He is more effective with FVV off the floor. Offensively he is a pg not a poor shooting wing. Defensively he can guard 1-3 and thinner PFs and centers.
Since January 1st - (15 games) Amen Thompson %: 52/23/73 TS: 58% 8/5/3/1.5 in 18 minutes a game OrTg: 114 DrTg: 109 Cam Whitmore %: 47/42/74 TS: 58% 12/5/1 in 19 minutes a game OrTg: 112 DrTg: 114 Since the beginning of January, the Rockets have seen increased minutes for both of their young rookies, and both have played very well overall. Cam Whitmore has low key gained attention for some of the bigger games he has had in limited minutes and for his obvious physical attributes and shooting. He has continued to struggle passing the ball and his defensive rating isn't great, but he also hasn't played with the best defenders next to him. The shooting appears to not only be real - but good on a high percentage of shots too, which is what separates them men from the boys. Amen Thompson has quietly been very efficient and good in January. The TS is likely a surprise to many, as it is a robust 58%, and his free throw shooting has improved as well. The defense is very good and the playmaking is improving based on the numbers. He still struggles from 3, but seems to have cut his attempts down while still getting to the basket. He also hasn't shown himself to be a volume type scorer yet like Whitmore has. Overall: No, this isn't Chet Holmgren or Wemby production, but the Rockets have likely two guys that would go top 5-6 if the draft was held today, possibly as high as #2 for Whitmore. Thompson would likely go at the same spot he was drafted.
He can do whatever a wing can do except shooting....that is what I was saying...... It is limiting to put a cap on his overall offensive abilities, let the man figure out his positions, he might play all 5 of them. If he bulks the hell up. I really dislike the Rockets or Rox fans always trying to pigeonhole everyone into something. Just because their time line dictates having a younger PG in the future, does not mean anything truly. A normal PG could shoot too.....that is not the point. I strongly disagree......with that. He is best used playing various positions..... Play the All round talent his allround stuff! And let him create from there. It would also be easier for the GM to find other talents because Amen is so moldable.....
Love them both, but in no scenario would I draft Whitmore over Amen. 6ft 7inch PGs with his potential only come atound a couple of times in a decade. Wings with potential like Whitmore come around much more often. Amen, in my opinion, has superstar potential. Whitmore does not.
I think there's a good case to be made for this to be a time where we continue to keep adding young players via the draft instead of trading picks in the next few years because we "don't have enough minutes." etc. etc. It's safe to say that the Rockets hit on Jabari and Tari because when they got hurt look at how poor our depth looked afterwards. We aren't as deep with talent as some might think, and overall it's fantastic that Amen, and Cam look like they can play mostly because we need them plus some. Cam and Amen... as talented as they look are by all mean still kind of projects in their own right, and the fact that they are already playing this many minutes even before the all-star break does not bode well for our talent depth chart. So count me in as someone who thinks we need more picks. More Cam Whitmore & Amen's (preferably tall versions though). Not someone in the trade the Brooklyn picks for 1 rotation player now camp. We need SEVERAL more hits in the rotation. Not just one immediate band aid player.
yup, i'd say we need a true point guard/ combo guard who can run pick and roll with Sengun once vanfleet leaves, and then also a defensive center.
Cam is a killer. He's got that Kobe dog in him that Jalen just doesn't have. I think he's ready. I'm pretty sure he's climbed all the way out of Udoka's doghouse at this point too. It's just a matter of time now.
Agree on the higher floor, but remember Kobe, Curry and many others had poor starts. When it comes to rookies you take higher ceiling over higher floor 100 out of 100 times unless you are already a championship contender.
I think it depends on the eye of the beholder. There are some that think that Whitmore is going to become a 25+ point a night scorer and his defensive issues and passing issues will work themselves out. There are others that believe that Thompson is going to learn to shoot at least average from the field, and will fill up the stat sheet and lock down everyone defensively. Like most first year players, there are areas that they need to improve on - but I could see a team in the high lottery decide that the offensive scoring upside of Cam is too much to pass on.
We are at the point in the rebuild where I'd say we absolutely should be weighing need much heavier. Yes it's always BPA in the end, but their is a weight that needs to be determined. I'd be willing to move up 7 foot center prospects well above their projection because the need is so instrumental long term. Go more traditional roster build than playing the Moneyball approach.
i'm not sure i agree with the 100 out of 100 times statement. If you know you're getting a future all-star in cam whitmore versus a potential superstar or a really good player in Amen, i think even play-in teams may take the sure thing in cam whitmore. I'm not so sure whitmores come around thhhaat much more often than amens. Who would you compare whitmore to in the past? Even if he just does what he is doing right now as a starter while improving on defense, he looks like future all-star. If he is able to dribble penetrate and do pick and roll like harden, he's looking like future superstar, though i'll doubt he'll ever do that. But then, did anyone think james harden had future superstar written on him? I didn't. I thought sixth man when he was with the thunder. I never thought james harden would be that good. But i do love amen thompson, if he learns how to shoot, future superstar, best player on our team. But that's a big IF.
This is how I feel as well. I think it would be a mistake to trade the Nets picks for a veteran time player. Sengun and Smith are long term players based on performance at this point. Thompson and Whitmore are edging that direction. Jalen Green is edging towards playing for another organization. The only way I would move a Nets pick is for another young player like Dyson Daniels.
The downside is players are competing for 20-30-40 million contracts... 4-6 similar players who would be all deserving...... there should be a hierarchy but how do you treat players differently who are all similarly talented? And if there is no hierarchy, how are the young ones experiencing earning their spots...tough decisions ahead! This is actually a weak spot of Stone's to begin with, his tentative, indecisive and slow nature.
Basketball-reference’s BPM isn’t a perfect stat but attempts to measure impact on winning. Amen and Cam are the only two rookies outside of Chet and Wemby to have a positive BPM. Jabari and Jalen were both massively negative as rookies, Sengun was even negative. Dunks and threes’s EPM is a more sophisticated metric that I pay for. It has Derrick Lively as the most impactful rookie outside of Wemby and Chet, but I feel it is just easier for defensive bigs to have an impact early. Amen and Cam stack up well against Jamie Jaquez, Podziemski, Cason Wallace, Ausar which are the next tier down. It’s really impressive how the coaching staff has brought them on slowly, and now have on their hands two positive contributing rookies by these metrics which is a really rare thing. Cam wowed right off the bat, but Amen who started off shaky has really started taking off in these metrics the last 10 games.
I can see that as well, but I always look at both sides of the floor. Amen is already a plus defender and with time will be first team defense. He may never score 25 points per game, but he is already developing a mid level shot that will immediately put him in the class of Chris Paul. I have not been as excited for a Rocket rookie since Olajuwon
