I love Alp, but I dont think he ever reaches Jokic stature/consistency. I hope I'm wrong and Alp has spent all offseason working on his outside shot.
That’s fair. I don’t think Zion ever reaches Barkley levels either. I think Alp reaches a higher level than Zion though
Now that I've had time to think about it, my new dream draft scenario is to somehow come away with Sarr and Devin Carter.
Saw this on Belch... I mean Bleacher Report... yuck! yuck I say! Charlotte Hornets receive: No. 3 pick (via HOU), Cam Whitmore and Jock Landale Houston Rockets receive: Brandon Ingram New Orleans Pelicans receive: Miles Bridges (via sign-and-trade), Jae'Sean Tate, No. 6 pick (via CHO) and No. 44 pick (via GSW, from HOU) Per Kelly Iko of The Athletic, three teams—the Hornets, Portland Trail Blazers and Memphis Grizzlies—"have been most vocal" about acquiring the No. 3 pick. Sheppard and UConn center Donovan Clingan seem to be the targets, and because Charlotte might be set at center with 2022 No. 15 pick Mark Williams, Sheppard might be its focus. His three-ball would bring welcome relief to an offense that's often squeezed for spacing, and the fact that he works on or off the ball means he should be an easy fit with LaMelo Ball and Brandon Miller. As for the rest of this trade, Houston could envision Ingram—a big wing who can light it up and create shots for teammates—as the missing piece who at least gets this group into next year's postseason. New Orleans, which seemingly doesn't want to cover the cost of Ingram's extension, could pounce on this package featuring two picks to potentially use in trades, a replacement scoring forward in Bridges and another all-purpose wing stopper in Tate.
I would rather keep Cam and the pick to use on Sheppard. If Sheppard is gone at 3 I am okay with this if and only if it is Jalen they send out rather than Cam.
So 3, 44, Cam and Tate for BI? Who sits between Brooks and Green in that scenario? Still logjam at wing with BI, Amen, Brooks, Tari
I’d rather keep Cam and draft Sheppard. Ingram doesn’t look like he showers. While Cam and Sheppard seem to have excellent hygiene.
Joker strikes me as a dude that is really good at the game but doesn't love the game. Alpy is different. He has way more of an edge than both Joker and Sabonis. I saw it when he went straight through Lebron for the game tying bucket. There's no quit in him and that trait is much more rare than people think.
I think that the Joker definitely cares about basketball. But he shows it differently. I don’t think he’s going to kiss up to the NBA establishment butt, he sees himself as an outsider and he knows it. A second round pick that has exceeded performance wise perhaps every other 2nd round pick in NBA history. Joker’s NBA IQ is so high, that to a casual fan, it’s showing as uninterested. Simply put, you can’t insert yourself as an MVP from obscurity, without caring.
And you can't ignore his physical gifts. His wing span, height and strength combo makes it so easy for him to do things like get post positioning and see over the top of defenders to make advanced reads that Sengun can't do. It is near impossible to lodge Jokic out of his post position.
Whilst this is true, Jokic is still an entire tier of player above Alpi regardless of who has more heart/love for the game. Sometimes natural talent will obscure love of the game and there's not much you can do about it.
I didn't really like his body language in the playoffs tbh. Gives me Mesut Ozil/Eden Hazard vibes for the soccer aficionados. Just naturally talented but a little aloof. So much so that he can fall backwards into MVPs and Titles. But I question if he's already "caught the carrot".
