Because he's physically much stronger than Jalen. He isn't afraid of getting hurt. Jalen is faster than Cam, but he's under mental pressure.
Cam is gaining confidence on both ends of the floor. He needs more minutes despite his tunnel vision. We need his shooting and defense.
I think on Whitmore it really comes down to that he wasn't ready to play a team game opening night. Amen won a spot higher in the pecking order, and it just is hard to earn playing time when you aren't getting to play with the some of the starters for decent stretches. With Brooks out, Cam should see more time. It would not surprise me if Cam was given the reins to be a more integral part of the offense when Sengun/FVV are on the bench later in the year.
I think you are spot on about Jalen being a rhythm guy. I think to your point he has been given the freedom to run at his own rhythm in the past and now he has to conform to the rhythm of Udoka's team offense which means he needs to be ready to shoot or drive when the ball finds him and so far this year that has been an adjustment for him because he is used to dancing with a defender until the shot feels right and that's not Udoka's system. I think that is contributing to a lot of his shooting inconsistencies. The dude can definitely shoot, he just hasn't found the consistency yet in moving off ball to get himself in a place where he is "ready" - now that he is playing with a real PG, that is his job to relocate off ball and reset himself and that is it's own skill set. I still contend Jalen will be just fine long term. I think he is still going to be a 20ppg scorer - I think what we learned is he isn't the alpha he thought he was but I also think by the way that he is playing this year, that he is okay with that so if Alpi or Bari want to be anchors on this team, I think Jalen is happy being "the scoring guy" even if it means the offense isn't run through him....and isn't that what you want ultimately? A scorer without the need to be "the man"? I know everyone is down on what he isn't doing this year, but I have been pumped by all the "new" things he is doing that he never did in the past like try to fight over screens, go get rebounds, try to communicate defensively, trying to play within a team centric offense. I see potential and improvement in areas there - it just doesn't fly off the page, but it makes him a better basketball player long term.
Stone and Silas saw a shiny new car. Udoka saw the dings and dents. Jalen was given the keys before he had driving lessons or a license. I see the potential 20 ppg guy, eventually, but will he be that for our team or another, and as a starter or off the bench (which would mess with the head of a former #2 pick)?
Cam looks to be the solution for us -- he can be a 20+ppg scorer who can also provide defense and rebounding. He's a bull already but will continue to get more muscular and powerful. Still very young. He needs minutes immediately, and is an upgrade already over Jalen Green. Cam should have been a top 5 pick!
What's surprising is his 3pt shooting. He shot 34% in college, not elite by any measure. And now he's shooting 43% in the NBA. I know this is small sample size so we'll wait and see. But I think he was also shooting lights out in the G-league.
His shot looks real good. I always expect young players with a good looking shot to eventually get better at shooting them. Even if he ends up at 34% again at the end of the year, there's reason to be optimistic about his 3 pt shooting in the future. I'm still super high on Whitmore. I just think once he's a bit more polished he's going to score whenever he wants to.
I've been very impressed. Unlike Jalen, he looks to have a very fluid and repeatable shooting form. His next step is attacking closeouts more frequently as opposed to settling for 3's mostly. His finishing looks solid.
He shot that being one of the primary ball handlers at Nova so he created his own shots most of the time. Getting a lot of shots off catch and shoot 3s certainly helps while playing off guards like FVV. it's a much better shot that should yield better %'s as he adjusts to playing off ball for his current role at the moment. idk about staying at over 40% as his volume isn't that high given the PT but a ~37% is sustainable on higher volume once he settles into a meaningful role. The more he hits these perimeter shots as the season goes on, the more meaningful he carves out a more consistent role. and of course limiting the defensive miscues as Ime alluded to The G-League is literally an open gym for him. He's clearly way too good for it and for a 19 year old, it speaks to his high potential
Turning Jalen into a spot up shooter is a travesty. Before he even attempts a 3 the kid should have already been spoon fed an easy basket or two to get that confidence bubbling. He's an open court freedom of movement player. Its why we drafted him. He's now learning how to be a TEAM player and not THE GUY and it will take however long it takes for him to have his epiphany. He's been missing some gimme baskets early. Shooting slump. Still contributing. Its really odd to hear our fanbase out to skin this kid alive or any other young player we have. We're winning we should all be excited that we can win games while having all these flawed players!
He looks great and I think Tate and Holiday should not see the floor again when Brooks and Tari get back. Unfortunately, I’m not sure Cam is going to get the minutes he deserves until Tate is gone. I want Amen to be FVV’s backup for all the minutes. Holiday is being hunted on defense every game. Cam should be the primary backup for Green and Tari for Brooks. Just don’t think it gets done until Tate and/or Holiday are gone.
Holiday turning into Josh Christopher has been unfortunate. But the rooks did fine yesterday. Cam is instant offense and just a better version of Cam Thomas and potentially Jalen Green as well. Springy with an NBA body and a tenacious defender. Tate will get moved at the deadline I feel. Admire him and he'll always be in the league like Pat Bev or Marcus Smart but no reason he should be playing over Tari and Cam who just offer more in terms of height and offensive production.
Play this young man more. I want to see him up his free throw percentage like Sengun did during this season, but - caveat, small sample size - he seems like a significantly better shooter than Jalen. But make it clear to him that jogging back on defense gets him pulled.
I don't have the numbers handy, but I think Cam was something like 40% on catch and shoot 3s in college (maybe closer to mid 40s?). It seems like he's mostly doing that with the Rockets. His overall 3pt numbers drop when he tries to do those isolation 3s we saw in summer league (and I see some from his RGV play). He's still something like ~30% on those, but clearly very different shots. I do think if he sticks primarily to catch and shoot 3pt shots (especially open ones), he can probably hit those at a high clip. Probably not a fluke. At least I hope that's the case.
Agreed. Would love to get my hands on Day-Ron Sharpe and Trenton Watford who are both backups in BKN. Two young guys who are good projects imo and we can certainly use some help at backup C/PF. Maybe we can dump Tate or Bullock in this deal. Landale makes too much to fit in this one.
I want to see him play with Sengun More. Sengun used to get KMJ a bunch of easy looks because he would cut and flash. Whitmore does those same things except he's even more talented as a scorer.
He is stronger and he is confident with taking contact. Jalen is a better athlete in some ways. Jalen is quicker and more nimble and can jump higher - but Cam is so explosive and strong, and his handle is good enough to finish. Cam also has very strong hands.
