Since euphoria from the Artest trade settled, I've been surfing around the internet, checking other forums and things like that. I go to Lakersground.net from time to time, because they seem to be one of the bigger well-organized basketball forums out there. Anyway, to the point, people there seem to think that Andrew Bynum is the Next Big Thing, with even more potential than Dwight Howard and Greg Oden. What's even worse is that they overlook Yao, as if he's not even one of the best centers. Granted, Yao's been injured a lot and has fallen off the radar some, but he's still light years ahead of Bynum. They seriously believe that Bynum is going to be the best center SOON. As in they think that right now, he'd probably beast most opposing centers with no problem at all. I just wanted to get some opinions. Is this Bynum craze a case of Laker fans having their homer goggles strapped on too tight, or do they actually have a legitimate superstar (that's what they project him to be) in the making? My guess is that Bynum is a skilled big who will probably be a borderline all-star at best (Pau Gasol). I think, realistically, he'll be like Camby with a little more offense and a little less shot blocking.
I pretty much agree with your assessment. He will be an all-star though, cause he'll put up border-line numbers. And at the center position, on the Lakers, and with the good record the Lakers will have...he'll be an all-star at some point.
Yeah, that's what I think is going to happen. You should visit lakersground just to see how drunk they are on the Bynum koolaid. One kid actually said that Bynum is more skilled than frickin' Kareem Abdul Jabaar. In a Lakers forum, no less.
I thought its already been established that he's overrated. He plays decent, the good thing is the Lakers seem like they'll pay him big bucks to keep him.
He'll have and Otis Thorpe type career. 18/10 type guy that you can't build an offense around but definitely need to keep a body or two on him on the defensive end.
overrated <period> Not that I am saying he sucks though, but he is overrated simply because the media has made him that way being that he plays in LA. Top 10 center when healthy... not even close to Yao or Howard though.
His post game and footwork are remarkable for a 20-year-old. He put up 13/10/2 this past season and he's still figuring the game out. He'll be a 20/10 player. The problem is he has durability and work ethic issues. Sure, he's a promising player but what happens once you pay him? If he's reluctant to work hard now what happens once he starts collecting paychecks? You could have the next Eddy Curry on your hands.
Sorry bro, I've never made a thread with a poll before, not really sure how to do it. Probably should have made a poll, though, you're right. There's always next time, I guess!
I might have to go check out that Lakers forum. I pretty much agree with what everyone has said so far. He is talented, and may be an all star one day. But to compare him to Yao and Howard is just preposterous!!!!!
I cant say he is overrated ....13/10/2 and he is only 20yrs old. He is already a better rebounder and defensive player than Yao. He will surpass Yao in 2 years.
i would love to say under rated because hes averaging good numbers at a young age. BUT i would love to say overrated because cause i cant seem to imagine him averaging more than 15 points in his career so in conclusion. time will tell.
I think he's overrated due to having good passing bigs on his team (Odom, Gasol). If he was on a less talented team, I think you'd see his FG% drop substantially. Also, I have a feeling that once he "makes it", he'll stop improving his game. I don't see him self motivated to be an all time great.
exactly a lot of these ppl over at the lakers forum either equate bynum the same as yao or give yao a "slight advantage" dont get me wrong i do think bynum will be a good to great center in the league but he put up yao like numbers for one month before going down to injury. if he does that for a full season we can talk about him being the same as yao. we have seen a lot of young big guys have great stretches which leads to them getting huge contracts then they fall off. and there is no way to be sure how he will come back from a knee injury. injuries to joints can be serious long term. either way he may eventually become one of the best centers if not the best in a few years he is still young and learning. as long as he stays humble and hungry i dont see why he couldnt be. but for now OVER-RATED
Sorry, didn't mean to word it like Gasol added to his stats last year. I meant that he has good passing bigs on his team which will boost his offensive stats. Alot of people see his FG% and assume he is doing that from a 1on1 post or against a double team. It is insane how easily he can get the ball in deep position around the basket from a Kobe drive or inlet pass from the high post by a 7 footer. Take away a championship contending roster, and make him the focus of the offense and he might be a borderline allstar. Personally I think his potential is around the same as Al Horford, which isn't bad.
Most bigs won't be able to guard him one-on-one. That presents an enormous problem for the opponent with Kobe, Gasol and Odom out there too. Ultimately, with this kid it's going to come down to how bad does he want it. There's a fine line between being dominant like Yao/Howard/Amare/etc and just becoming the next Eddy Curry. He's going to have to want it bad enough and be a good enough teammate to both co-exist with everybody and control his weight/stay healthy.
As much as I think Lakers fans tend to overrate him, I think the board here may be undervaluing him, also. Right now, I think Dwight Howard and Yao are clearly the top 2 centers in the league (Amare and Duncan are 4s). After that, there's a significant drop-off, but I think Bynum is probably the guy I would pick next (over the likes of Kaman, Camby, Bogut, Chandler, Shaq). Oden projects to be great defensively, but his offense is still raw. Bynum at ~20 y/o looks like he has the skills to average around 20 pts per game, and he already rebounds and blocks shots well. He has a real post-up game, which is also rare these days. He showed a lot of improvement from his rookie season, so if he stays healthy, there's no reason to think that he won't be solidly the #3 center in the league this year with potential to equal Yao in a few years.
