We can’t ignore the elephant in The room, Green needs to start over KPJ

This is a really misinformed comment. Did you watch the last 20 games or so when KPJ took over the reigns? Was he perfect, no, but he showed to be an above average offensive pg. He scored 50/10 for goodness sakes. Yes, he needs to improve his 3 pt shot and his defense. He is a future all-star if he keeps his head straight. His passing and handles are fantastic, he is a good finisher, and a decent shooter. All of his “weaknesses” are correctable in the short term. Clearly the talent is there.

 

Putting aside the 50/10 game, the kid, at 20, joined a new team in a new city and okayed a new position and responded with a 16/4/6 stat line. If he cuts his turnovers, improves his shot and just uses the tool he already has on defense we are looking at a top 10 point guard.

 

Some Rockets fans are kinda spoiled I think. We've had Harden so long they forget what a player with raw looks like in the begining.

 

Amen.

 

Yeah, and if Russell Westbrook cut his turnovers, improved his shot and just uses the tools he already has on defense he'd be the 2nd coming of Michael Jordan.

Everything is just potential until it happens.

 

If KP was 29 years old and posting 17.9 pts +7 assists as a starter, I'd agree with some of the haters to not buy the hype.
But he hasn't even begun to develop his arsenal. At 21, this is what teams would kill for from their top 5 picks.

 

Yeah..

I like the official starting lineup by the Rockets not someone's NBA2K lineup

Because Clutchfans never predicted PJ Tucker as starting Center.

 

No elephant in the room bro
that's in your head

 

Thats the point of starting him and saying he's just 20. Westbrook is 32 he is who he is at this point so thats not even a good example.

 

well Silas very well could decide to bring green on slowly by bringing him off the bench then it’s fine .

the common denominator is that, at one point , wall will get hurt . And kpj or green (or Gordon lol ) will start then . But , I think Gordon starts on the bench and is given a consistent role if he is “healthy”.

I like kpj off the bench more because he will have to both start and come off the bench . It’s more a more challenging role to mentally prepare for , so kpj will be sold on it . I’m sure it WILL rub his ego the wrong way . But , wall WILL get hurt . And if he doesn’t you are likely winning or green will hit a rookie wall and get a game off for a bruise .

start wall , green , Tate , theis (if quick enough) , wood . Green can get catch and shoot / drive opportunities . And if he gets the ball on the break can make decisions. But put as good a defense as you can around him and let him see if he can be on the rope .

we still don’t know who we will break camp with . And what the roles will be .

 

Well aware - don't try to paint me as another forum dummy just because you can't see the humor in such an absurd statement. OBVIOUSLY Wall 5 years out of his prime when he didn't even come close to sniffing a triple double on the season isn't going to do what only Westbrook and Bill Russell have ever done. It was a joke dude - lighten up.

If Houston passes 25 wins I would be shocked(no joke). The young guys are going to struggle and we still have a relatively brittle core of vets around them. I actually think we are going to be a more competitive team overall this year but with this much youth and with such a young coach I imagine we lose A LOT of close games when late game execution and coaching management matter most. Young teams lose winable games - it's the first step they have to learn to overcome and we will almost always have at least a 2 or 3 young guys with less than a few years of experience out there when we put out our best 5.

 

@ApacheWarrior rolls his eyes in disgust at this post

Whereas I agree lol

 

I'll defend if it I have to - If we played summer league all season we are an EASY 45 win team if that appeases the general optimism around here.

 

It's possible neither start the first half of the season.

 

I am sure Westbrook was 20 years old once.

The point is, showing potential =\= it will become reality. Some of you guys are already talking like the kid is a star player. He is not. He has the potential. But lots of NBA players had high potential but never turned out to be anything special. Even Jalen Green is not a lock to be a superstar. We are excited about these kids. But I'd be ecstatic if only two of Green, Porter, Sengun, and Wood become what we hope them to be.

And KPJ has an added red flag of his emotional stability. That kind of things have ruined plenty of careers. I really pray that his is not one of them.

 

No they are HOPING he is. When you're a rebuilding team and you have potential stars you have to treat them like they are potential stars. Some of you dont get this concept no matter how many people try to explain it to you it's like talking to a wall. Its like the people crying that we cant start Green because that means we think he is a star already lol we dont. Kid just averaged 18 in the gleague which means he will likely be around 12 - 16 in the NBA at first. We won 17 games no one is expecting a winning season so its the perfect time to trust in them. Normally when a 21 year old has this type of skills and ability then its a good chance he becomes really good given time. Have you seen his dribble moves and ability to get to the rim? He shoots 30% from three that can easily be 35% given the chance and time. People were talking about AD like he was a unicorn way before he was. Kobe called Harden the next him while he was still a sixth man. Demarr Derozan averaged the same as KPJ with a worse three point percentage at this age. You want to nuture people like this and put trust in him them not act like he is nothing, that wont help him at all.

Like I said earlier some of you guys are spoiled by the Harden years and the fact that we havent actually rebuilt this team in almost 2 decades so you dont know or understand what its like to have young players and potential stars. Some look crappy at certain things some stars are great at shooting right away some take time. There's no sense in being a debbie downer and ******** on everyone who is happy about having such a nice young piece at his age.

 

Only very few people disagree with what you say. I don't know what you are arguing about. What does "treat them like they are potential stars" mean? Starting them no matter how they play? No coach would do that. Giving them opportunity to earn their minutes. Absolutely. Who is disagreeing?

Why don't you just sit back and enjoy watching these guys develop, instead of crying they are not being "treated like potential stars" before the season even starts. If they are great, they will shine.

 

Anthony Davis averaged 13 ppg his first year in the league 22% 3 point shooter. Somehow that turned into 27 ppg on 38% in the 2020 playoffs.
Kat average 18 ppg on 34% from 3 first season. He's at 27ppg 38% now. He went from 34% to 42% by his 3rd season.
Zach Lavine all of a sudden became a star after going to Chicago and being given a consistent starting spot instead of back and forth they gave him the keys which Minnesota never fully committed to.
All of a sudden Julius Randle is an allstar after being given consistent starter time in NY after the back in forth in LA and NO.
Yes there's a chance these news guys can fail. But history has shown when you give guys like this with the potential to be a star consistent minutes as a starter they likely become a star or superstar.