How the heck has KPJ stunted his development? Green has just as much freedom as KPJ and they handle the ball about the same while Green looks for his own shot much more. So now KPJ does not pass? LOL.
Why does KPJ need to accept a 6th man role? Who should be starting over him? Why should Green not accept a 6th man role? Why is the 6th man position more natural?
Smith is half a season in. I'm sure if he still played like this in his 4th season he'd be on the next train out too. Greens time is coming up, he better get his shet together by the end of his 3rd season or else his ass his getting traded for scraps too. KPJ doesn't get the benefit of the doubt because he's been in the league long enough and was a former headcase. His improvement is really not much considering how inefficient he still is compared to his rookie year.
TLDR: “This is a staff and roster full of scrubs and only a generational talent like Wemby or Scoot could even come remotely close to redeeming this tank”
Been in the league long enough for what? You might want to look at Jrue Holiday or Chauncey Billups and see how they looked going into their 4th years and then tell me how KPJ is maxed out? He does not need to get any benefit of the doubt, he has already shown he is at least a rotational player on a good team even if he does not get more efficient which there is no reason he cannot.
No KPJ doesn’t pass. He is a ball dominant player who holds the ball and statistics back this up in both number of dribbles averaged per possession and time per possession. A lot of his passes are in desperation dump offs or when he doesn’t have anywhere to go. He has not been a facilitator or willing passer this season but instead looks to score even when he doesn’t have a shot or the lane as seen in last game against Wolves. I mentioned he has split duties as playmaker with KPJ. On a lot of the actions KPJ primarily starts the action or the ball is given or deferred to KPJ to initiate the offense. Having another player at guard initiating the offense cuts into Green’s ability to orchestrate the offense as a primary playmaker but having to defer to KPJ for a lot of sets in a I go you go situation. The fact KPJ doesn’t move off ball and the team doesn’t use off ball screens compounds the issue. Two ball dominant guards or dynamic scoring guards have never worked in the NBA in recent memory from what ive seen. Kobe was a dynamic ball dominant scoring SG and his guards were defensive minded and shooters. Morant has Bane. Jaylen Brown has Smart. Curry is more dynamic and handles the ball while Klay plays more off ball using flares and down screens to score. There has to be a synergy a balance
Jrue Holiday was always a sound player and great defensively. He may not been as complete as he is now but the fundamentals were there. He wasn’t trying playground moves and over dribbling or looking to score most of the time and a better and more willing passer than KPJ in his 4th year.
I agree with the analysis except I am quite a bit higher on Sengun mainly due to the way his playing time has been handled with the idiotic 3 center rotation from our genius coach. If the increased playing time he has seen the last two game sticks then I expect his trajectory to rise.
I don't know what you are arguing. I can ask you the same question about Jabari Smith, how do you know he won't max out like a super star after half a season, haven't you watched Gianni's. For every Chauncey Billups there's hundreds of players that don't improve much after their 4th season. KPJ has had enough time as the head honcho PG that fans wants to see him moved to another role. I don't know why that triggers you so much. Is it because you just hate Green and Smith? As a l said, if they continue to **** the bed, they will be shipped out too, but they have some leaway because we drafted them and they have fewer seasons under their belt
Sum of parts dude. And style of play worsens the issue. Players not used to their strengths. Like Smith not getting his spots at elbows or short corner to post or drive. No off ball screens like pin downs or flares that makes it hard for green to score or guys like KMJ or Tari. A center who has skills but can’t defend the paint or help D and can’t elevate for lobs on high screen and roll. Lack of calming vet presence or experienced personnel. Lots of issues personnel wise and system wise.
He wasn’t even accurate on Jrue. Jrue was an all star his 4th year. Always good solid fundamentals and great defense. Good and willing passer. Groomed by Doug Collins and improved every year. Hopefully people aren’t just looking at stats and comparing players. Its how you play and how your play affects the team not just statistical numbers
Why? If that’s the case then KPJ looks like a LaVert or Dinwiddie. We have no untouchables. However this is KPJ’s 4th season while 1st and 2nd for Smith and Green respectively…. So it should be clear which players have a longer leash. Not to mention as trade assets, I’d argue Green and Smith still carry more value than KPJ. Are they? Plenty of threads complaining about them too…. I think KPJ’s length in the league, his attitude (right or wrong), and his play style makes him an easy move. I think we have too many chefs on the team, moving KPJ is simplest solution. We’ve seen two full seasons with KPJ running the show and being the “head honcho”. I have no issue trying Sengun more with the first unit and putting KPJ on the bench before moving on from KPJ.
Our fan base sounds like the Lakers fans a few years back. Brandon Ingram was the skinny kid that the fans lost hope in after a couple of seasons. Josh Hart not good enough. Lonzo Ball cant shoot. Bust. Prior to his injuries. Now Ingram is an all star and 2nd best player on a championship contender. Chicago fell off a cliff without Lonzo, who became a + 40% 3point shooter and 2nd defensively to Marcus Smart (pg) last year. Lakers fans killed the front office for drafting those "busts". I "If Ingram was a future star he would have shown it in year 1 or 2!!!" is what they also screamed. Now Laker fans would kill to have those guys back, despite the bubble championship. Jalen, Bari, Tari and Sengun, will take time to develop on both ends. Losing hope on kids with high ceilings because they aren't showing enough consistency in year 1 or 2 is crazy to me, but I respect everyone's opinions. Players in year 1 or 2 deserve a pass IMO.
They say the best teachers and scientists are anti-panglossians but it does not necesseraly mean they evaluate best. JGreen: Was a 18ppg last year, 22 this year, 25 next and 28-30 ppg later on. He will be kind of leading scorer in the league. Nook's pre-draft concerns for JGreen was wrong as his current evaluation. KPJ: No need to talk. Demote him to 6th man and teach him sportsmanship. Jabari: He will be either 15+ rebounds PF or a mis-match 3. In any case he will be a star. Sengun: Best player, improved in all stats except assisting. Under a decent head coach his numbers will be 22/12/6 next year. Lots of teams will offer him max. KJM: Not only athleticism but also his cutting is best. Keep him to teach cutting to Tari/Jabari/others. Tari: He might be DPOY in the future. Part of JGreen/Sengun/Bari/Tari/23' pick championship quintet. Garuba: Although I like his brother's game more than Usman, he will be always a very good back-up Silas: Find him a job in college, and a coaching-associate position later on. Quin Snyder had an "Coaching Associate" position in his team last year. The guy is a living example of "Peter Principle". Not a HC at all. You need 5 great players and 4 very good back-ups for the ring. These "franchise player, generational talent, cornerstone, the guy, 1st, 2nd, 3rd in a championship team" descriptions are out-fashioned, archaic descriptions. It is like a superhero Hollywood movies. We need no Messiahs. We have a wonderful core, ready to contend 2026 onwards.
OP's post is fantastic and detailed. So here's my low-effort analysis: KPJ = Almost like early Iggy, playing in a role he shouldn't be playing but talented enough to just get by, could be doing a lot better playing a different role Green = Essentially Monta Ellis with elite athleticism Smith = Trevor Ariza with more height and less athleticism Sengun = Potential to be a 20/10/5 player, not too concerned about D, many elite bigs with poor D, put good D around him Tari = Corey Brewer Tate = Unironically one of our best playmakers, potential to be discount Draymond Green KMJ = if he can hit the 3 at 36%+ will be a key piece for a long time Gordon = GTFO JC = Miscast and not getting playing time because of it Nix = Weight Watchers Tyty = Need more games Boban = Unironically one of our better players Bruno = Dorsey 2.0 Garry Bird = Situational bench shooter Garuba = Situational big TLDR: Don't get too attached to this roster full of scrubs. There is no Harden or Yao or TMac or even SF3 here with exception of maybe Segun.
Kevin Porter is not the future. Focus on the development of other players. This is the future: Jalen Green Alperen Sengun Jabari Smith Tari Eason Kenyon Martin and Usman Garuba are the only other two I still want the Rockets to hang on to 100%.
Agree but think you’re undervaluing Green.People compare Green to guys like Clarkson but his speed and quickness and ability to get to the rim is on another level. I think both personnel and style of play affect Green’s offense. I do believe with a new coaching staff that can maximize guys like Green Smith even Tari and JC and root out bad practices and habits combined with new personnel including vets or a guy like Vic will dramatically change the ability of these guys to score and be more efficient.
I always appreciate your insight and posts Nook, so thank you for that. But i still cant underatand why your so down on Jalen. Hes averaging 21ppg in his 2nd year at age 20, yet we think his prime is 20-25ppg? I can easily see him being around 30ppg in his prime and being a scoring champ. And if that becomes his "prime" than i think absolutely he could be a franchise guy we build around. Especially considering hes really improved his ability to draw fouls and get to the line. Sure, he may not be the next Durant, Lebron or Luka level of franchise guy, but he can be a franchise player none the less imo. Otherwise i agree with most of what you daid. I would really like to see what Green would look like with a true PG next to him. I think he would look much more promising in that regard.
