|
|
Post by DERRENMATTS on Jul 22, 2016 20:02:05 GMT -5
After seeing what he did in summer league, what are your thoughts about Jaylen Brown and his future? Do you believe he has star potential?
For sure, I now view him in a much more positive light than I did before the draft. His summer league performance did provide me with a better glimpse of his potential that I didn't see at CAL.
|
|
|
|
Post by eja117 on Jul 22, 2016 20:10:00 GMT -5
One thing I liked is he worked through his adversity in summer league and I think resilience is a big big thing in this league for a 19 year old. He can clearly get to the rack and he clearly has an incredible body.
I am very curious where his head is. If he is jerky idiot savant like Rondo it could become a problem, but I'm not too worried about it.
I think he is with a good group of vets. I don't see him as wasting his talent like James Young. I think he's already better than Young right now today.
I generally liked what I saw of him in various videos of high school all star games.
Needs to work on his shooting. I think if he gets that it could make him elite. If he doesn't he might just be pretty good.
|
|
|
|
Post by jmost on Jul 22, 2016 20:23:42 GMT -5
I think he could be really good, because he has elite athleticism, a great work ethic and attitude and is smart. He seems determined to be great and I think that is a very underrated quality. It will take him time to figure out where his best shots are, and how to best use the quickness advantage he will have over most defenders, but he has time and great coaching on his side. And unlike a guy like Kedrick Brown, who also had phenomenal athleticism, he already has actual basketball skills.
|
|
|
|
Post by DERRENMATTS on Jul 22, 2016 20:39:02 GMT -5
Agree with you both.
I'll give you an example of what he's done to shift my opinion.
The highlight videos of Cal, and what I saw watching his games, showed an athletic and explosive player who would sometimes have absolutely nowhere to go but dribble drive right smack into a stationary player under the basket. I was like, "this kid doesn't know what he's doing! He's clueless".
But I saw what he could do in high school (had nice elusive moves as he drove to the basket). Obviously, high school is way different from college.
Fast forward to the summer league games, and in his very first game, I see this explosive player attack the basket, but fail almost every time to finish at the basket. I was like, "there it is, same old thing".
But then in his final couple of games, he started to figure it out; he started to get to the basket cleanly, avoiding defenders, and finish "expertly" at the rim, even using his left.
What this showed me is he learned what he had to do. He figured it out. He didn't keep doing the same thing, but made the correct adjustments.
This is a very encouraging sign, and it is leading me to think he can continue to adjust and improve, and reach higher levels as he develops.
For instance, Marcus Banks didn't show this kind of adjustment.
|
|
|
|
Post by eja117 on Jul 22, 2016 21:40:07 GMT -5
One thing that I think might work for him is he has the best coach in basketball and some other players on the team that had to figure it out like Avery Bradley and Terry Rozier.
I think they'll say to him "Defense" and he'll figure out he has to do that to play. Then his athleticism will help him start to be a two way guy. If he terrorizes people on defense he'll figure out the offensive value of rebounds and running. Then getting fouled.
I think he has a good chance, but it is going to take a huge mental adjustment. But he's not stupid. When he suddenly realizes the huge upgrade in speed and talent I think he'll be smart enough to deal with it. All he has to do is listen to them when they say "Defense" and then just get in the gym and work on shooting and ball handling.
I also expect him to be pretty good at studying the scouting reports on his opponents and I bet there are a bunch of guys on the team that do that well. James Young...not so much.
|
|
|
|
Post by DERRENMATTS on Jul 22, 2016 21:48:19 GMT -5
And that's exactly what he's saying he's going to work on this summer.
In his interview with Amanda Pflugraad (or however you spell it), he points out all the things he's going to focus on this summer, and I'm like, "Wow, this kid gets it." Now it may be just words, but he wasn't giving the generic answer of, "oh, I'm going to work on my body, my shooting, my handles", etc. Well of course you are going to work on those things; everyone works on those things. But he singled out specific things he knows are not his strengths at this time.
For instance, he pointed out his foot work. C'mon, rookies don't focus on that!! That's advanced things you focus later on in your career!! Oh no, but not Jaylen Brown. This kid gets it. He realizes the small nuances he's weak at, and knows improving in these areas will help him succeed.
|
|
|
|
Post by eja117 on Jul 22, 2016 22:03:25 GMT -5
Jaylen definitely strikes me as the kind of guy that is going to just break the mold. Like two years from now we'll find out he took a lot of ballet classes and learned Mandarin chinese in order to leverage his brand and expand his mind or something.
And he'll take cooking classes or something to help him maintain his physique.
Like Marcus Smart has that bull dog intensity and I just feel like Jaylen will bring some other kind of intensity. Hopefully he's a little more social than Rondo.
|
|
|
|
Post by FLCeltsFan on Jul 23, 2016 13:22:17 GMT -5
It may sound silly, but I think his love of chess may help him in the NBA. You have to think moves ahead in chess and change strategies on the fly. That same kind of thinking goes into becoming a great basketball player. I think he's going to be a star in the league. He has the work ethic and basketball IQ to make the most of his athletic gifts.
|
|
|
|
Post by DERRENMATTS on Jul 23, 2016 14:20:45 GMT -5
And I want to throw out this thought as well.
Being as smart as he is, and intellectually inclined, when he went to Cal, it wasn't because its a basketball powerhouse, but of what they offered on the academic side.
He took graduate level courses and other challenging activities.
So in ways, he wasn't able t devote as much to basketball development as someone who didn't care about academics. Maybe that's why I didn't see these improvements in him that I would have liked to have seen.
But now that he is able to devote much more of his time to develop his game, I'm hoping to see gradual improvements throughout the year.
|
|
|
|
Post by FLCeltsFan on Jul 23, 2016 15:54:58 GMT -5
And I want to throw out this thought as well. Being as smart as he is, and intellectually inclined, when he went to Cal, it wasn't because its a basketball powerhouse, but of what they offered on the academic side. He took graduate level courses and other challenging activities. So in ways, he wasn't able t devote as much to basketball development as someone who didn't care about academics. Maybe that's why I didn't see these improvements in him that I would have liked to have seen. But now that he is able to devote much more of his time to develop his game, I'm hoping to see gradual improvements throughout the year. Good points Derren. He showed a lot of improvement just from first SL game and last one, even though he missed time with the injury. |
|
|
|
Post by DERRENMATTS on Jul 23, 2016 16:06:28 GMT -5
Yeah, those improvements were noteworthy to me. More than anything, that is what initiated a change of opinion for me.
|
|
|
|
Post by oldtimeball on Jul 26, 2016 4:29:00 GMT -5
I like his attitude,he kind of reminded me of Tom Brady with his I am going to make you proud for picking me..
Is there anything to read in his not signing yet?
How do you think he should be used this year in the context of what is best for his development?
|
|
|
|
Post by eja117 on Jul 26, 2016 10:46:03 GMT -5
I think he may turn out to be sorta a Rudy Gay or Richard Hamilton type. Like not quite an all star but pretty good.
|
|
|
|
Post by oldtimeball on Jul 26, 2016 13:20:51 GMT -5
As long as he is not dee brown, glen davis.. 2 yr wonder boys..
|
|
|
|
Post by DERRENMATTS on Jul 26, 2016 17:59:55 GMT -5
I think he may turn out to be sorta a Rudy Gay or Richard Hamilton type. Like not quite an all star but pretty good. Actually, Rudy Gay, had he played on a winning team, would have had a much better career thus far. He could have reached star status under better circumstances. Jaylen's game is not that different from Rudy's. |
|
