The "franchise player" debate has been settled. It's Amen.

So are you saying leading the league in minutes, playing hard defense (voted 8th in defensive player of the year), and being asked to play extended time at point guard can have an impact on shooting? I mean I think there’s a chance.

 

As currently constructed this team has no chance to compete next season. If the Nets pick doesn't pan out next season, I am afraid we would be stuck in the treadmill of mediocrity for a long time. They should have gone hard at LaMelo Ball or Jaylen Brown. You need to have a reliable piece to build around first.

 

Amen is so hard to build around. He is a poor off-ball player due to his shooting but doesn't have enough skills to be a no.1 option. Once he gets extended, we will be stuck in mediocrity for a long time. No one would want him and Sengun.

 

lol no he isn’t. There have been a million examples throughout history of two-way point-forwards who didn’t really shoot 3s. It’s one of the easiest archetypes to build around

 

Name one in modern era who shoots 21% from three, and he's not really a point guard.

 

Giannis, obviously. I posted the below earlier in this thread. Do I think Amen will become our franchise player if he continues to shoot 20 - 25% from 3? No. Do I think he’ll improve to a level that is somewhat respectable, say 30 - 33%? Yes. I think his massive improvement in FT% is a hallmark of such an improvement.

Jimmy Butler shot under .2 from 3 at 22. Hardaway, .267. Pippen: .175, .273, and .250 between 22 and 24. Webber was a sub .3 3 point shooter for his career and had multiple sub-.2 seasons.

 

Amen is who he is. He isn't a bad player but he isn't someone you focus on building around. The warriors didn't build around Draymond he is just someone critical to their success. Just like the bulls and piston didn't build around Rodman. This team needs a building block and it isn't anyone we've drafted the past few years unless some miracle happens. We need a building block. Stone and Ime need to wake up and see that real soon before we waste anymore time.

 

Comparing Amen to Draymond and Rodman is as dumb as the guy in this thread who said he would trade Amen for Acuff. Y’all are going to end up looking ridiculous, calling it now.

 

Not saying you're wrong and I hope you're right, but I personally don't see it. However, compared to Sengun, I think Amen has a greater chance of taking the big leap forward. However, they are inherently incompatible and I think Stone should move on from Sengun as soon as possible.

 

Ding Ding.

 

You answer that question. His FT% went up while his shooting from the floor went down in the same time period. Does using that as a barometer for future shooting seem legit?


FT shooting is a repeatable action - you want it the same every time. Stand in the same spot, same pre shot routine, same form and same force.

Shooting from the floor isn't - it's a constant adjustment on each shot.

Amen knows who he is, he took more shots in the paint, from the bottom of the circle to the rim than everywhere else combined.

He's a very productive player and even I expect he improves somewhat on those numbers - problem is, he has so far to go to get to respectability that you just can't bank on it, and that's fine as long as he understands who he is - and he does.

My whole argument is that he's not one of the few guys in the league who you build a team around, he's no superstar, he's the ultimate garbage man, collecting rebounds, getting putbacks, running in transition and playing good defense. He's Robin, not Batman.

 

Man are we seriously doing this now? People will grasp onto anything to ignore reality. Amens defense is not the reason the dude can't shoot.

 

Interesting. Do you trust Amen to create his own shot like a prime KD, Harden? The guy is 6'7 with mediocre handles and slightly above average passing skills. He isn't a pg as we have seen this past season. He's definitely not a 3 and D player since he can't hit the 3. He's not strong enough like a Giannis or Zion. He also doesn't possess the handles like Westbrook does. I'm curious what people actually think he will become? He's not ben Simmons who could actually man the pg position. Derozan? Toronto trades him and won a title with someone who could actually score at all 3 levels. I'm actually curious as to what people think Amen will turn into?

 

You might have sold me that if there wasn't some history of him being a bad shooter.

 

No, those are very good comparisons for Amen statistically and in all around game - they are garbage men in the paint gobbling up rebounds and putbacks, they get out and run in transition and they play defense - the only difference is that Amen can handle the ball a little better in the half court.

I made the comparison 2+ years ago and I'll stick with it.

You might be the one looking ridiculous when he continues to shoot .360 from anywhere other than at the rim.

 

In 6 playoff games, Amen shot 55% 10-14 ft

 

It took you this long?

 

Like I said, Jalen Green fans would point to an 11 game stretch telling us how wrong we were .... you are just over half that.

Oh and the rest of his shooting numbers in the playoffs declined - accept 3p% where he took 8 shots and made 2 for a whopping .250 .... but I guess 2/8 is a big enough sample size to give you hope.



Playoff FG% .488 Regular season FG% .534
Playoff 2p% .513 Regular season 2p% .573
Playoff 3p% .250 Regular season 3p% .216
Playoff FT% .707 Regular season FT% .779

You sure you want to stand on those 6 games as signs of improvement?!

 

You made that comparison two years ago. You’re also the dolt who claimed Amen was relegated to the dunker’s spot after a dozen games last season, so you probably haven’t watched the Rockets for the last two years.

 

The fact that you are comparing current Amen to "prime" Harden, and that you claimed Amen "is what is he," is the epitome of this board's stubborn shortsightedness. I have no idea what Amen will turn into - all I know he is went from 14/8/4 last season to 20/8/5 post All Star Break this season, and his FT% improved from .684 to .775. Any sensible fan would look at that massive improvement from a 23 year old and think the sky was the limit. Here, posters see dramatic improvement and somehow think he's a finished project. The lack of logic is baffling.