It's really great that Denver is in the Finals. It's been practically impossible to win a title in the NBA without an excellent rim protector and Denver is changing that a little bit. I hope Udoka is watching. I remember thinking in Sengun's rookie season that he may struggle athletically but the mind is faster than the body if we're talking about very small distances. A high IQ player will understand positioning and timing better. Udoka said during an interview (can't remember which) that Sengun is high bball IQ so he should be able to grasp those concepts. He also said not all players are made the same, so you can't expect the same from everyone. Jokic's advanced defensive stats are going to look good because he's on a good defensive team and it has nothing to do with him. Sengun's advanced defensive stats suck because he was on a unbelievably terrible defensive team and it had little to do with just him. No rim-protecting rookie was going to change that when you're bleeding badly at the point of attack and on the wing. Sengun is quicker, faster and a significantly better shot blocker than Jokic despite Jokic's height. Granted what Jokic does on the offensive end to make up for it is historically unique, but it seems to me there is a path and that path is opening up more. We should be watching what Malone's doing there like a hawk. I'm more convinced now than ever that Sengun will be our long term starter at C with Udoka's help. I've often said we need to wait longer for Sengun to develop his defense. It will get better next season, but I don't think it will stop improving for a few years because it's mental rather than athletic for him. Aside from Sengun himself improving, it's pretty obvious there is going to be much better defense around him to that he doesn't have to absorb breakdown after breakdown. I would've thought you need 4 great defenders around a C like that but they're doing it with MPJ and Murray in the starting lineup too. Perhaps we can make up for the difference between Jokic and Sengun offensively by ensuring that our defense at the 1-4 spots is better than Denver's. With good young defenders in Garuba, Jabari, Tari and Christopher I think it's possible. I think Sengun can have an 18/10/5/1.5 season while hitting 33% on 1 3PA per game and giving us slightly below average defense (as opposed to flat out bad defense he's shown at times). That would be excellent for his age 21-22 season.
Difference is Jokic size helps him clog the lane. Sengun is not as big nor tall, so that's the difference. If you notice, half of the time Jokic doesn't even jump. He just stands there and extend his long arms.
Sengun has better jumping and lateral speed than Jokic. That should make up for the size difference. What Sengun needs to learn to avoid fouling. This has been his problem on defense. He imprroved in his second season. So I'm optimistic that he will continue to improve. It is more mental than physical.
This way of thinking is going to disappear. Height did not help Vucevic for example and Vucevic also has height/size that helps him clog the lane. It's not a size thing, because even if Sengun got really strong and could jump higher, the old way of thinking would still not allow that he would be a sufficient rim protector to win a title. You're still referring to a way of thinking that would have said it can never work with Jokic because no matter his height and length of his arms, he is not a great rim protector. Putting his hands up did not work for 7 years. Dropping back and leaving 3's open was never before a viable strategy for this type of player. A new reality is being born and if Denver wins it will be the beginning of the end of these ideas. You're describing what it takes to be a good rim protector but what we're learning is that THAT is not as relevant as it used to be. We have to change our base assumptions totally. You will find posts from me over a couple of decades repeating that a team won't win a title without an excellent rim protector and for the first time ever that argument doesn't hold up. Jokic is a non-excellent rim protector and it's going to work. Normally him being toasted on the perimeter would be sufficient to render his lane-clogging insignificant and dropping back into the lane leaves open 3pters. That's not happening anymore or it's being neutralized somehow. The truth of what's happening is that Jokic is not an excellent rim protector not matter if he does some part of it decently, yet his team even with 2 other below average or bad defenders on the floor are in the Finals. The rim protecting and lane clogging requirements for a C are going away. The assumptions are changing and that's perfect timing for us because we have a super young and incredibly talented offensive C. The only other player to play defense like Jokic is Shaq, but Shaq had the benefit of playing in a low 3pt shooting era and he was just lazy with defense plus otherworldly on offense. What's becoming clear is that elite offense at C, for the first time, can make up for not being an excellent rim protecting C. Can Sengun become an elite offensive player? I 100% believe so.
Is Jokic even that much taller? Sengun is listed either at 6-10 or 6-11, Jokic either at 6-11 or 7. Jokic has 3 inches in wingspan, so that helps, but it's not like a major difference. I would say what helps Jokic is his physicality. Sengun should improve in that area. I don't believe Sengun will ever be a plus defender - but I could see him being average, which should be enough. He has quick feet on offense and overall a good feel for the game. I would imagine the thing that helps him the most is learning not to foul.
Y’all need to stop with the IQ ****. Sengun is a high IQ offensive player, but he flat out doesn’t know what to do half the time on defense
Yeah, he hopes his offensive IQ means he’ll figure it out defensively. You see how he doesn’t talk about his physical tools. There’s a reason why Ime said we need to add some different kind of bigs
You read everything through your hater glasses. He literally said - he is smart, so he will figure it out on defense. And he said it is his job to help him do it. Everything Udoka said is correct.
That’s why you draft Jarace Walker to play PF if Scoot isn’t available. A frontline of Jabari, Jarace, and Sengun will be fine defensively. The biggest problem with the Rockets defense has been terrible perimeter defense and Sengun has been a part of that. Jarace can switch very effectively. Ime will need to get his guards committed to defense for us to be a good defensive team, it is not all on Sengun.
You read everything with your Sengun lover glasses. He’s gonna blow on defense next season and will get traded. I won’t be wrong about this, he’s not gonna be here long term. Enjoy this moment
Very good point there. I’ve seen breakdowns in how all 4 players had to help Sengun so much, which led to open 3s. To me, that’s a big problem. I respect this opinion, I can see that vision
Al Harford has been on some outstanding defensive teams starting with that 60 win Hawks team. A highly cerebral player. Hes about the same size and quickness as Sengun, but it is common knowledge that Turks have an enlarged Medulla Oblongata.
Saw the film with my own eyes. They had to sag down to help him bc he just couldn’t hold his own. The others can be coached bc they have tools, Sengun doesn’t have the tools to be a good defender. Hopefully he can just survive out there on that end
