really interesting. This makes it look like Jabari is a natural 3, not a 4 in the nba. The few times I’ve watched him it seems like his game is best suited for the outside. I like him for the Durant role at the 3 next to Green. I don’t like him as much at the 4 next to Sengun. But his shooting skills, defensive skills and size allow for position versatility. I think he’d fit our team nicely. if we could somehow nab Duren in a package to move up from the Brooklyn pick, I really like a front line of Duren-Sengun-Jabari.
Sengun/Holmgren is the most seamless fit to me. Holmgren can run the fast break with the guards and provide spacing in the half court offense with Sengun on the floor.
On position, you are who you guard. A 4 with 3-like offensive skills is likely better as 4 than a 3 as 4s are less likely skilled at guarding that type of player.
The “old” 4 is basically gone from the NBA. The base is now 4-out-1-in or 5 out. Even the Pacers with 2 skilled bigs in Sabonis and Turner couldn’t make it work. If you call Sengun your 5 of the future, then Jabari is just fine beside him on the offensive end. The hope would be that Jabari can cover for Sengun on the defensive end. Im curious what a KJM-Jabari-Sengun front court would look like. In theory you’ve got KJM attacking the basket as a cutter, with Sengun running the show and Jabari providing the spacing. KJM provides that rare weak side protection on defense.
IMO too early in the rebuild to worry about fit. BPA. Shot creation/playmaking vs. Elite Defense vs. Elite shooting. We all know what the hardest to come by is. That's my pick followed closely by elite defense.
There’s degrees to this. I think Jabari is a generational-type shooter. Like the Steph Curry of forwards. He hits every type of jumper there is. Off the bounce. C&S. On the move. Corners. Wings. Top of the arch. Step up into the midrange. We aren’t talking about an above average shooter in tall athletic frame. He’s a guy that provides unparalleled spacing. Im still concerned that the vast majority of Chet’s positive results came against very weak competition. He struggled against almost every quality team he faced. Banchero reminds me too much of powerful scoring forwards that didn’t have the footspeed to separate in the NBA and were massive liabilities on the defensive end. The Derrick Williams and Michael Beasleys.
hes taking a ton of middies, and even though he’s hitting them at a decent clip, those are going to pull down your averages compared to paint baskets. But the paint finishing does need to be addressed in the evaluation process. If they believe it’s not something that will improve with development and scheming, then I’d pass on him even with that awesome shooting, and probably go with Chet.
Players being worse vs top competition than bottom feeders is pretty normal. Jabari Smith's stats, against Ranked teams + conference and national tourney (UCONN, LSU, ARK, BAMA x2, UK, TENN, TAMU, JAX ST, MIAMI) 42.7% FG%, 33.8% 3PT%, 18.8 PPG The scoring actually goes up, but the efficiency takes a massive dip, especially from 3. Still did better than Chet on offense, but I'd like to see everyone else vs top competition compared.
He’s taking a ton of middies, but a lot of that is because his limited bag prevents him from putting a lot of pressure on the rim. His 2 point percentage is even lower than Cade Cunningham’s was in college, and Cade is 4 inches shorter. he’ll definitely improve, it’s just something to take note of
Yeah. I would expect that from every player. I’d add that Smith was much more of an offensive focal point (and thus bigger priority for the defense) than Chet, who mostly played off of others.
It’s by far the most glaring weakness in his game. If we pick him, it’s because Stone believes it’s fixable.
I wonder why Auburn didn't run way more P&R for Jabari. It's not like he lacks the athleticism. I could speculate on either a bad offensive scheme, stone hands, but I think I'll settle on horrendous guard play.
Jabari doesn't move off the ball or create off the dribble like either Curry or Durant did in University. Chet did struggle but some how still would manage big numbers... Kid never hung his head. Derrick Williams and B-Easy are very poor comparisons to Banchero. Williams is actually closer to Jabari with his 50% from 3 pt range no mid range. Everything was cuts/lobs at the rim or spot up/transition 3.
Stats don't do Jabari justice. He was on an island on that Auburn team. As KOC said, his guards were so bad at getting him the ball that it was almost like they were trying to sabotage his draft stock. His 2's are all high degree of difficulty midrange turnarounds; his bag as a college freshman looks a lot like Kawhi's as a full grown NBA player. Defensively he's miles ahead of Banchero. Not only does he have a high motor and a nose for the ball, he also just has a better body type for defense. Not a stick figure like Chet, so clearly his frame offers room for more growth. But he's also not a T-Rex like Banchero looks. Banchero will be transcendant on offense, with a floor of Randle and a ceiling of Webber. But in today's NBA, Jabari has a chance to be amongst a handful of the best bodies you can find--on par with Giannis, PG, or Kawhi--with a work ethic to boot, as evidenced by his fantastic shooting stroke. I'm not an eye-test person, but Jabari's eye test is second to none this year.
