The other day I was thinking about the Dončić trade, and if I would’ve been willing to part with Amen in it. And I came up with not really. Id trade him for SGA but that’s about it.
There are a few that are currently "better" than Amen. But as I've gotten older I dont really care for the one way players in the NBA. Jokic is the only one I like. Amen projects to be a true blue two way superstar. He's the freakiest point wing prospect I've seen since I dont known when. He can just do things that other players cannot do. And he doesnt just let other players waltz past him on the way to the rim.
Dude is incredible and I've been onboard since day negative-100 or something but I think if you could get Jokic, SGA, Tatum, Luka, or maybe Wemby (I'm on the fence about Wemby due to concerns about him staying healthy), it would be hard to say no. I think the best prime-years player I would probably say no on--I'd still think hard about it though--would be Ant Edwards. ...all of that said, Amen does have a chance to be in that top 5 conversation when he hits his prime years, and I would try every possible trade package up to and including Jalen/Sengun before I sent out Amen in such a trade. I just do think that, as much as I love Amen, if push comes to shove... you've got a 50ish win team and an opportunity to add a superstar in his prime to it, versus a guy who might become a superstar... you go try to win a title right now.
Jokic, SGA,Tatum,Wemby,Doncic,Ant maybe Cade...I think that may be it. I get it though, when fans have a high ceiling young player they love to dream on the possible outcomes.
To me it’s just not about who gives you the best chance of winning a championship. It’s also about who I enjoy watching the most. I really enjoy watching Amen more than any player since Magic Johnson.
https://bsky.app/profile/keithsmithnba.bsky.social/post/3ll4zqrs5js2a Love the Amen-Sengun connections in the video at the link (wish those showed like tweets). While some may not like Amen cutting or undervalue how well-timed the cuts are (i.e., they get classified as easy), I love these.
Cade will likely win MIP. Despite many who think Ime is slowing Amen's development, Amen is literally the fastest or one of the fastest developing players in the NBA. Trying to win has not hindered Amen's or Sengun's development.
I think Amen not starting at pg from day one has slowed his development and the synergies he, Jalen, and Sengun could’ve developed. Most the early wins were a product of other team injuries, schedule, and Amen and Tari’s intensity. We are in the thick of things because the West has come back to us. 49 wins was the 8th seed last year. We are going to have an early exit, because we did not get our best players the proper experience. Stone needs to build a better balanced roster and Ime needs to trust a good offensive assistant. We have our superstar and should be building around him.
