One of the sickest stat line I've ever seen --- 6x5

The thing i Love about kirilenko is the fact that he can dominate a game without having the ball in his hands. He is a beast on defense(if he stays healthy he is a potential defensive player of the year). However i think he is not a franchise guy. Just like i think Ben wallace is not a franchise guy. Kirilenko is just not a god scorer, he needs another all star.

He is the perfect role player, or second all star. I would love to have him with our team

I do think that his 5x5 is a unbelievable stat.

 

Well the Jazz can spend the max on AK while they get one productive big man out of 2 people at one time.

Maybe my Jazz bias has something to do with this, but if he's healthy this year, I'd take back the comment.

You're welcome?

Hit yourself? Bite your tongue?

You be careful there.

 

yeah invisible, you got owned.

 

I don't get why some of posters here think so highly of AK. I give you that he is a very nice player, but he is no Tracy, or Duncan...

Everyone saying he is an awesome defedner. I am not so sure. He is a good help defender, but his man to man defence is not that great. He gets punished in the low post and seems to jump at head fakes a lot. Everyone should still remember the game Rox had against them when TMac took off during halftime. TMac was abusing him the whole first half.

Then on the offensive end, almost all his points come from fast breaks, put backs... I don't think you can create your offense around him.

Like someone said earlier, if he is the 3rd option, you have got a great team.
I don't see how you can equate him to a Duncan or a TMac.

On a side note, Tayshaun plays good defence, do a lot of similiar things, and is more reliable on the offensive end, why is he not getting any praise?

 

I'm putting conditions for you to change my opinion? Okay, ya egomaniac....

Yeah, I usually buy people beers when I'm wrong in debates. Keep jumping through my invisible hoops. You'll get your cookie soon.

Hahh.... You can dig this topic up whenever you want. I'd still hate the Jazz and their Franchise.

You're free to stomp more to compensate. But don't strain yourself.

But Deez Nutz still up on your chin.

 

Okay.

Last word +1

 

I just have to milk out DeAleck's ever vaunted "last word":

Anyone who thinks a team could be built around AK is a Jazz lover.

Last word +2.

 

Just read this from Sina news...

http://sports.sina.com.cn/cba/2006-01-06/18561977053.shtml

The 20 yr old 6'9 Chinese National Team point Guard, Su Yue, who is playing for Beijing Aoshen Olympian in the ABA, just have stats like this:

12pts, 14rebs, 12 assts, 8blks and 4stls

against the LA AfterShock!!!!

 

AK is not a closer like Tmac but his skills are undeniable.

 

Don't know why the Jazz hating is relevant. If you can hate a player on the team you love, I'm sure you can love a player on the team you hate.

Anyway, the confusion about AK, I think, is him being a "franchise player." I don't think anyone here is arguing for that. So why is he compared to guys like Duncan?

Someone said earlier that AK is not a franchise player just like Ben Wallace. I agree with that statement. To be a franchise player, you have got to be able to carry your team in scoring. AK and Wallace obviously can't do that. Say what you want about "defense wins championship" if you can't score, you aren't going anywhere in the NBA.

The difference between individual offense and defense is that while one guy can dominate a team's offense, the same cannot be said about defense. Good defense is always a team effort. It's nice to have a lock down defensive guy. But one guy can't shut down the whole team. However, one guy can carry a whole team offensively.

That's why players like AK and Wallace has to have other offensively adept teammates to be competitive as a team. They can be their second best player. (A second best player doesn't have to be the second option on offense.) Also, someone mentioned about Prince. I agree that Prince is in the same mode of AK. He is a big part of the Pistons, which is currently the best team in the league. Prince is not as freakish as AK in a lot a areas. But he is a lot more reliable as an offensive force.

 

Easy,

Lets call a franchise player is one that gets a max contract. AK's numbers speak for itself, but I wouldn't make him a cornerstone with his streaky offense and recent injury problems. Players like him and Kenyon Martin are lucky players in an age where the max contract doesn't mean you're a top ten player in the league, but rather the best player on your team. It'll be interesting to see how much a team will offer Wallace...

AK is one skinny guy. I think he's the type that won't show up every year because of some injury...which might be good in the Jazz's position to steal a solid draft pick.

You can hate Jazz and like AK. I'm trying out DeAleck's great assumptions.

 

Do you really believe this? Prince doesn't score as much, nor is his shooting percentage as good. Imagine what a beast Detriot would be if you exchanged Prince for AK...

Prince is an okay player at best and I'm sure he'll be in the league for a while but there is really no comparison between the two...

 

rats...on further review, AK's shooting percentage is not as good as is pulled down considerably by this year and his recovery from injury. my apologies....

none the less, is there a team in the league that wouldn't trade a prince for an AK? 2 princes for an AK?

 

Well, AK just had a great game against Detriot (at Detriot) - 24 pts, 11 rebs, 7 asts, 2 blks, 1 stl. And the Jazz won too.

I wouldn't say AK isn't a primary offensive option. He is just inconsistent (kind of like Yao). In any given night, he can give you 4 points or he can give you 25 points. If you could count on him for a set number of points every night (18, 19, 20, etc..), he would definitely be worth the max contract and be a top 5 player in the league.

 

Prince is more consistent. I guess it has something to do with Detroit's offense. He is not the main option. And his offensive game goes with the flow. So he looks a lot more solid than AK. AK is depended for his scoring in Utah and he is not very consistent. I won't exchange Prince for AK either. But as I said, Prince is in the same mode and is still improving.

 

Max contract and franchise player is not the same. Many teams have more the one players under max contracts. So a "max" player isn't necessarily the best on the team either. Contracts are driven by the market AT THE TIME WHEN THEY ARE SIGNED. A lot of players get ludicrous contracts because they are at the right time of the market demands. You cannot judge a player by how much money he makes.

A franchise player is one who you build your team with. With the right role talents around them, they can lead the team to championships (or at least be a contender). Some teams have two such players. Many teams have none. Every team tries to acquire franchise players because if you don't have at least one, you cannot contend. AK is clearly not a franchise player.

Detroit is a very special case. None of their players can be considered someone you want to build a team around. But together, they are a great machine.

 

A lot more solid? You don't give AK nearly enough credit. I wish I could find a stats site that gives scoring variability, but alas I couldn't. Do you have this data to back up your claim that AK's offense is more inconsistent? I doubt the AK's scoring variability is substantially different than Prince's (the better question is how often either of these players score below their scoring means...). There are, however, measures that attempt to describe offensive efficiency and overall value (check out sportingnews.com) which place AK firmly within the top 10th percentile in the league, well above other fine players including Prince.

Again, I really like Prince but it isn't fair to compare him to a former and most likely future (though probably not perennial) all star like AK who is a year younger and in most years a candidate to lead the league in blocks, steals, and win the defensive player of the year. Similarly it isn't fair to compare AK to a players like Garnet or Duncan... AK is very good and will be remembered after players like Prince are forgotten, but he is probably not on this way to becoming an all-time great like those other two...

Whether or not AK's value warrants a maximum contract is another question...