Lol all good. Definitely been called that. I'm fine with it. My first Rockets favorite player was Calvin Murphy. Had several through the years. Last true "favorite player" on the team was probably Franchise. So it's been a while. Definitely a JG fan. Believe he's gonna be (at the very least) a special scorer. Just feel he was WAY behind developmentally before joining the Rockets. No college, a Covid shortened G-League, straight into a situation with a team trying to lose and stellar vet leaders in KPJ & C-Wood, both of whom were trying to prove they were "franchise guys" lol. For a kid who'd always got by on sheer athleticism it's taken a while for him to develop winning habits and slowly buy surely adding to his game. Some get caught up in "similar numbers" efficiency wise all 4 years. Big difference is he's A) doing it on a 2 seed, not the worst team in the league, B) doing it while playing good defense & C) doing it while learning to play off of/with Al-P (and some terrible spacing). And as much as I hate advanced stats (in basketball) these look like an ascending player to me.
It’s so interesting to see that Green has worked his butt off to make his defense well above average, as even his most adamant supporters used to scoffed at his matador style defense under Silas. I will honestly say, I NEVER expected his defense to become his strong point! I figured it would be akin to Sengun’s offensive prowess but with those bitter taste of weak defense abilities, mostly due to his physical limitations. So I by no means am knocking on Sengun and his defensive effort, as anyone can see he has improved by leaps and bounds on team defense, his lack of springs, quickness, and arm length do figure into the equation. Kudos to Green, because his offense is getting more clutch and he is being able to inject his talent through the game. His drives to the basket are now garnering respect from the refs, as he is even getting more foul calls, which in the past would have gone without a whistle.
Let's stay grounded. Defense is most definitely not Jalen's strong point. When teams stop consistently hunting him, then maybe let's talk. Unless he gains a significant amount of strength or his hands become weapons on defense, don't hold your breath. I think we all agree the two years under Udoka have helped Jalen on both ends of the floor, but there is a ways to go.
Disagree about the context of getting hunted. There's hunted and there's HUNTED. We're a monstrous defensive team and hunting someone is a better choice than trying to break the team defense down. It's more desperation than anything and it's not gone well for people. Unless he's left on an island with a much stronger player - something no ultra fast player can absorb - he's been so solid. That's something we're not supposed to allow. If this is hunted then Tatum and Horford got hunted plenty en route to the championship. Not a good option for an opponent but better than all the other alternatives. I'd take him as the 4th best defensive starter on a championship calibre defense. If we had a championship calibre rim protector, he'd be even better than that imo. Not complaining about Sengun, but it's important to note that our perimeter defenders protect their rim protector more than anyone in the league protects theirs. I would be 0% surprised if after a playoff series and another summer of adding muscle, he's a legit two way player next season. I don't think there's a long way to go unless you're talking about being considered an elite defender.
Udoka has said it multiple times that this is only the beginning and in the beginning he is going to be hard on their arse but he welcomes the day sooner than later when he can really just strategize and not going to stress intensity and effort all the time. And then we see how much Jalen and Alpe have really learned on a consistent basis when the coach is focusing on the whole game plan and not coaching up individual players during games. Right then they can perform under any given coach.
Ya if your choice is switching between Amen, Brooks, Bari and the high usage offensive guard the opposing team relies heavily on to generate offense, ya you chose to get switched on to that high usage offensive guard because ya compared to the stallworths Green is sharing the court with he is going to be relatively not as good AND the opposing team gets to tire the legs out of a dude the opposing team relies on to generate offense making him less effective on that end due to more tired legs. Opposing teams try to hunt the high usage offensive player often. You see it with Ant, SGA etc also. Opposing teams want these guys to be POA defenders because that tires you out more and makes you less effective in your high usage offensive role. Same applies to Alpi also. He is the weakest on the court in switching on to perimeter guys but that's going to be the case given how deep the team is in defensive talent and they also want to tire out Alpi as much as possible like Jalen. Opposing teams want to tire out Jalen and Alpi by making them play defense. Hell you see opposing team announcers say this mid game all the time talking so it how they need to make Green play defense so he's more tired on offense.
Hmmm, I wouldn't exactly call 2nd in the West mediocrity. And considering we've had 4 starters out at multiple times....I'LL TAKE THAT MEDIOCRITY ALL DAY
...worth noting Jalen averages the most points on this team, has the 3rd best 3pt%(.05% behind Bari), and has played the most games. The up and down play has frustrated me as much as the next guy, but it's increasingly hard to dismiss him as a mediocre player when he is such a big part of a team on both sides of the ball who has been 2nd in the West most of the season. ...maybe it's fair to say we wouldn't mind an upgrade at his position since our offense has struggled, but you can't argue that all things considered he is a plus player on a plus plus team.
homegrown talent improving every season at every facet of his game yet instead of being happy with the progress, some folks just keeps doubling down and moving the goal post to sht on him.
The only reason they are hunting him is the alternatives are FVV who is prob the best 6'1 pg defender in history, Amen, DB, Jabari and Tari. There is nobody else you can hunt but regardless Jalen is an above average defender and thats why Rox have the 2nd seed. Jalen doesnt need stocks to show he is a good defender he does the best kind of defense where opponents miss their shots.
