Very good & accurate post
I get that but I also think if you spend a week with a 19 year old, you would get to know them pretty well....Also, look at if a kid went to a normal hs; not these dumbass " academies" that can tell you alot. These kids are worshipped at such a young age.
How has a kid developed from 15-19? Chances are they were always the most athletic and probably the tallest in their class. If you watch Kobe and Lebron in hs, there was clear development in their game. Of course, all time greats are also not available every year and Lebron is a bad example because everyone would have taken him #1. I watched Greg Oden in hs when he was a " can't miss"... I never saw it.. What I did see was a 7'1" athletic kid be much taller than the 6'3" white kid guarding him.
I think the Mavs took Luca #5 that year was because he was playing against grown men since the age of 15. Same could be said about Lamar Ball. Makes a difference.
Will they stay healthy and how will they react to signing a 5yr 150 (and going up) contract at age 23-24? Most of them start grinding at a really young age with sports specialization now, can't really blame em for not exactly being as fanatical about the game as past generations by the time they're 25 and worth 9 figures.
Regarding the Durant trade: I think everybody wins! I know people like to pick a winner and a loser, but sometimes trades makes sense all around. This seems to be one of those to me, and I'm far from a Durant or Paul fan. Who knows how things work out, but in theory great trade.
Suns - huge winner! Legit contender already, just seemed like they were just not quite strong enough, with an aging Paul likely to get worse then better, add a top 5 player for those last couple years while only giving up a really good young role player and picks
Durant- huge winner! back half of career joining a real title contender without a bunch of drama queens and good weather. Could he ask for more?
Nets - maybe winner? - if your gonna blow it up, blow it up! Never gonna get equal value in players, just need to get a bunch of picks, and they got a really good young role player , who wont help them qin now, but should be around for the next run or is a valuable trade asset. Now they just have to hit on picks. I'd imagine they also should have much more cap space next few years, especially after some current contracts end and hopefully offload Simmons
Other then Booker, Bridges was the most valuable asset they could get from the Nets, rebuilding team doesn't need old Paul, over now highly paid Ayton.
Suns - huge winner! Legit contender already, just seemed like they were just not quite strong enough, with an aging Paul likely to get worse then better, add a top 5 player for those last couple years while only giving up a really good young role player and picks
Durant- huge winner! back half of career joining a real title contender without a bunch of drama queens and good weather. Could he ask for more?
Nets - maybe winner? - if your gonna blow it up, blow it up! Never gonna get equal value in players, just need to get a bunch of picks, and they got a really good young role player , who wont help them qin now, but should be around for the next run or is a valuable trade asset. Now they just have to hit on picks. I'd imagine they also should have much more cap space next few years, especially after some current contracts end and hopefully offload Simmons
Other then Booker, Bridges was the most valuable asset they could get from the Nets, rebuilding team doesn't need old Paul, over now highly paid Ayton.
The C's made out best before the trade deadline, by not moving their young nucleus, yet again
What the Suns gave up for Durant is stupid. What are the chances both Durant and CP3 remain healthy throughout the playoffs? It might be more likely that they're both injured
No way the C's were ever in the mix. Brad Stevens and ownership are far too smart
What the Suns gave up for Durant is stupid. What are the chances both Durant and CP3 remain healthy throughout the playoffs? It might be more likely that they're both injured
No way the C's were ever in the mix. Brad Stevens and ownership are far too smart
I think the Nets were the biggest winner with their two trades. Acquired decent talent, acquired amazing draft picks / trade capital, and unloaded drama
They were fleeced before, looks like they learned their lesson
Agree Celtics did the right thing, unless they knew they were going to lose Brown or Tatum. They should be in no huge rush, no reason to mortgage their future. It's not like they need to hurry and win before Hortford can't play anymore.
Suns needed to make the move fast, Paul doesn't have much left. Sure Booker is great and young, but I'm not sold on Ayton being a superstar by any means. Not like they can take their time thinking we have Booker and Ayton for the next 8 years in their prime, we'll be contenders for years, like Boston can with Brown and Tatum.
As Sixers fan, hard to consider them legit contenders. Tons of talent. But too many ifs:
1) will Embiid be healthy and close to 100%, if so he is good enough to be a #1 player on championship team IMO even though been ages since center has lead a team to title, if so..
2) can Doc Rivers make the proper adjustments in a playoff series when needed , this is been a huge NO for the last 10 years or so. Two different super talented Clippers teams kept losing in early rounds as favorites every year, same exact things with Sixers the last two years. all three teams considered top title contenders each year, but eventually got outcoached
3) similar to #2 when things get tough does Harden quit or choke? In the past he has played well at times in playoffs, but eventually quits when things get tough, like last year vs Miami , Harden obviously shell of former self athletically, but at least looks like he now understands his limitations and adjusted his game accordingly.
Suns needed to make the move fast, Paul doesn't have much left. Sure Booker is great and young, but I'm not sold on Ayton being a superstar by any means. Not like they can take their time thinking we have Booker and Ayton for the next 8 years in their prime, we'll be contenders for years, like Boston can with Brown and Tatum.
As Sixers fan, hard to consider them legit contenders. Tons of talent. But too many ifs:
1) will Embiid be healthy and close to 100%, if so he is good enough to be a #1 player on championship team IMO even though been ages since center has lead a team to title, if so..
2) can Doc Rivers make the proper adjustments in a playoff series when needed , this is been a huge NO for the last 10 years or so. Two different super talented Clippers teams kept losing in early rounds as favorites every year, same exact things with Sixers the last two years. all three teams considered top title contenders each year, but eventually got outcoached
3) similar to #2 when things get tough does Harden quit or choke? In the past he has played well at times in playoffs, but eventually quits when things get tough, like last year vs Miami , Harden obviously shell of former self athletically, but at least looks like he now understands his limitations and adjusted his game accordingly.
Yeah the Sixers COULD make a run if they put all the pieces together, but:
- Doc is so unreliable when it comes to in game adjustments. Frankly he's unreliable in pre-game planning too lol Hard to trust him
- Harden has to overcome the choking routine. It's not talked about how awful he was in that series against the Heat last year. Like even for his standards, he was trash. He's not good enough to be second guy on title team at this point IMO unless you have some absurd team balance/Warriors-like system, which Philly does not
-Embiid has to stay healthy. I love how he plays, but too big of a question mark
If they are clicking, they are probably better than the Cavs and on par with Milwaukee, but I have a tough time seeing them piece it all together
