From Jabari? These two couldn't be anymore different lol. Jabari strikes me as more like 6-10 power forward Chris Paul. He has that winning at all costs thing about him.
30 years of playing, 10 years of coaching. that is just a guess. i hope my guess does not work out, still, i want the NFT to sell when and if it does lol. u think him trying to beat and attack Jalen was a fluke? OMG, this year will be fun to watch. I wonder who would beat who, like Sengun vs the Diva... or the Diva vs the fat old Pizza guy. I just wanted this early observation of mine to be on record, so relax guys. I should have said Dwight plus Shaq (both fake personalities in my book).
Was there any drama at Auburn? I didn't keep up with him there enough to hear about any diva behavior there.
Thats your interpretation and the hot button topic as of late. When the shots start to fall I'll be curious which way the pendulum swings!
Maybe. Its on Kevin. He has the tools. Can he put it together? I understand the doubt and concern from those who havent bought in. If we were playoff contenders then the pressure would be even higher, but this team is still in the development phase. I would be fine taking a more definitive stance with the player at years end maybe even sooner as soon as the new guys can work their way into the mix consistently. 4 games is a crazy small sample size for anything - I mean you dont hear the KPJ Fanclub posting his 80% C&S 3 point rate or the raw numbers that look great on paper. Everyone knows there is still a ton of work to be done and its too early to make any educated guesses either way.
Banchero was a clearly better prospect than Jabari, which is why he went #1 overall and is having a greater impact early in his career. Again...nobody should be surprised by any of this.
Jabari would be out of the league shooting 35.5% from 3, which is what he currently is? Tough crowd.... Y'all really need to give this kid some time.
I have liked what I have seen with Smith being aggressive toward the basket he needs to finish much better, but that will come in time I hope. He stills takes some wild shots when he tries to finish, but at least he is trying. The shot is not as pure as I thought, but the mechanics are there, and he definitely is a plus defensively, very active. With that said he is being guarded by the likes of Markenen and Olynnyk he has to be able to punish those guys and create stress on the defense, that will be something to watch as the season goes along.
Jabari will never be an off the dribble finisher at the rim in all likelihood. He doesn't move fluidly and isn't an explosive leaper. Ideally he just becomes a great defender who can hit jumpers consistently. That's his destiny if he's to become a top 30-40-ish player in the league. His physical limitations probably won't allow him to ever break out as an elite player, but that's why the Magic didn't take him #1.
Things have worked out for the Rockets so far and looks like they will again this year. They got one of the best shooting guard prospects followed by the best switchable shooting prospect. Now they'll have a high pick in a draft with a plethora of highly rated PG/SG hybrids. Wemby would absolutely change the trajectory of this franchise and likely make Sengun obsolete but at that point I think you'd have to sign a competent PG/leader and stop messing around with Green/Jabari and the new guy's development. Nothing KPJ can do about it because the Rockets have a metaphorical gun to his head with that contract.
Jabari is useful already and has a lot of room for upside because of his plus athleticism and defense. There is a good chance he can develop an efficient post/mid-range game. If he does that his combination of skills will be very valuable in playoff basketball. Banchero is better now, but has that Julius Randle look. Many very good skills, unclear what his A+ skill is. It's a combination that is fine in regular season games, but you can't win in the playoffs without some ability that is elite. He might get there, but the path is harder. It would be like asking Donovan Mitchell to become Ja Morant.
I think he will be able to do it against the likes of Olynyk or Markenen especially since they have to be up on him because of the 3. Yeah, I think elite is off the table, but I can see some 3rd team NBA's and all star games in his future.
Dude Banchero looks nothing like Randle, Smith looks more like Ariza than Banchero looks like Randle. Randle has none of the play making of Banchero nor the offensive diversity. His A+ skills are playmaking and shot creation and he does everything else at a NBA average to above average level. Smith is far more likely to be exposed in the playoffs than Banchero who can right now be guarded by any big. Banchero is a better athlete and more skilled than Smith, it's like you never watched Banchero play.
Bancheros is a nice player but if you watched him in Duke, he is not a very good defender and not a good shooter. He knows how to drive to get his shot and get a rebound to get the layup. Jabari is an elite defender and a elite shooter. He is rushing his shot too much; he needs to take his time and shoot the ball. Every time when he rushes his shot, he is off. I think he is a elite defender, I think he might be a future Center. He played very well last night at Center, by switching players, backside help, going after each rebound in the paint. He is skinny but he is not afraid of the paint area, when he gains 20 pounds, he is going to be a exciting player. He is a gym rat so he is going to get his shooting corrected and along the year Coach Lucas will help him with his dribbling. I think Bancheros is a better player overall, but if a coach uses him wisely and a point guard put him in the best position to score, he will be fine. Most draft analyst did not want Jabari to go to Houston because of our coaching and point guard situation. The guy should average 16-18 points a game and 8 to 9 rebounds a game. The coach are letting him shoot10 to 15 shots a game so if he just calms down and shoot the ball, he has a STAR on our hands.
Banchero is good, no doubt, though I think you are selling Randle short (he avged 6 assts vs 3.4 TO 2 years ago). You've made a clear case that Smith is not a shot creator due to his lack of handle. I agree with that. The longterm question is what is needed for playoff basketball. Klay Thompson, even when healthy, has not been the shot creator that Jordan Poole is now, and Klay is not especially athletic. But Klay's game is perfectly suited to playoff basketball. Jabari has a long way to go to get there but that path looks realistic.
