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Ja Morant a.k.a. dunking over kids will get you far

Discussion in 'NBA Draft' started by Koperboy, Feb 14, 2019.

  1. Koperboy

    Koperboy Member

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    I just came over this The Ringer's article, watched Morant's highlights of 40 points and 11 assists game. As Doncic fan I watched a lot of Ayton and other rookies to see how they compare to him. Few thoughts about it:

    - this Morant kid is playing against future lawyers and accountants. How the hell can someone project him as a 2nd pick?
    - his team has two big centers who lay the ball in easily every time Morant dumps it to them. How is averaging 10 assists this way indicative of his PG skills?

    I realize Morant's competition is probably one of the worst in college basketball. But even the best teams in college will probably have one, maybe two future NBA players on their rosters, if at all (Duke this year is an outlier). This means competition is underwhelming and you can't fully judge one player's potential by playing in college.

    Before Doncic declared for draft, I never watched college basketball. Not even the highlights. So when some people said that Euroleague can't compare to NCAA, I thought to myself these guys may know what they talk about as they've seen tons of games on both sides of the Atlantic ocean.

    After few months of watching current rookies's college highlights and comparing their NCAA game with what they are doing now in NBA, I'd like to say a few profanities about some so called "experts" in USA, but I don't want to break the forum rules. All I have to say is, man! There are some DUMB people working in NBA industry.

    End rant.
     
    don grahamleone likes this.
  2. Juxtaposed Jolt

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    Can this kid actually ball? Some articles that reference Morant, are saying he's definitively a top pick - maybe even has a chance to challenge Zion for #1.
     
  3. Buck Turgidson

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    Yes. Haven't seen him against top flight competition other than Alabama (watched him against Austin Peay tonight, that's not a person but a team), but he has serious abilities. Needs to work on the jumper, but that's not a huge deal.

    https://fivethirtyeight.com/features/ja-morant-would-like-your-attention/

    http://www.espn.com/mens-college-ba...4/is-next-level-ja-morant-nba-scouting-report
     
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  4. cheke64

    cheke64 Member

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    He's not very skilled but he can drive and jump. I compare him to Wiggins
     
  5. NewRoxFan

    NewRoxFan Contributing Member

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    Saw him yesterday. Guy is crazy quick, has good handles. Seems small, but is active enough to get rebounds and steals. But will be posted up by most NBA PGs.
     
  6. King1

    King1 Contributing Member

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    He's much better than fat boy who you love
     
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  7. Buck Turgidson

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    Heh, I'd loooove to see 18-21 year old Americans vs 18-21 y.o. Euros, but that might violate the Geneva Convention or something.
     
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  8. tinman

    tinman Contributing Member
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    Too young to evaluate in that video
    But in the tournament he looks top 3 for sure
     
  9. AFS

    AFS Member

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    He put on a clinic against a good Marquette team. He looks like the real deal, and will go Top 3.
     
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  10. King1

    King1 Contributing Member

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    He's going top 3 easy. I'd take him over RJ if my team needed a point. Cam Reddish doesn't impress me at all
     
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  11. tinman

    tinman Contributing Member
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    Marant over RJ for sure. He's taking bad T-Mac like shots , even worse is that he's a horrible free throw shooter
     
  12. King1

    King1 Contributing Member

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    That killed Duke. Couldn't shoot
     
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  13. basketballholic

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    I would take Ja over Zion. For health/longevity reasons. I believe they should be 1/2 in the draft.
     
  14. Nook

    Nook Member

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    He can definitely go #2 in the draft. I cannot see him slipping past going #3. His physical ability will translate to the NBA and his creativity. Will he be an all star? I don't know but the ability is there.

    As far as college basketball being compared to the top Euro league teams.... I don't hear often that the college teams are better than the top Euro league teams often now, with so many players going to the NBA early. The current college game is extremely watered down compared to college in the past. The average high league Euro player is better than the average college player. Where college has an advantage is with those 5-10 players that are blue chippers. However those programs with blue chippers like Duke and Kentucky are almost always devoid of really good depth and upper classmen that make a difference. There is a reason that a team like UVA won the title and Duke did not.

    The comparison is really not proper either, as the NCAA is full of 18-19 year old players and the Euro League has grown men. I can tell you that a lot of NBA teams believe that the Euro League would beat the NCAA if they were in the same league. A lot of attention is paid to the NCAA because 80%-90% of the best NBA players come from the NCAA.
     
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  15. basketballholic

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    He has MJ's drive. I'm not saying he's MJ/Kobe. I'm saying the inner drive is there. He works his tail off. Loves the game. And he's developing at a rapid pace. I think he'll be a superstar if he stays healthy. And I like his longevity risk profile better than Zion.
     
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  16. Nook

    Nook Member

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    I honestly don't know enough about his drive to disagree. Most of my concerns with him (other than his slight build) are things that he can improve on if his drive is great. I am a little careful now after DAngelo Russell. In college I believed he had the chance to be a 5 time all star. Maturity has hurt him.
     
  17. basketballholic

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    Yes. But DR finally did mature and your all star prediction could easily come to pass. I was high on Russell in the draft too. And disappointed in his start. The incident with Nick Young and the phone text thing really set him back mentally. If it hadn't been for that he would've probably broke out earlier than he did.

    Ja is a different mindset. He's got that determination and drive of MJ/Kobe. I think if he were hit with a rape charge he'd just blow through it like nothing and keep getting better. That's the mentality he has. Impervious to everything else but the game.
     
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  18. FLASH21

    FLASH21 Heart O' Champs

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    This kid will be a star.

    I still wouldn't take him over Zion.
     
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  19. omgTHEpotential

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    Very few people dumb enough to say that NCAA is even close to the Euroleague level. Heck, I think the Chinese league is tougher than the NCAA. So I'm not really sure where you heard that.
     
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  20. NIKEstrad

    NIKEstrad Contributing Member
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    He's maybe a year or two behind schedule, but he made it once already and he's only 23.

    Morant seems to be a passable shooter (with upside to being a plus shooter), and has elite athleticism. Maybe his assists are inflated, but he's a playmaker.
     

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