only way he wouldn’t be dominant efficiency-wise in OTE is if he took majority jumpers because Lord knows he wouldn’t be hitting those shots
That bolded part is unarguably true. Just trying to counter the narrative that Amen didn't dominate enough. His scoring efficiency on 2Pers was about as elite as it could have been. The only reason Amen's volume numbers look relatively pedestrian is that his usage was lower than most comparable prospects. I won't pretend there aren't questions and risk factors with both Thompson twins, I just feel like some of the narratives flying around are a little stretched.
I get your point but that's the thing his volume so low. In the NBA you can have 3 guys score over 20 but Amen just splitting with his bro and both only give you 16? Miller is a good example I don't follow college but you said he is on a stacked team but he still got 13.9 shots per game.
Similar to college ball, I believe OTE games are only 40 minutes long instead of 48, so all scoring numbers are going to be less Also KOC has been on the Miller over Scoot train all season so I just find it hard to take him very seriously--I don't view the two as being particularly close in talent level, personally.
Well to be fair KOC is the dude who wanted Killian Hayes no 1 lol. But maybe he learned from that that's why he doesn't like broke shots anymore. I'm also higher on Miller than Scoot. It's not all about talent you also have to think of longevity and likelihood to maximize that talent. Shooting is a boring skill but James Harden and a bunch of 3nDs took the most stacked team in NBA history to 7 games. It's the best skill in basketball currently.
Lulz. "Check out how bad Amen's shooting form is." "Look at how much better Amen's shot looks." From literally the same workout.
