It all depends what contracts they seek, if their agents are all about getting the most out of it....you have to lose 1 or 2 out of the Original 6....and that is if nobody young is coming in. If 1-3 are considering discounts......then we can keep them around longer. Green will be pushing for max bc he is a self proclaimed Bucket......so will Sengün because you have to establish yourself for the upcoming Turkish players. They are all talented in their own way, forming a hierarchy gradually is still key just to keep your team sane and your fanbase.
Nobody forced him to shoot like 25% on open threes. I'm happy he is starting to perform like a no. 2 pick, but your revisionist history is lame.
We have a budding star guard and a budding star big. Next focus should be who the budding star wing is: Bari, Cam, Tari, Amen, or the next draft pick? There's the SF, PF, 6th and 7th man position, so while there are minutes; it's limited. But next season; it'd be nice to see if one or two of these guys take the same leap that Alp and 2nd half season Jalen did.
facts now = revisionist history oh well continue leading this team in a way no one has come close to doing since Harden, Jalen let’s finish off the season with POTM and play-in berth added to your resume
It’s entirely possible that Jalen and Sengun are both great players but don’t have the best chemistry as teammates. The question shouldn’t be whether the team is better without one or the other but whether they can be a championship duo. I think it’s a valid question. It’s rare that a team drafts all the pieces that fit together.
This is why when Jalen wasn't playing well, instead of trading him, few of us said to try to lock Green into a team friendly contract if possible. Not a complete low-ball, as I believe players should be compensated for performance, a raise from his current salary, more than kpj's extension number... maybe in the ball park of low 20 mil. A number when he was playing bad; he might have considered locking in. That opportunity is gone now. There's room to pay for two guys at least, but for the org it's more ideal if the top two guys don't take all the money and leave room to spread the wealth: for the Tari/Bari/Cam of the world.
Call it the Steph Curry window. I remember them getting their best scorer Curry on something like $15m/yr for 4 years. That enabled them to pay everyone and then give Curry the max later. One of the biggest reasons they were able to build that roster. Would have been sweet to lock Jalen up but I think we can still get him at a discount this summer. No doubt he can see how much patience we’ve had with him and how good Udoka is for his development. If he finishes it the season strong, I would offer him $30m/yr extension. If he’s not up for that I’m happy to match any offer the following summer when the data about who he really is becomes undeniable and his status is restricted.
I think you are a little starstruck by the amazing potential Jalen is currently showcasing and therefore revise the past in your mind. I would believe what you are saying if I haven't been watching the team trying to get Jalen going early in the first half of nearly every game throughout the season. The early game priority of the Rockets was always getting Jalen going. Most of the time, Sengun didn't even play like a first option at first halves because of this strategy. He started to play like one only after it was apparent that Jalen was not gonna carry the scoring load. Jalen was not terrible because he didn't get the ball enough, no, he was simply terrible because he played terrible. He didn't make his shots. It's not Fred's or Sengun's fault, it's all about him playing subpar, even with whole team collectively trying to get him hot. Things always ran through him at the start, it's nothing new. I agree that Jalen's playing on a heavenly level right now, he looks like a legit star out there. If he keeps playing like this, Sengun might not be even be the 1st option when he comes back. and it doesn't have to be an issue. Jalen as a better Murray and and Sengun as a lesser Jokic could work. I'm not saying this is what will happen, but it's definitely a possibility. This is a valid question, but all attempts to answer it now will be pure speculation. We don't have enough data to show whether Jalen will sustain this level of play or not when Sengun returns.
As a person who wanted to draft Green, didn't want to give up on him, and has rooted for him every step of the way... this is a great post and I agree. It's been a little frustrating watching someone who has all of the tools to be a superstar struggle despite all of the opportunities. Sure there's been things that have gone against him (entering the draft a year or two too early, Silas, KPJ, etc). Ime has taught Green so many little things that's cumulative. The biggest question I have for Green is can he work on his jumpshot this offseason because when he is making his shots he turns into a star. It seems like an obvious thing, duh, a player is better when he makes shots... but for Green it's a difference between being a net neutral (previously massive net negative) player to a star and at times super star. That's not to say he doesn't need to improve in other areas or that he hasn't improved in other areas!
It is entirely contingent on whether Sengun and/or Amen Thompson can start hitting 3s at a respectable rate. It's not Sengun vs Green fit as much as it is Amen being an X factor that is so impactful that he needs to be on the floor even if he can't shoot. The challenge is Sengun and Thompson are not 3 point threats, meaning both of these guys cannot really share the floor. If one of them can hit 3s from the corner at PJ Tucker or Patrick Beverley rates, the entire offensive flow changes.
I'll also point out that just getting open threes isn't enough to get a lot of young players going, especially those who arent three point specialists. They need easy buckets (transition dunks, free throws, shots at the rim, rhythm shots, etc). It used to drive me crazy when a few people would argue KPJ would set people up for open shots, but they don't realize the 16 seconds before that was a lot of standing around or no rhythm. Sengun is a high IQ player. You better know he's seeing what kind if shots gets Green going. He's also seeing how often Green and Landale have connected. He'll come back knowing that they can be stronger together simply because they both will learn, know, and trust each other more.
