It seems pretty clear to me he has a lot of nagging injuries right now. Hopefully gets better the next few days.
Yes he was. This year Jalen's stretch was incredible because he did it on both sides of the rock. He's still doing it now
It feels real guys. It feels like Amen Thompson has single-handedly bridged JG and Alperen, and we are now a force to be reckoned with. Skipped on Mobley and got JG and Alperen, and as of right this second I would not change a thing.
Maybe my favorite game of the entire rebuild so far. Seeing the trio in action like that and against 2 elite bigs that wanted to force them out of the paint. I believe in this team man. I think we have more playoff DNA than OKC. Our record against good teams is good. Our conference record is good. Our overall record is good. Net rating good. Two champions + Brooks + Adams on the roster. Udoka has made the Finals. We just need some health or to acquire a high-volume good shooter at the 1 or 5.
Something definitely feels different with Green. He seems to understand what he is and isn't good at a LOT better than at this point last season. Still has some shot selection issues but it's improving. I don't think his 3PT shot is discussed enough. For the season he's 38% when open and 40% when wide open. He's been even better than that in the past 25 games. His 3PT shooting struggles this season are largely related to: - Stepback 3's - Contested 3's Just do less of that, hopefully with Jabari back and FVV heating up he won't need to be taking this many. To be taking almost as many 3's as Lillard and having to create your own shot relatively often, it's really good value that he's shooting league average overall. Eight attempts is a LOT for a guy who has been shooting 33% for 3 years lol. Would prefer to see us add shooting elsewhere in the lineup so that Green can be a bit more selective with his 3's and a bit more aggressive with his kick-out game. You have to give it to Udoka he's been patient, maybe he just believed in his own ability to develop Jalen all along.
I mean, you should concede that we used to talk about how objective it is that Green is one of the worst starters in the NBA and now you're at the point where you're saying he's not Nikola Jokic - a living/breathing all time great. I would say that's major progress for Jalen. Honestly man, right now it's looking like Jalen's age 25/26 season could be historic in terms of points. About 2-3 more years of playoff experience, putting on muscle, developing the jumper. That has a decent chance of being a 30+ ppg season with slightly above average defense and he doesn't like to rest games. That's a top 5 player in the NBA anytime it's ever happened. Pretty good potential still I'd say. I know you're sick of hearing this probably but take a step back and look at the entire NBA. Jalen is just 22 man, about to turn 23. He's still 3 years younger than the average aged NBA player (26) and I bet he's like 6+ years younger than the average starter in the playoffs. I think something like 70% of the NBA is still older than him. In the grand scheme of things we drafted a project, screwed up his first two years, got back on track in the next 2 years. This is the starting point for Jalen's development imo, we have only just caught up teaching him the fundamentals he should have had 3 years ago. Everything we add from here is adding on top of a net positive game. Is he of an age and basketball illiteracy that can see development for another few years? Is there room to add muscle? I think yes on all counts. He's not Nikola Jokic, but the future is looking bright for this young man. I know you've expressed your support for his progress in the past.
Ya the last few weeks have been pretty cool no doubt. It looked pretty hopeless with how awful he was before the calendar hit 2025. There’s no historical precedent for someone to be as bad as he was for his first 3 years to become a star, which is why i thought it was so unlikely. I do think there’s a very real chance he could finish the season as a top 100 player, something that sounded laughably absurd a few weeks ago. Of course it could go the other way, which would not surprise me in the slightest.
Technically he's broken the "calculator" every year, there was never any data to predict he would repeat his ASB explosions each year. That's a coin flip. It's 50-50 each year. His arc is not that unique if you just think of him as a perimeter player drafted out of HS or with no NBA/Europe/College basketball experience. That sub group of players always faces delayed development. Almost a throw-away 1-1.5 years of learning like Kobe, T-Mac, Garnett. They were often better in second halves of the season, slow to learn. That was always a good model through which to look at Jalen's career. The only differentiator between him and a HS player is 1 month in the G League Bubble. On a G League team where almost every single prospect has looked underdeveloped in the NBA so don't even count that 1 month. We basically drafted a HS player. Joined a team where everyone's development was set back or stalled (Silas era). Logical. Culture was bad, team wanted to lose, locker room was a mess. Why wouldn't it slow development down? It's like a HS player but then you get Silas for 2 years causing a big dent in the initial years. The other end of the spectrum (Ideal scenario for comparison) is Kobe Bryant getting drafted by a COTY (a coach with a Psycology/psychotherapy degree to boot) not needing to carry any serious minutes or shots for 2 years on a team full of exceptional coaches and exceptional players. Not to mention Jerry West mentoring him and Shaq being one of the most double teamed players of all time to that point. He only starts closing games by the end of year 2. Personally, I believe Jalen would have handled that just as well as Kobe Bryant regardless of any difference in talent. Becomes a full time starter by year 3. That's the dream scenario. That's roughly what Jalen's timeline should have been like, somewhere between the two let's say. Can't get it that perfect I know. It doesn't mean it will turn him into Kobe. It means that's how you develop a player with meritocracy so that when it's time to start he had to learn all the fundamentals already in order to beat the starter out. You don't give Kobe 17 shots a game on day 2 lol. You keep his confidence up rather than accumulating 2 years of bad habits and bad stats that kill his confidence. Simple old school concept, happens to work really well. That's also Spurs philosophy and they're great at developing players. Udoka comes from that tree. Wish we had him sooner. Why keep hope that this model is reasonable through all the struggles? Well there are a lot of outliers with him. He's athletic as heck. He shouldn't have as many 30 and 40 point games as he has so his peaks are ridiculous, it's not comparable to replacement level players who get a green light to shoot. The other thing is I was surprised to find out he's got a great work ethic and highly coachable too. Always seemed like the ingredients for an unusual career arc. That model is essentially how I was predicting (2 years ago) he has the potential to be one of the greatest late bloomers ever. Hope he fulfills that.
Do you actually watch the games? Or do you base your opinion entirely on obscure or recently-invented stats devoid of context?
Jalen type players can never be #1 option , at best #2 or #3, because he lacks court vision and c'mon 2 asists a game for guard?? He plays for himself, if he is on his day, he shoots Light out, if not, this is risky.. While l accept the leap this year, early to judge. I trust Alpi more, with his ups and downs, l know he is borderline star, maybe not 1A but %100 1B. But for Jalen, not sold on yet
there is a certain type of poster who believes it makes them look more sophisticated and balanced to say things like ‘he might even be in the top 100 by the end of the year’ or ‘it’s just a [x] game hot streak - let’s give it another few decades to decide if he’s better than Corey Brewer.’ It doesn’t. Jalen is the top scorer on the third best team in the league. 99% of the league never will win a player of the week award because they simply don’t have that level of talent. The idea that there are an average of 3 better players per team is just as laughably hyperbolic as saying he is in a Jordan tier.
the biggest growth for green this season is that he rarely is forcing anything. last night was a perfect example. he could have chucked shots in the 4th but buckled down and played team ball. he did it earlier in the season but wasn't putting up good splits because his shot wasn't falling. but now that it is, the stats much look better and everyone can cheer that "he's suddenly turned a corner!", when the evolution has been there all along for the people paying attention.
In a comparison all time of how players performed before turning 23, Green is: 16th all time in 20+ point games (134), just behind Derrick Rose 13th all time in 25+ point games (85), just behind Tracy McGrady 14th all time in 30+ point games (45), just ahead of Kobe 12th all time in 40+ point games (9), just behind Ant and tied with Booker And yet, so many argue that he somehow hasn't developed fast enough. The fact is he's developing pretty much in line with other great scoring guards.
