Amen Thompson is the absolute WORST traveler I have ever seen on a basketball court. The league he plays in is trash and is just happy to have any level of talent on the court to hype them and get them some money. Not trying to rain on your parade because I get the hype but the guy will average 10 TO's a game in the NBA on his handles alone. They are horrible. Go watch a highlight real and count his steps. I've never seen a person walk with the ball or move his pivot foot as much as this kid.
I think guys are sleeping on Ausar Thompson. I understand the appeal and potential of such an athletic 6'7 PG, but Ausar has been more productive on the court. He was considered the star of the 2 until recently. In their 2 years in the Overtime Elite, Ausar has won 2 championships 2 Finals MVPs and a Regular Season MVP. They put up similar numbers, but Ausar had better stats last season with both on the same team. While Amen is considered the better passer and worked more as primary ball handler, Ausar had more assists (and rebounds and steals and blocks). Ausar did score .1 point less per game, but his game is less ball dominant, which I think works better for the Rockets. Both are super gifted athletically, but Ausar is better at getting separation off the dribble and man defense, and is an elite finisher around the rim, while Amen is more of a dunker. Also, both guys have solid shot mechanics and should get better at shooting. Amen may have a higher ceiling because of his positional height, but he also seems a little less nba ready. I probably still would lean towards Brandon Miller due to the higher competition level, I don't think either twin could be completely ruled out. Also, although I do value height, I would take Scoot #2 overall no question. His game is mature, and he seems to always make the right play. His highlights don't look as impressive because he doesn't have a flashy play style, but he has the strength and athleticism to take over whenever necessary. Also, does anyone know the Overtime Elite 3pt distance? Is it same as college or pros or something new?
It is the same as the NBA three point line. I think Ausar is a great prospect. I have him around #5 or #6 in this class. I see him as a highly athletic, jack-of-all-trades wing in the NBA, and I think he will be a respectable but probably not great shooter. I do have his brother above him, but I can see the argument either way. I think Ausar is a little safer. His shot is closer to being functional, and he is a better, more-consistent defender. The flip side is that his athleticism and playmaking are a noticeable notch below Amen's. If you squint, you can sort of picture Ausar being a Jimmy Butler type of star player, but I don't think it's all that likely. More likely that he becomes a high-end starter in the mold of somebody like Andre Iguodala or Victor Oladipo. For me, I'm going for the upside and taking his brother. I also think Amen is a better fit on the Rockets, both in terms of position and in terms of the current circumstances of our organization, for whatever that's worth. You could maybe see that as the tiebreaker if you think they're very, very close as overall prospects (which I do).
Yes and never look back. The draft picks alone are golden but to add Banchero, too. He has already found some success in the league. I don’t think Orlando would do it. The draw back, it would be hard to retain the talent as they come off rookie contracts. Mixed with our rookie contracts there is a really short window of opportunity because of cap space vs development.
I agree but only to a point. The players are ranked in tiers. If said player is on the same tiers no harm. If the targeted player is one tier down and the enhancement is strong enough no harm. I also think a team with 8 centers is stupid just because a center was the best pick available at the time of the draft. Not always black or white sometimes gray is the answer.
Seeing so many posters "fine" with whoever we get really makes you wonder if they care about winning it all. Every team in the last decade that has won it all has had a MVP level player on the team. Are any of our current guys going to get to that level? Very doubtful. I don't think people realize how important this draft is. Striking out on Wemby could mean us taking multiple finals in the future or just 2nd round exit year after year.
Getting Wemby is purely based on luck, so there's not really much the team can do to acquire him. So we kinda have to be "fine" with how things end up. I will say I think the top 12 guys or so all have solid potential. Not Wemby level, but I wouldn't be surprised if multiple guys ended up being all-stars or better. So if Rockets miss out on Wemby, but end up with a potential all-star, I'm "fine" with that (though yes, I'd prefer Wemby). I think even with Wemby, you'd probably need some of these other guys (JG/Jabari/Sengun/Tari/etc) to greatly elevate their game (and I'm assuming Wemby is legit too).
I just watched the twins do a shooting session with Mike Miller and they're shooting like Shaq. One is way worse than the other, icant tell which one is who. I'll take Scoot now .
That was 10 months ago, they've made strides and changes to their mechanics since then. They still aren't good game-time shooters, but my understanding is that they're at least knocking them down in practice, which is the first step.
Shooting 74% around the rim is insane for a perimeter guy. Grain of salt due to OTE, but those numbers are wild.
I'll take him if we can get an extra pick around the 7-10pick. There's going to be alot of sleepers in the 5-15th range
