One more very huge distinction between them: Amen is an all-world defender whereas WB (except for the year Ron Adams was given total control over OKC's defense) has been a below-average defender his entire career. Some years he was outright TERRIBLE! WB actually competed against KD and Harden when it came to scoring. He pushed very hard to maintain his status above Harden on the totem pole and craved to be revered like KD was.
I’m not concerned about Sengun becoming a serviceable perimeter shooter and three point shooter. He has a high basketball aptitude, has improved at everything he has targeted and doesn’t have bad feel from the outside. I won’t say he is destined to shoot 40% from 3, but I will be very surprised if he isn’t a 35-38% three point shooter and even better from 15-18 feet. As for Amen - he is less of a sure thing. He doesn’t have as nice a natural shot as Sengun. However, he is a very hard worker, he never lacks effort, he is very smart on the court and doesn’t have to develop a three point shot, a good 15-18 foot jumper will be enough. He also has good body control around the basket - which usually carries over. So I am optimistic he can improve as a shooter - but will he be 30% from 3 or 35% in a few years? IDK. Also the issue with Westbrook and Capela wasn’t just 3 point shooting. Westbrook never moved or cut and he finished poorly at the rim as well. Had he been able to shoot from 15-18 they would be able to play together. I will be very surprised if both are poor shooters in 12-24 months.
That is better for him right now - but not long term. Amen is an all world athlete with a 7’0” wingspan and high basketball IQ - he can thrive in the dunkers spot. Long term they want him at point guard with improvement on his outside shooting. He has good court vision and instincts. Let’s just hope he improves as a shooter.
The Rockets should let Amen thrive in the wing position and don't force him into PG. It would be like the KPJ as a PG experiment all over again. With his poor shooting and lack of handle it would be a project.
The importance of Sengun becoming a good 3-point shooter is insanely overrated by so many here. That's not even in the top 3 of what he needs to improve.
He WILL be hunted. Scouts that I respect have said he’s the worst defensive player they have ever seen. Conversely, he is one of the best offensive players in this draft class. I like Rob a lot too off the bench but he’s not the FVV replacement for the future in Udoka’s defensive system.
Amen and KPJ are the opposites. KPJ has low iQ, makes poor decisions, and has little court vision. Amen excels in all those things. He has high potential as a play maker. With his size, he would be a walking mismatch as a PG.
I'm more worried about Amens ball handling than his shooting. All the previous non shooters Rondo, Simmons, Kidd all good handles that allowed them to be crafty. Amens loose handles makes his drives very spastic and it doesn't allow him to control the pace and survey the floor
I don't think it would be as bad as the KPJ experiment. Amen was drafted as a pg. He has the court vision and IQ that KPJ severely lacked and was trying to learn on the fly. Plus Amen's handles have improved since drafted. That shows hard work and dedication. If Jabari's can improve at year 2, then there is no doubt in my mind this kid's handling will improve.
Interesting to be the worst defensive and the best offensive player.......reminds me of the guys in 2015s......
I am with you because with FVV around Amen always has the big brother looking out for him...... It is a godsend. Still I think he will be more potent coming off the wing though whether he dribbles heavily or not.
Amen’s shooting will be like Kidd’s. Take forever to be good but won’t stop him from being elite. Sengun will be a good three point shooter eventually . He just needs reps and to decide that’s the next thing he has to improve. Defensive respectability takes precedent though and might take up his development focus. Even elite athletes improve by working on a specific flaw over and over. Sengun as a center needs to be playable defensively before he needs to be a stretch 5. So his shooting from deep might not get better next year.
If anyone has benefited from the Sengun-less small-ball, it's Amen. Reminds me of that time when Russ was here and we traded Capella, and Russ had some of his best basketball in his late career, playing close to the basket. Jabari at C is actually better than RoCo at C... Interesting stretch here, but not sure if it is sustainable...
I liked micro ball but it really is just a gimmick. 6'10-7'8s are going to rule this realm again. I cannot just go back to soccer and sports that regular heights do.
Sengun is going to be a good 3pt shooter, you can see him improving gradually and he's at a cross roads now. You can literally clear the opponent rim protector for all your wings and you're a great passer. You can open up those closeouts he's great at executing. You can lift the volume of his scoring a lot easier to the 25+ range. The training will lift his FT shooting as well. It will spread the floor for when you're running the offense from the top. It would force teams into tougher decisions about who can guard him. We can use a lot more modern concepts in our offense. We have a wing who's a poor shoter (Jalen) and a guard/wing who can't shoot (Amen) - both of whom have looked good with more spacing and pace. We have a defensively obsessed coach talking about how important it is for Sengun to improve his shooting this summer and there are posters in 2024 - in the era of the 3pt shot - telling us how it's overrated. We have a lead assistant who studied under arguably the best shooting coach of all time. Also, working on your shooting doesn't stop you from working on at least 1 other thing (if not 2). Not working on Sengun's 3PT shot would be the most Silas move ever. The defensiveness and the drama is unreal here sometimes.
Also regarding Amen, I wouldn't worry about it. It will take time but the 3pt shot will come. Probably 1.5 years from now it will be serviceable. Spending half his career with just a mid range jumper would be a sad (and very large) loss of potential imo. Yes I know he can do things if he has a midrange jumper, but I'm interested in his full potential and happy to take some lumps in the early years of us getting back to contender status. I'd rather push full steam ahead with his 3Pter and FT shot so that in 2-3 years they are very solid and we will need them. I wouldn't take any hours away from it to work on some other shot, be greedy with practice time. He's good enough at everything else, just needs experience. Amen, Sengun and Green need to collectively make strides on 3PT shooting this summer. Sounds like it's going to be a big focus especially with the disappointing overall shooting year we're having.
The amazing part is that Amen is so efficient. He can strictly get playing time based on his defensive prowess. But then he gives you flawless offensive production from around the rim, which is the gravy that cements him as a starter. And he is aware of his deficiency, and gives you the sheer aptitude of his current game. If he eventually gets his 3 point shot to fall at a 35-40% rate, he is going to be in MVP conversations sooner rather than later.
KPJ and Amen have opposite problems. KPJ had fluid secure handles for a PG but not the court vision, awareness and mindset to be a PG, Amen doesn't have the handles to be a PG but has the awareness and mindset of a PG.
Amen is our starting pg of the future. That being said there is no reason he shouldn’t be playing 35 mins a game at various positions. I would like to see him start at small forward next year, get some time at pg when FVV sits. If FVV can keep up how he is playing now for 30 mins a game, I’d be fine with him starting all of next year. If he starts walking the ball up the court again, it is time to pull the plug. Run when we can, but those that think Sengun holds us back are crazy. I hate that the refs transform the game in the playoffs, but it is what it is and the half-court is predominant in the playoffs. We can play fast with Sengun on the court and Amen is the engine for that. A bench with Brooks, Cam, Tari, and Adams will dominant other second teams. Rotations can keep a ball handler on the court with them and the four don’t have to play at the same time. Draft or trade for combo guards that can shoot, handle, and play decent defense and we will have a 48 minute team that can challenge anyone. The future is bright my friends.
