Amen is probably an above average NBA defender already. That drive towards the end was beautiful too. He can get into the paint so easily and that middy is a solid shot as well. I hope they give him a real role this season. I know the injury was a setback but I feel like he’s got more to give than what we’re seeing.
Thompson is gonna be a stud. Already a plus defender. Just needs the ball and the greenlight to penetrate and distribute.
The exaggerated focus on a player who typically plays only marginal minutes over the course of about a dozen games has become incredibly ridiculous. Did he do an exceptionally good job in those dozen or so games? No. The majority of rookie players don't. To call him terrible is a gross exaggeration. He comes in and runs the system. I've seen him make a lot of good passes, make solid drives to the basket, and play solid defense. Yes, he can miss badly on a couple of jumpers as well. He's not a great shooter. That's why he doesn't take a lot of threes. When he is on the court, does the offense suffer significantly? Not exactly. Overall, I think that he has been minimal in impacting the game. He hasn't been the reason why games have been won or lost. Your level of expectation is too high if you are asking him to do that at this point.
He is long, athletic, good defender (willing at least for now). He also has a good bbiq and vision i think and I believe he can have a role already in any team in the NBA. I like his game.
He is going to be really good. he shows glimpses now and then. He is young, so he will be inconsistent
Amen Thompson has been trending better with more consistent playtime. His shooting is trending up. He is shooting 44% from the floor and 73% from the free throw line this month. His rebounds, steals and assists/to all are robust. He has gotten his shooting from 3 feet and in up to 73%, has his 3-10 footers up to 42% after a slow start… he is struggling on 10-16 footers and 3’s badly… but other areas improving. He is clearly improving as a player as the season goes on. He clearly has weaknesses at the intermediate range and three point range. However he has shown an ability to hit long 2’s, shots close to the bucket and in the 3-10 foot range.
When I think about busts in the NBA, they never give me that moment where they totally overwhelm someone with their talent. When Amen explodes past his defender then executes the slickest Euro step I've ever seen to finish at the basket easily while his defender still wonders where he is.... To me, that's why we drafted him. That's where his magic will always be. When I look at his shot mechanics, I can see they did the wise thing: started rebuilding it from scratch, no matter the short term results. That's going to make things uglier before they get better. Don't worry about it, just ask yourself how long it takes to build a 3pt shot from scratch and give him that long. Don't be optimistic. Be realistic. That will allow you to watch him intelligently. My guess is his shot won't be passable for a year or so but the rest of his game is going to improve a lot over the course of the season. Especially if we get a backup C who allows us to pick up the pace and play 5-out on offense.
It is weird, he is shooting a tad better but I guess for someone who was pegged as an elite rebounder for his position, Ausar was getting a ton of rebounds, he was an inconsistent rebounder.
Also needs more than half a season of real coaching after coming over from OTE. Amen is gonna dunk on the CF haters the same way Jabari clowned everyone who doubted him a year ago.
I think this is quite possible, especially considering the quantum leap in coaching and competition he's coming from. We'll see what improvements his vaunted work ethic produces in the offseason.
I think all.the years of Morey ball has programmed some people into thinking that the only way a guard can be good is if they shoot 3s well. If he is awesome at other things, he just needs to improve to being a respectable 3 point shooter which is doable. Even without it, he can be good player.
Ausar was asked to grab boards for the Pistons. Amen has been asked to defend and fit into a system. It is a lot harder when a player is being held accountable on both sides of the court, and is being asked to have his game blend in with the team. Ask Jalen Green how hard it can be. It is why big numbers on a bad team by a young player doesn't always mean a lot..... we had that with Porter and Wood. Amen Green is an elite rebounder, like his brother. The biggest difference is that Amen defensively cannot sell out to get rebounds. Also, Amen has been more perimeter oriented. Amen per 36 is getting like 8-9 rebounds, which is excellent.
We likely won't see him suddenly become a good outside shooter - but I fully expect us to see him improve his handle, to improve his shooting in that 3-10 feet range and some improvement on 3's. It may be from 17% to 22% that first year of improvement - but it will still be an improvement. Defensively, he is already good most of the time and will be the top perimeter defender on the Rockets by next season most likely.
In the worst case scenario, he will be an elite defensive guard with the physical tools that he has at his disposal. There is no way Amen is a bust.
No problem with that view just not sharing it right now. I would not want Amen to be in Jalen's shoes, those are limited ones. Ever.
These are all things that i pretty much expected with him. Hes already taken over for Holiday and as he gets more comfortable i think he'll lighten freds load too.
Would folks rather take Derek Lively, or Jamie Jaquez instead this draft? Lively would have satisfied the back up C. Jaquez, older but far more polished. People will stress upside, but upside seems to be something a distant future as Amen is going to be a project.
I think a good comparison from a developmental standpoint is Dejounte Murray. He is already improving, but I suspect we will not get the complete Amen Thompson until 3-4 years from now. I will say that I do not see him becoming a bust unless he is hurt or becomes a poor worker - he isn't overwhelmed athletically or instinctually on the court. At this point his problems are that his skill set as an outside shooter and dribbler are not as developed as needed. The handle will drastically improve the next 12-18 months, he just isn't used to playing competition like he is playing now. His shot is more of a question, but I see some aptitude inside the arc, which is really exciting.
