Amen Thompson tank thread

Harden Amen Green & KPJ all on the same guard rotation. That's going to get convoluted and redundant very quickly.

 

exactly! just about to say that. Simmons is so dumb he stopped himself at the 3pt line and though he can only operate from there. if a defender sag off that far you just free to walk up to where ever you want to be, dribble to your shooters and it'd be 2-on-1; or just walk up to the basket, what Horford gonna do? keep backing down from you till you dunk the ball? Holford has to come up to stop you at some point and that's when you (Amen) to explore with your "first step", it'll be too late for Horford to react or any of his teammates to cover for him, but if they do Amen is also a great passer to hit the open man

 

Simmons is so dumb he stopped himself at the 3pt line and though he can only operate from there. if a defender sag off that far you just free to walk up to where ever you want to be, dribble to your shooters and it'd be 2-on-1; or just walk up to the basket, what Horford gonna do? keep backing down from you till you dunk the ball? Holford has to come up to stop you at some point and that's when you (Amen) to explore with your "first step", it'll be too late for Horford to react or any of his teammates to cover for him, but if they do Amen is also a great passer to hit the open man

 

According to new NBA rules, if you're a guard who can't shoot, you have to have the ball in your hands while your teammates spread out on the floor. You're only allowed to attack a wall of defenders collapsing at the rim. Anything else is illegal and not allowed.

 

I'm really worried about floor spacing if Amen becomes the starting pg next season. Two guys who are complete non scoring threats outside the paint who are going to be large parts of the offense(Sengun and Amen) is asking for severe floor spacing woes


Imagine a pnr play between those two at the top of the three point line. Like why would NBA defenders even be out there defending that pnr play?

 

Eventually you walk into a wall of defenders if you go that route. Your "first step" is still negated.

 

That's a legit concern. Think some of us talked about it a few posts ago.

I think Sengun *has* to get a 3pt shot if he's going to be a top player in the NBA (which I assume he and many of us want).

If he doesn't, and both are non-threats from 3, you can probably get around some of this by just using a 3 man game with JG or Jabari (or both?), assuming they know how to shoot. At some point, guys have to stay somewhat close to their man just to help with screens.

I wouldn't stick with that long-term though. I'd end up moving one or both guys, but at that point, kinda moot since you'd have multiple guys not hitting their ceiling (and thus, you're unlikely a legit contender IMO).

 

the more i think about it, the more i don't see the rockets passing on Thompson. Especially if they really value KPJ.

Bringing in Thompson would be the easiest way to stay committed to KPJ as Udoka can shift him more off-the-ball subtlety on offense as KPJ is an elite Catch and Shoot player. With Amen's size, he could defend 3's defensively which neither KPJ or Green can.

The awkward fit comes with Sengun. When those two play together spacing is going to be horrific but if you can run the offense through Sengun and put Amen in a "Aaron Gordon" type role, then it could maybe work. Or if the Coach embraces the flexibility our players have and mix up lineups depending on match-ups then it could be a fun team.

Personally, I would love to watch a lineup of :
Amen-Green-KMJ-Tari-Smith

That would be an absolute wrecking ball of athleticism for short periods.

 

The other option available is taking the best player available and worrying about roster construction in free agency. Wembanyama stands in a class alone but after him, G League Ignite’s Scoot Henderson and Alabama’s Brandon Miller reside. It’s widely accepted that the latter two are the most talented players in this incoming class not named Wembanyama and as such, among Houston’s options being considered between now and the draft is the possibility of moving up with a package comprising of their two first-round selections (Nos. 4 and 20), league sources said.

Outside of the three players presumed to be off the board by the time Houston is on the clock, Overtime Elite’s Amen Thompson is the name that has been highlighted most frequently with several individuals within the organization particularly high on the 19-year-old guard. Starting shooting guard Jalen Green, who appeared on Paul George’s “PodcastP” show this week, appeared to give an endorsement of Thompson. “I don’t know who we’re gonna get,” Green said. “But I wouldn’t mind the Thompson twin. He’s solid. He’s a real solid player. But we’ll see what happens.”

There are a host of other players in a similar tier who the Rockets like — including Thompson’s twin brother Ausar, Villanova’s Cam Whitmore and Houston’s Jarace Walker — but Amen’s athleticism, penchant for playmaking and defense and more importantly, upside, are hard to ignore. It’s understood that both of the Thompson brothers had positive interviews with Houston last week.

 

Would rather have Ausar

 

Looks like the more natural shooter and defender

 

It would be worth the price of admission to see kmj and Amen together. Both of them are liable to jump out of the building at any minute. Amen could actually up our athletic prowess which is saying something. With proper strategy we should be able to run some teams literally off the court.

 

I see people wanting Ausar over Amen...and I don't really understand it, especially given the gap at PG. If you want to assume Harden is coming back, then maybe (though I'd probably look elsewhere, even though I like Ausar too).

I'd put their defense is closer to equal (both needs some adjustments with their technique and schemes), and while Ausar is a better shooter, I think Amen could probably get there too (and both are still a ways off from ideal IMO). Amen a much better playmaker, better finisher (better body control), etc.

 

Any chance we could get pick 6 off Orlando and take both twins? Perhaps if we took on Isaac who I imagine they are happy to offload.
Maybe KJ (or KPJ) and pick 20 for Isaac and pick 6.

 

The truth is that whether or not we get a Thompson twin, the offensive fit for Sengun on any team is constraining as long as he isn’t a threat shooting from mid range or three.

A big operating from the post without the threat of a jumper limits your options offensively. If Jokic wasn’t a really really good shotmaker he wouldn’t be Jokic via just post scoring and playmaking. The shot is necessary.

Sengun has to be a guy who takes and makes threes.

 

I believe Ausar is a better player overall but Amen is unique ball handler….we need a point guard. Sengun will get a outside shot this year working with a Shooting Coach

 

I agree that Ausuar looks better. And he got MVP. And he has better stats (not just shooting percentages, he also has more assists than his PG brother).

And I wouldn't worry too much about Amen being even a little bit better athletically.

But everybody talks about, how much better Amens feel for the game and playmaking is. A 6-7 PG with elite athleticism and playmaking, bad shooting and good defense is a lot more valuable than a 6-7 SF with great athleticism, great playmaking, ok shooting and great defense. So that's why I would prefer Amen over Asuar. Not because of my eye test, but because of him being a PG (with the corresponding skills) and Asuar being a SF (with the corresponding skills).

 

https://bleacherreport.com/articles...by-blazers-insider-views-hornets-as-an-option