Give me Augustin over Rafer any day of the week. DJ is returning to UT for his sophomore season, but he's already shown me enough to see that he's a hell of lot better PG than our own Rafer Alston. PASSING:DJ does a terrific job at finding open teammates. Coincidentally, this is Rafer's strong suit as well. However, Rafer has had difficulty in the past at times with getting Yao the ball in the paint. Meanwhile, DJ has been a big factor behind Kevin Durant's success in his first year. DJ is fourth in the nation in assists with 6.8 per game in a 40-minute game. Rafer's averaging 5.3 per game. I would give Augustin the nod here, simply because he's a natural PG and he has the ability to make his teammates look better. Edge: Augustin SHOOTING:Augustin is a better shooter than Rafer right now, even though he's only 19 yers old. Rafer's shooting 37% this year, lower than his 38.4% career average. He averages more 3-point attempts per game than he does assists. And we all know about that ridiculous floater that never goes in. Meanwhile, DJ is a terrific shooter with a 48% FG%. He's got NBA 3-point range, and knocks down wide open shots with ease. He's made some very clutch shots down the stretch this year for the Horns as well. This is one area, where Augustin will continue to improve, whereas Rafer has hit the wall. Edge: Augustin PLAYMAKING: Rafer is not a playmaker, period. He makes terrible decisions with the ball frequently, and doesn't create opportunities for his teammates nearly as often as he should. Anyone who's watched the Horns this year knows that DJ is a natural playmaking PG who can squeeze a pass into traffic and run the fast break with ease. He plays the passing lanes well, and knows how to use his body well to seal off the defender when attacking the basket. Rafer, on the other hand, is a below-average defender, who doesn't attack the basket well, and instead settles for jumpers and that stupid floater too often. Edge: Augustin. There you have it. If the Rockets have the chance to trade up and get him in the future, they should jump at the chance. He would be a great fit playing alongside Yao and TMac, and would easily average 8-10 assists per game here.
i am a huge DJ fan as i am a student at UT and i think he will turn into a great point guard in the NBA but just keep in mind that it's tough to compare his numbers in college to rafer's numbers in the NBA. DJ shoots pretty well in college but the defenders in college are nowhere near as tough as the defenders in the NBA.
Granted, the Big 12 isn't exactly the Western Conference, but DJ has some amazing upside as a true PG. Rafer has peaked as a player.
Thank you. I'm not saying he won't do well, but this guy may have a few problems in the NBA because of his height. There haven't been very many great 5'11 PGs in the NBA.
I was listening to Bucky Godbolt and Erin Hogan on 1300 AM in Austin yesterday and they were saying if DJ decides to come out this year, he'd be a top 15 pick and if he stays in college, he could be national player of the year next year. I'm a big DJ fan, but as much as JVG talked about the need for more length in the back court last year, I doubt he's on the top of the Rockets' list of PGs to draft. They probably won't have high enough of a pick to get him when he comes out either if they can stay healthy.
Unreal thread. Let's compare an undersized UT Freshman who's coming back another year to Rafer. For what? What relevance does this have at all? Talk to me about Durant, who's the best player in the nation and should be the first pick in the draft. Make comparisons with him, not DJ
Were they drunk? Not a chance he goes top 15 in this deep of a draft and he certainly won't be Nation al Player of the Year next season with Mayo, Rose, Love, Gordon, Beasley and all the other guys coming in. DJ is good, but this is going overboard
Signed, Calvin Murphy Jameer Nelson Allen Iverson TJ Ford Well you get the idea...with today's no hand check rule, smaller guys can have a very large impact.....DJ would be a GREAT fit for the Rockets. DD
I agree that he wouldn't be a Top 15 pick, Fran Friscilla (sp?) was saying that if DJ stays for 2 more seasons, he'll be National Player of the Year.
Nelson, iverson, and Ford all get owned on defense by the likes...well... anyone else who plays the point guard position.. haven't been watching basketball long enough to have seen Calvin Murphy (time to get bashed by hordes of Rocket fans) Go big point guards!
I wasn't saying compare Alston to Durant (if you thought that then I don't know what to tell you), but you guys are over hyping DJ. I don't think you have any concept of the pg class coming into college next year. Definitely better: 1.OJ Mayo 2.Derrick Rose 3.Eric Gordon 4. Possibly Corey Fisher You're also forgetting UCLA's pg (whose names escapes me at the moment) and Tyrone Lawson who right now are probably on par with DJ. I don't get where you think I was trying to be funny either, makes no sense. Why in the world is there even a DJ vs. Rafer thread anyways .
Chad Ford also thinks that the Suns are the best team of all time, Steve Nash is a reincarnation of Pete Maravich, Shawn Marion one of DR J and Amare one of Hakeem. We all know how seriously to take his opinion. DJ is good, but not elite. I think he should be a 3-4 player in college like TJ. He'd be better coming out this year then next (personally) if he wanted to benefit in draft placement (obviously depending on his workouts)
