What separates the two is Tmac's ability to handle the rock. Pre-injury Tmac was the best/most skilled 6-9 guy I have ever seen not named Magic Johnson.
I don't think he's as athletic as Tmac. I'd say he's a more versatile version of Dirk. There's alot of differences between he and tmac.
No matter how much you work at your game, you can't teach explosiveness and speed. 2 things T-mac has/had much more of than him. I predict KG, but actually a winner and a leader. Although I did see him slap his teammate upside the head after an airball during the A&M game so maybe a crappy leader like KG.
I wished we pulled a Spurs and tanked the season to draft him. A year of rest for Mcgrady and Yao would do wonders.
duarnt is an amazing player. i live in austin so i get all the texas hoops easily. he's a bit thin, but is only 19, what do you expect? yeah dwight howard is the exception. i watched the texas kansas game over the weekend. wow. can shoot, w/ range, drive, post, quick (for 6'9"). is the teams leader out on the floor. signs of leadership like his is not too common is college hoops. fine young player.
Any GM that takes Oden over Durant is a fool. It will be like Bowie over Jordan all over again. And to correct the poster above me...Durant is 18, just turned 18 last September. DD
He's probably a better shooter than T-mac, maybe. Nowhere is he any where close to as fast as T-mac was or explosive. We should remind ourselves of T-mac's Toronto/early-Orlando days, he was able to jump out of roof, I don't really see that from him. If anybody has a chance of being semi-t-mac like, I think it might be Gearld Green, but he too has handling problems. Acutally, he remids me more of a better Tim Thomas... ahh what waste Tim Thomas is. Durant seems like he might have a better work ethic.
He's definitely a better 3 point shooter than T-Mac. I think he is a 40% 3 point shooter at the next level, he has the range and his shot comes out perfectly every time. He even makes his misses look good. They are always perfectly on line, but maybe a little short or long. However, he can't handle like T-Mac nor is he nearly as athletic as T-Mac used to be. His game really does compare better to Dirk in that he has a great intermediate game coupled with deadly shooting. However, he has AK-47 potential on defense as a 3-4 help defender. He truly is a unique prospect.
I like the kid, and I don't think the comparison he made was wrong... but I just find it wierd for a kid that hasn't even stepped onto the court in NBA to make such proclamations about themselves... It seems like he is a little over his head at the moment.
He didn't say he is the next TMac, he said he is a TMac-type player. It's like asking college/high school players who they compare themselves to.
He didn't say he was as good as T-Mac, he said he played like T-Mac. That was a response to someone asking if he played like Pippen, which is one of the worst comparisons you could make for him.
i dont think durant gonna be very successful at NBA level, his legs r not strong enough, he's not explosive enough, i think rudy gay is more atheletic than Durant, except durant has a better shot, that's probably the only thing durant is better than ruday gay.
Thats goofy. The worse he will be is a great shooting Tayshaun Prince. He does everything better than Prince except defense. Luol Deng has a similar body type also and less game and Deng is doing pretty well also. Gay has nothing on Durant.
If you think that Durant is only a better shooter than Gay, then I don't think you've seen enough (or any) of him. Durant: 25.6 ppg 11.3 rpg 2 spg 2 bpg 42% 3-pt Gay: 15.2 ppg 6.4 rpg 2 spg 1.6rpg 31% 3-pt Rudy Gay was a very athletic player that could put up highlights. Durant might have the best overall game I've seen from a young kid. Let's not forget he' only 18, he's only going to get stronger and better.
I'll go out on a limb and say that he's probably going to be a better defender than Prince. He has lockdown defensive ability written all over him -- huge wingspan, great lateral quickness, a knack for shotblocking, terrific rebounder. I think the KG parallels are definitely there ... he almost looks like he could be a Dirk on offense and a KG on defense. Let's see what his game looks like after he puts on a few extra pounds. To the other poster who talked about Oden/Durant: I'd say it's more like Olajuwon over Jordan, not Bowie over Jordan. You can't lose with either of these prospects, but I'd say Durant definitely looks to have a lot more upside.
Are you serious? Rudy Gay is more athletic than Durant and can dunk better. That's about it. Durant is better in every other aspect of basketball from shooting to handling to intestinal fortitude.
You can't judge his explosiveness in college on a fair level. It's a lot harder to be be explosive in college then it is the NBA due to all the different defenses. I can tell you this, Durant is far more developed at his age then TMac was at the same age. He needs to add weight and improve hs handle bt they said the same exact things about Tracy when he went striaght to the league. Tracy has better handle (and always will) he's also a better passer (and always will be) but Durant does everything else better. You never know how they were develop but I think in the long run KD will be a better player
Adam Morrison are pretty long, and was able to put up big numbers at college level. but lack of explosiveness and doesnt have a fast 1st step really token a toll on him at NBA level. and as big as Durant is, NBA coach would be crazy to use him launching out 3s. Due to above facts, imo Durant is at the same level as Gay at NBA level.
