I totally forgot you said the mvp stuff. Sorry for that. I was always sure he would be above sabonis but wasn’t sure what his ceiling was. Most importantly we were all sure that alpi was the one to invest on and see what we had. I didn’t even bother to answer the g league nonsense. Sengun looked like a star even with the slightest drop in opposition quality and you want to send him to the world where nix is the good player.
Forcing him to bulk to be a post player when he had the touch to pick and pop completely ruined him in the long run. But give some respect to Moses and Elvin.
Him bulking up was the most stupid sh.it ever, in hindsight. Hey I have a 7”4’ ballet, lets cement his feet.
I always thought Shaq Archtype was seen as the ultimate weapon which was Yao’s misfortune. Also his national obligations. Just sad. He could have been way better
To be fair, Yao would probably bulk up at least a little even without JVG force feeding him (pun intended). But if JVG had more offensive imagination, it would have made Yao's life much easier. Yao was pigeonholed into the dominant big man banging in the low post model. That model has been extinct with the retirement of Yao and Shaq. If Yao played today, he would have developed a 3pt shot and be used more on elbow handoff, pick and pop, mixing with his dominant low post game. The low-post-only model rendered him easily neutralized by fronting. If he would come out to the high post when fronted, it would make it much harder to defend.
Prozingis's low post game is not as lethal as Yao's, who is two inches taller and a much stronger lower body. But yeah, that's the idea.
It's very obvious Ime likes Alpi. Neither will be going anywhere. Doesn't mean there won't be some "accountability games" from time to time. But these two (plus FVV, for at least the next couple of years) are the cornerstones of this franchise now.
We have a saying: “his flesh is yours, bones are mine” sounds weird to you probably, but it essentially means go hard on him, as much as you require. Generally parents say it to their child’s trusted teacher/coach/mentor. It is how it is. My parents always did the same. I personally like the mindset.
