Sengun is 6'9 - 6'10, he is taller than the avg NBA player and he plays a position where he has to be more visual, aware of whats coming at him. There have been many centers who are slow but they are good - great defenders; Mark Eaton, the Brooks Brothers, Bill Lambeer and another player was Chuck Hayes. The center position is all about WANT TO and being in position. To be good defensively on the perimeter, you have to stay in front of your opponent, slide your feet and it would be beneficial to have length. However, CP3 does a very good job but he has quick hands AND quick feet....thats the difference!
Giannis was an amateur soccer player himself, of course he has footwork. His footwork is just not close to the nimble footwork of Hakeem's given that Giannis is not too skilled.
Im glad you made mention of that, which further proves my point. Giannas played soccer, which means he should have post moves closer to Hakeem but he plays more similar to Shaq, who had below avg footwork at best, than Hakeem. Footwork is not easy, because its more mental than one might think. Its like you're thinking with your feet. And on the defensive side, thats why players like Harden and SGA are able to get so many foul calls, because players think with their hands and not their feet. And if you watch Reed, he has been playing defense with his hands for yrs....its a HARD HABIT TO BREAK
Also you cannot compare him to Dwight because Giannis is head and shoulders above Dwight in mobility and agility. Dwight just trumps Antetokounmpo in power, strength, leaping and boxing out.
Durant and Jalen both benefited from playing on bad teams at the start of their career. No fault or criticism to Reed - but this is a team with legit title aspirations and an aging superstar. We have limited bandwidth to develop than we did last year. You are either ready to play or you are not. I think that's why Ime went with Reed early in the last game, he got burned a few times and Ime pulled him and by the 3rd when the game was still tight, he came back in with Holiday(who is the better player right now) instead of Reed. It's not to say Reed can't be good, it's to say if we believe Reed likely won't be a game changing superstar, than it would be wiser to prioritize winning games with Durant than to grow Reed if we suspect he may not be a future all star. This ultimately isn't about doing what is in Reed's best interest development wise - its about what is in the team's best long term interest and potentially losing games this year to develop a guy who is showing more indication that he may top out as a role player you could pick out in Free Agency is likely not a good use of team resources given our priorities right now.
He also picked up a ton from working with Dream but he has to realize this are not the 90s, he has to team up with other superstars at one point in his career. He can't do it alone.
FVV has always been a PG is whole career, since college and highschool. He has girth and he knows the nuances of the position. Like looking at an opponents feet to see which direction is he looking to go or if the feet are set, is he more likely to pull up. All of that takes time to learn. Thats the difference! And do the Rockets have the time for Reed to learn those nuances and to become stronger?? Remember, they are looking to go deep in the Playoffs this yr and win a chip next yr.
They do as a reserve bench player. You're not asking him to be on the court when the game is on the line.
So what you're saying is that physical tools aren't a necessity, as FVV doesn't have any. All Reed needs to become a better defender is time and experience? If so, then I agree.
Just watched Sheppard in the Mavs game. Nothing there worries me. A bit of defensive regression from the Celtics game, particularly in giving the ball handler too much space. I wonder if he thought from the scouting report/video that he needed to play more conservatively? If so, that's a mistake, it just gives the attacker more room to beat him. Also, I liked the minutes for Holiday. One play in particular, he tried to fight over a screen and got the call on the screener. Sheppard needs to learn from that. More work in the weight room, but also more aggression in fighting through the contact and getting the call, if not getting around the screener. He's a bit of a patsy when he's screened.
If time and experience was all that's required, I could become a good PG. Obviously, its more than that. Some players get it and some don't. Its not as easy as it sounds. Thats why there are Millions of basketball players but less than 500 jobs in the NBA.
You watched the Mavs game and nothing about Reed worried you? Hmmmm Thats the game where Ime took him out and put in Holiday because he wasn't playing well.
If it's more than that then say that. There have been so many reductive posts since last year saying "Reed is too short, lacks the foot speed to play good defense", which is funny considering who he was coming off the bench for. You yourself boiled it down to foot speed. If FVV weren't on the team and Amen was the main comparison, I could understand people saying Reed couldn't possibly do that. It's just wouldn't be physically possible. They might not be familiar with Fred's defense unless they watched a lot of Toronto games. But when short, slow, and old FVV has been on our team for two straight years as one of our best defenders I don't know how they can say it. It is clearly physically possible for Reed. It would be like GS drafting Collin Murray Boyles to play PF and the fans saying "he's simply too short to play good D" without a hint of irony.
If you look back at my post, I think I have alluded to both of those being issues; short and slow. Keep in mind, Im not saying there's no place for him in the league, because there are plenty of short, slower players who find their niche. However, as being a starter or a star level player, I don't see it.
