Agreed. We always hear about how the Warriors and Clippers can switch on everything, but the Rockets have that kind of length and versatility as well. And most importantly, they have guys who are tenacious about jumping passing lanes and aggressively coming over picks. I salivate thinking about how studly this defense is going to be in the playoffs once Dwight comes back healthy. You have a persistent swarming perimeter defense coupled with the most elite rim protector in the NBA.....that's a recipe for success.
Totally agree with this. If he could shoot, especially pulling up, but also catching-and-shooting, he could become a true difference-maker on the offensive end. But I don't see it happening at this point. I expect he'll have marginal improvement with his jump shot but he'll finally hover around 40% tops out there and will constantly eschew the wide open looks he gets out there in favor of simply getting rid of the ball or by insisting on plowing inside against a wall of defenders who are sitting and waiting on his penetration.
The TJ and DMO fans boys both go overboard....... they both are young rotation players but unlikely to be long standing starters on a top tier playoff team. The sad thing is that even if Phoenix regrets not getting TJ for Dragic... I am sure Morey is just as upset that Phoenix didn't make the deal, the Rockets would love to move the Pelicans pick and TJ for Dragic.
I don't think that anyone believed that coming off injury TJ is more valuable than a healthy DMO. The situation is fluid... if TJ out plays DMO the rest of the season and the playoffs, you could see the two players flip. This is not the first and probably not the last time the two of them flip concerning valuation.
The only things that will keep TJ out of the NBA 5 years from now are injuries or a complete lack of effort. I question TJ as a long term starter on a good team, but he clearly is an NBA rotation player. To argue otherwise is absurd.
Exactly. I thought that Stephen Curry would be a 15-20 point a game 6th man, tweener that was an undersized tweener.... I was wrong. I thought James Harden would be a Mitch Richmond clone.... I was wrong. I thought that Jimmy Butler would be a Buckner type, gritty bench player... I was wrong. It happens...... even Jerry West wanted Drew Gooden over Amar'e Stoudamire... Morey wanted MKG.
Well I think it's likely that Jones at PF will outplay DMo playing out of position at center but I think DMo at his real position of PF would play better than Jones at PF.
Reggie Evans is a terrible defender. He gives up position to get rebounds. He takes easy rebounds from his own teammates. He literally does nothing but rebound and that is why he has bounced around with 7 different teams. There really is no comparing Jones and Evans.
He's a rotational player today. 5 years from now is a lifetime away in NBA years. He could just as easily fall off the table as continue to succeed.
Lol @ jones falling off the table. Are his athletcism, ball handling or shot blocking skills going anywhere anytime soon? If not, neither is he
The same thing goes for DMO and virtually every other player in the NBA. The inference you make, when you say TJ may only be in the league a year or two past his rookie deal is that he is likely to not be an NBA level player in 3 years and that is NOT likely unless injury or effort are an issue. To single out TJ with your comment provides context. Look, I don't especially like TJ or DMO as a long term solution at the 4 or back up 5 spot. I think both were solid draft picks and have utility in the NBA for a long time as rotation players. Still, this idea that TJ will not be good enough in 2-3 years is really unlikely. Jones just turned 23 years old and has average 12/7/1.5 over the last 2 seasons with moderate usage rates.
