Could any 18-year-old center that ever lived have fixed last year's defense?

man i know you've seen the wars folks have been having with certain players and this is all pre-draft lol. Imagine when said player is on the actual team officially

 

My war is with one person lol

 

oh you two aren't the only ones. everyone knows yalls love already lol

 

Understood, but being a rim protector isn't just measured by blocks.... in fact some of the best rim protectors don't have gaudy block totals because of switching and teams respecting them.

 

It's so weird, there's posters I typically respect a lot that just have bafflingly atrocious takes when it comes to Sengun.

It's like they never watched the kid play.

He was one of the best defenders on the team at 18 years old, blocking shots right and left.... and the takeaway is that he can't defend the rim or play defense. I mean, he had a higher block % at 18 than Embiid did last year.

Also, we need to consider that he was surrounded by some of the worst defensive players in the league and his performance becomes even more impressive.

 

I have no beef with Paolo. I think both he and Sengun can coexist. Maybe it's foolish to think so but I'll go back to my analogy/comparison of the Webber/Divac duo to what I think Paolo/Sengun can do together.

 

I can respect that but it's also a testament on how much Sengun tried to cover up for our perimeter players' lack of defense if their guys are getting by with ease and Sengun is the only one left to hold down the fort.

imo, improvements by Green on the defensive side of the ball next season will make more of an impact on this team's defense than anything else. He can't be at Lillard levels of defense if we want this team to succeed.

 

Yeah as a big in today's game you need to be able to guard in space now more than ever. Being just a rim protector isn't as big of a deal in the modern era because you're definitely going to get cross matched if that's what the opposing team wants or you'll be sitting on the bench or should be because guys are just exploiting your inability to guard

 

Yao was the master of the finger roll, the tear drop. Guys were afraid to come all the way in and learned different shots.

Inside D has lotsa facets. Alpi does some, Capella others. The Stifle Tower is terrific but always vacations early. Golden State is as short as TheGoodGuys yet their interior D is far from inferior.

What or who is it needed? I dunno. Beyond a commitment to team and effort x all on the floor, that is. See: ‘winning culture’.

 

Was looking at some rim protection numbers the other day and tracking data had Sengun as allowing 61.4 FG% at the rim. Very much on the low end of the big man spectrum. Wood was also pretty bad at 60.8%.

We didn’t employ many if any plus defenders but I think those numbers would point to our biggest issue on defense. Rim protection has to improve. I think Sengun could make that tricky, not impossible, but tricky.

Just For reference some names and FG% allowed numbers of some of the better rim protectors last season

J Allen : 48.6%
JJJ : 49.6%
Gobert : 50.7%
R. Williams : 51.9%
Claxton : 52.0%
Mobley : 52.8%
Giannis : 52.9%

 

I'm not surprised by the numbers because I'd be very very foolish to believe that players weren't shooting a high FG% near the rim vs Sengun. That being said, that's says more about Sengun's vertical challenge than his ability to defend overall, especially as a weakside/help defender.

 

Interesting but what were the shooting percentages of players against him at the rim?

I am not a guy that thinks Senguns defense is hopeless, I think he will be able to make up for a lot by smarts and instincts and his ability to be a force on the other end.

 

It's also impacted by him being the sole big on the floor surrounded by some of the worst defensive players in the league. You can't guard everyone yourself, but 18 year old Sengun had to try to do just that fairly often because his teammates were so bad.

 

Yeah I don’t think it precludes him from being an overall useful defender, but I do think it’s something as a team we have to be aware of and find a way to improve. Eventually we need someone who is going to do more to slow down opponents at the rim.

 

@jordnnnn posted some numbers up there and it's definitely not pretty. But I'm in agreement with you that Sengun isn't a liability on defense as some think he is or will be.

 

I wouldn't trade Sengun for Ivey. We get enamored with the physical but the mental approach and understanding of the game is just as, if not more, important. I don't know much about Ivey's mental makeup but I do know Sengun sees the game at an advanced level and that would be really hard for me to trade--there are so many roles and scenarios where he not only fits but enhances.

 

Imagine if we had just traded Chandler Parsons early and got max value for him, imagine if we had just traded DMo early and got max value for him, what if Sengun is the same category, a clutchfans dream that never really pans out. I am hesitant to trade him mainly because I have zero faith in Silas and his non existent system having shown what he is capable of. We have no idea what we have with Sengun until Silas is out and we have a real coach. If he is ranked top 10 from last year, then I think he along with Wood or others should get you a top 5 pick, because the pick is unproven so there should be a discount vs a guy who has a year of NBA data. At some point you have to start trading in 4 quarters for a dollar and that likely involves getting rid of some guys we think have potential. Its either stars or bust I think, you don't want a roster with average guys some team will overpay a few years down the road. I definitely would not want to be the one who signs off on this type of trade though.

 

That’s interesting. Without seeing Ivey play I am not sure who I would want want on the Rockets more. It’s close.

Make a thread and poll Rimrocker…!

 

I like Sengun, so not really knocking the statement, he has a lot of flashy passes and some good awareness on offense, but other than that what makes him advanced? I have not been able to see full games this past year, mostly highlights. Is he calling out plays and telling players where to be on the court? What else does he do? Is he vocal on defense or able to pick up on things the other team is doing? I feel I personally may be over valuing the passing hes capable of because it is flashy at times and I am mostly watching highlights and not a full game, but I am unaware of any other tangible things from him.