Yes I know. I still don't believe that 21 year old Jokic carries this team deep into playoffs or something and like I said he would face even more criticism for his athleticism and defense. Now looking back everything makes sense but back then only a few people were able to guess how good Jokic could become and they had similar reservations (athleticism, defense etc.) about him. Here is a 2016 Reddit thread where the majority claims that Jahlil Okafor will be better than Jokic: Again I am not claiming that Sengun will be better or as a good as Jokic but he will be one the best ones of his generation and that's good enough for me.
It’s so silly. I desperately wanted the Rockets to trade up into the top 10 to get Sengun. I have said Sengun is the Rockets best player and deserving of being an all star. I said the Rockets need a franchise player and Sengun isn’t one right now. If Sengun is a franchise player right now, he will have no issue leading the Rockets to the playoffs this season. I even said Sengun is better than Banchero. The extremist Turks that cannot accept that I guess can run their smack online.
The Rockets already objectively had the GOAT. Please follow the link below. https://hickamsdictum.com/the-g-o-a-t-who-is-the-best-basketball-player-of-all-time-e43c7e53a9a7
Clearly, whoever runs that Twitter account needs help and shouldn't be taken seriously but you don't have to pretend like you were always so high on Sengun from the beginning. Because you weren't.
Nope - I don’t think Sengun is currently a franchise player. When he is a top 10 player, I will gladly call him a franchise player. It isn’t like I hate him. I desperately wanted the Rockets to draft him. As far as going at you - I don’t remember that, but if I did - I apologize. I will keep it simple- if you believe that Sengun is currently a franchise player- I disagree.
Yeah I was - I posted about him before he even entered the draft. I defended his feet and ability to play in the NBA.
To be clear, if you define "franchise player" as a top 10 player, then I agree. Sengun is not currently a top 10 player. I'd rank him between 20 and 25. That's not how I would define a "franchise" player, but that's fine. But that wasn't really my point. It wasn't about whether or not you believe Sengun is currently a franchise player; rather, it's your faith in him becoming one. You have consistently you don't see him becoming a top 10 player, or whatever metric you deem to use when defining "franchise" player. Personally, when you look at the history of how 21 yr olds perform in the NBA, I think it's ludicrous for anyone to doubt Sengun's potential upside. He's literally putting up unprecedented numbers given his age. Multiple posters seem to feel the same way, and none can give a concrete answer supporting this belief.
Don't get me wrong, it's not like it's a federal crime to not be so high on him, but if I said, "I'd prefer guys like Dyson Daniels, Mark Williams, Tari Eason, or Jaden Ivey over Sengun," I wouldn't say, "I was high on Sengun from the beginning." I also think he's not the franchise player yet, and I also think people on this board tend to disagree on that subject because of their definitions of "the franchise player." He's only the best player on a mediocre franchise right now, and he has a long way to go ahead of him to make this franchise relevant and competitive again before we call him "the franchise player" imo.
Yeah - I didn’t think Sengun would be a true franchise player, and I still don’t know if he will be. I do acknowledge it is possible though as he has progressively improved. I felt he could be an all star PF (and still prefer him at PF). At this point he is an all star level player. If you want to criticize me for questioning whether he would be a franchise player - go for it, but make sure you include Stone in your post as well, as he and his hand picked coach didn’t think so either. I find me being singled out over Sengun to be odd. I defended him and his talent before he entered the draft. I wanted the Rockets to move up into the draft to get him. As far as trading Sengun and Nets picks to get Banchero, I did say I would do it… the Rockets would have the 3rd and 4th picks in that draft. If you want to criticize me for something, go at me for liking Ivey.
Worth the reminder that fan is short for Fanatic. Fans always put athletes they like for whatever reason on a bit of a pedestal but there’s something about a few particular players like Lin or now Sengun that do garner a bit of a cult following that goes beyond fanaticism. Maybe that offends some by me using that term but it’s the truth. It’s unhealthy whatever you want to call it. I don’t know if it’s just internet toxic culture putting fuel on the fire or what but whatever it is it can really ruin the experience of being a team fan when you have these little internal battles with fandoms pitting “their guy” against even his own team. Not sure what the answer is long term to make the team sports fan experience back to a place of sanity.
I brought it up earlier a bit differently but whatever term it is you want to use, you know it when you see it and the data you usually use to measure it is after the fact with championship runs so yeah it’s a moot point to argue it right now. However you do have a bit of an eye test measure in regular season games where those star players are just downright unguardable and there’s nothing you can do defensively other than double or triple team in some cases. I used the example from last night with KD. Even at his age now the guy still has “it.” Maybe Sengun will get there eventually but I still don’t see that level of gifted offensive talent even though the dude is still really good and maybe despite his athletic shortcomings he could potentially become like a center version of peak Harden where his game becomes that dynamic based on skill and smarts. I think being able to shoot consistently really could be the key that opens that up. I have my doubts he has that type of natural gift but I’d LOVE to be wrong. Right now though even if you think like me or Nook the good news is everyone seems to be in agreement that either way the team should maximize a Sencentric offense and see how good the team can be over the next season and a half with him as the central offensive option. I just don’t get why everyone can’t be fine with different terminology for the same thing and being okay with recognizing that yeah… Sengun isn’t as naturally gifted physically as most other superstar “franchise players” like Embiid, Giannis, KD, Lebron, etc. and that’s okay. As I said earlier, just because the Jazz would have preferred to build their team around Hakeem, it doesn’t mean that they did the wrong thing by keeping Malone and maximizing his potential with the right surrounding players. Right now it looks like Sengun, FVV + is our best bet. Let’s see how good that team can be for a season or two and let’s hope Stone has a good summer in free agency and drafts well with the Brooklyn pick (IE actually picks on need a bit more). All else fails at least we’ll be fun as hell to watch and root for if the toxic fandom can chill the hell out a bit.
When you first learn a second language it is natural to do waaaaaayyy more listening than talking. Having a chatty friend when you can't really reply back well is a blessing.
Let's let Sengun be Sengun. I've always hated comparisons. I know its a natural thing to do, but I think Alpi is unique in today's game. His post game is old school sublime. His footwork in combination with his fakes are elite (not for his age, but for the NBA). He still has work to do on a variety of shots in the low post, but that repertoire should continue to grow over the next few years. BTW, he probably has some of the best hands I've seen for a big man, can catch virtually anything that comes his way. A really underrated skill. His mid-range game is just beginning to emerge and he has further work to do here with his shooting as well. He's still hesitant to shoot the 3, the Silas Effect, but it seems to be getting a little better as the season goes. He's an ok rebounder, mainly because he blocks out and hustles. I've noticed he doesn't always position himself in the best spot based on the shooter. Here's where he should adopt the aforementioned Moses Malone, who had a PhD in understanding shooters, rebounding angles, and positioning himself to gobble every board. As a passer, he's got phenomenal vision and very good court awareness. Unfortunately, today's game does not optimize these talents. Once KMJ left he lost his best cutter. Jabari has started to catch on and Cam has that knack. Hopefully, we start to take more advantage, because this will unlock some easy baskets for us. Oh, he's a pretty damn good ball handler for a center. Love seeing him lead the break. His defense is underrated and has gotten better as the team's defense has improved. He's got quick hands and good anticipation. Finally, he's a really smart, humble and team player. He's not perfect, but young man is getting better every game. Hard not to love him as a player and person. PS. I maybe wrong, but one reason his jersey sales haven't erupted could be #28 isn't a very sexy number.
