Is it best to just treat our draftees like rookies?

They're rookies to good coaching for sure...

 

gee... are u saying we wasted the last couple years of development with inferior coaching? but kpj is coming along nicely... and CWood has potential... Nix is a future all-star fo sure!

lol

 

Sil@ss committed career malpractice on all our players.

 

I mean, kinda? I think it's best to evaluate them like young guys in general. It's hard to get in the NBA and dominate consistently against grown men who have been doing it since you were playing outside at recess. Patience in general with all of them is the key, even Sengun. He makes me forget sometimes how young he is, and that's great! I just know every time one of them has a bad game, it'll be fuel for the doomers. It's unlikely that all 6 of them will put up 20+ points on good efficiency in a single game, so those who move the goalposts back will never be out of a job.

 

Treat them like young grown ups?!

 

No, Amen and Cam are the only rookies. The other guys are second or third year players playing big minutes with a good coaching staff. Expectations should be adjusted accordingly. Sengun and Green are extension eligible this summer, why treat them like undeveloped rookies when the team needs to start making long-term financial considerations for them at the end of the season? If they'll accept rookie scale contract extensions then fine let's look at them like rookies, but I assume they want big contracts.

Eventually, underdeveloped games no longer cut it. Andrew Wiggins won ROY and everyone in Minnesota was excited for his bright future. When he put up the same numbers in his fourth year, with the same weaknesses, they stopped being optimistic.

 

Great post!

 

Anytime you don't know how to treat 2nd and 3rd year players, guy is being tentative.....cannot be more tentative than youngins.......

Better continue being a hard ass.

 

It feels much better to think that way by treating Jalen as his actual first year getting coached by someone who wants to win. I know it is pretty much equal to hiding your ugly child in the closet but we all watch Sports for the adrenaline and excitement so let’s focus on what working since we’re winning team so far.

 

Best thing about rookies is that you have 4 free years to assess before making a bigger commitment to them. Unfortunately, for our older guys that's no longer the case. They have to start showing what they're made of if they want big extensions. That's why I didn't mind cutting Garuba, JC, and Tyty, none of whom have played significant minutes this year.

 

I think putting "can't stay healthy" on Amen is a little unfair at this point. Spraining a couple of ankles and getting one virus is not exactly a predictive pattern--could easily just be bad luck. His brother hasn't had such problems, and they're otherwise very similar physically.

Other than that I think you're pretty much spot-on.

Also, I want to point out the only one of these guys who isn't a typical age for a rookie is Tari, and even then he's only 22, some rookies do still come into the league at that age (not many in the first round though). We drafted very young players. Lot of physical and mental development that still has to happen around that age range. It isn't the 90s where you'd draft 21 and 22 year olds and they'd already be entering their prime in year 3.

 

It's best to forever treat them as rookies so that there's an excuse for why they suck. It won't hurt those who are actually quality players and those who are trash really need it.

 

I think Lamelo had something like 5 ankle injuries in the span of last 14 months.

11/26/23 Ankle
2/27/23 Ankle
1/18/23 Ankle
11/16/22 Ankle
10/11/22 Ankle​

For Lamelo, their reporters speculates whether is the bad Baller shoes, genetics or whatever else. And unlike Steph, he tried the ankle brace during practice, but doesn't wear it in game. He says he doesn't like it, feels uncomfortable.


As far as I know, the two ankle incidents for Amen were different ankle (which is good). But it also means, if he injures his ankle a 3rd time, it'll be a repeat (which is concerning).


Some player run, land from jumps, making turns differently, he should at least look at it to see if it is the way he plays (at least rule it out), as opposed to (by default) to say it is just a freak accident.