He needs to learn to box out on D. I specifically watched for this during the game and didn't see him put a body on anyone to box them out the entire time.
Btw just based on early returns alone I would rate Cam higher than Green. Cam is younger than Jalen but his body right now looks more solid than Green's and Green is 2yrs older. Cam reminds me of Anthony Edward's, Jaylen Brown and Lu Dort, it looks like he can tank hits and keep on going.
I would say more Brown than Edwards. Edwards had better handles and ball skills and is just flat out more agile and explosive at the same age as Cam Jalen Green has Edwards explosion but is faster and has better handles for playmaking possibly PNR possesion is mostly a primary ball handler/pg possession. Pgs usually run this play the most on their respective team or at least the primary ball handler. Green is not only the most efficient outside Mitchell who joined the league 3 years older than Green but has significantly more volume than the other two guys who came in at the same age. And since they have similar turnover rates, it means the ball security with that much more navigating screens and sliterhing around defenses dribbling the ball from a pnr possesion shows better handles and higher playmaking potential. Btw Green's pnr playamking efficiency is higher than our starting pg and with more possessions per game than our starting pg. And if you think this is very nitpicky... This is 9 possessions per game of the team. This is a aubstantial aspect of Green's game and why his ceiling is higher than Whitmore. Jaylen Brown for reference had like 1.1 possessions per game on .70 ppp
there's a high chance he grows taller a 6'8''-6'9'' Jaylen Brown with that tank of a body would be great
Ant Edwards is the only other one. What I liked to see is that he seems to be showing improvement on the tunnel vision aspect even from game to game. He’s been ridiculous inside the arc. Over 60% overall, and I think it’s at 75% on 2 point shots in the last 4 games. No one can stop him going to the rim. I think his 3P% will improve with better shot selection too — he looks good out there. Cam, Amen, and Tari off the bench is going to be havoc.
With how physically-developed he already is, I wonder if he does have any more growth left. Isn't it usually the skinny, lanky types who add more height? He is young enough to potentially grow a bit taller though, you're right.
But that's just 1 side of the ball right? If Person A is 9 on offense and 6 on defense while Person B is 8 on both offense and defense who has the higher ceiling? Cam looks like he can defend anybody 1-3 and even small 4s that's more valuable imo than just playmaking cuz we can have a synergistic effect with FVV, Amen, Tari and Brooks who are all or have the potential to be above average or better defender. Cams physicality allows him to finish on broken plays and on defense better than Jalen. Green's playmaking was essential before but now we have FVV and Amen on top of Sengun to do the playmaking I don't think it's as necessary now. The volume thing was also remarkable before but now with so many scoring options the focus should be on quality/efficiency rather than quantity.
Is it the default rule that every player who is stronger is a better finisher? Is he going to be a better finisher than Ja? Green is more explosive, bendable and has more crafty and touch to his lay up package than Whitmore. Being a better playmaking threat is also very important isn't it? In fact I would say on the market GMs will pay a elite scorer who has decent playamking skills than a really good scorer with no playmaking skills and a good to elite defender. Can Whitmore needs to play a NBA game before we judge his defense.
Saying he has the same explosion and effective athleticism(wiggle, acceleration, agility etc) than Ant is saying something man. You understand how elite Ant's first step and explosion is? There is a very good reason why he's drafted number 1 overall. Ant has what it takes to have elite dribble seperation. Cam is not going to create "elite" seperation.
I just don't see the "Cam Whitmore is a shooting guard" thing. For me, he is clearly a small forward. There's some kind of optical illusion going on where he looks smaller on TV than he actually is IRL. The dude measured at 6'5.75" at the combine. That's legit 6'7" in shoes. I see him as competing for minutes at the 3 as we go forward.
I think strength does contribute a lot to finishing look at Shaq, Zion, Giannis and Lebron. If you're strong you can bully your way to the basket and either dunk or get fouled. No need for layups when you can just dunk the ball like Cam has been doing. Strength also plays a part on defense cuz when opponents try to drive in the paint you need to take the contact on your chest and not fall down or get injured. You are right we haven't seen Cam play in a NBA game yet but looking at his play so fare has blown Jalen Green out the water at the same point of his career. Also looking at the mentality and physical attributes of Cam you know he's gonna be a better defender than Green as well.
Did I say strength is not a factor? Read my question. I said is a player automatically a better finisher because they are stronger?
He should be a 2 if you want to put him in the best possible situation to succeed. It's similar to how Spurs put TD and Wemby at PF even if they are really centers. He is 6'5.75 with short arms and small hands if you put him at 3 he will be disadvantaged by guys like Tari who is 6'6 with 7'2 wingspan and massive hands and the size to bang with him head on. If you put him in SG the he's up against 6'4 and thin dudes. Like imagine Whitmore vs Scottie Barnes or Whitmore vs Colin Sexton it's just easier for Cam to match vs sgs.
Jalen Green played 1.5 summer league games and they shut him down. He was the number two pick. And in those 1.5 games he was pretty damn amazing. This is so "what have you done for me lately" syndrome. Or trolling.
