Brandon Jennings vs. Stephen Curry

[NetsForce]

DISCUSS:

[i<3basketball]

Stephen Curry all day...on the basketball court.

[NetsForce]

Really? I'm kind of at a loss for words when it comes to Stephen Curry I don't understand this near unanimous uninformed consensus that Curry is a true point guard now... Jennings might not play nice but the fact that's ruthless doesn't necessarily have to work against him (see Kobe Bryant).

[Optms]

LMFAO.

That picture made me laugh. But truth of the matter, as of right now. Curry craps over Jennings.

[Blasphemy]

Steph Curry will own Jennings

[Mumbles]

DISCUSS:

Lolz....Steph looks hilarious in that image.

But it basically comes down to which type of prospect the particular franchise thinks will best fit in their system. And these are two different prospects. I too am a little surprised at how Curry has able to turn into a point guard extraordinaire seemingly overnight. I know he played 'pg' his last year, but i'm still a little skeptical as far as the next level.


Range: Curry 365
Catch & Shoot: Curry all day
Handles: Jennings 365
Driving/Slashing ability: Jennings all day
Passing/playmaking ability: Jennings (pick & roll for example, that's Jennings all day)
Size: Dell's son
Athleticism: Jennings brings elite atheticism
Defense: I say wash because BJ will struggle against bigger guards, but mainly strong dudes. Curry will have trouble against guys exactly like Jennings (if he even guards the tj ford type pgs). And while he was more than adequate in college, he was by no means a lock down defender. I saw him struggle against the likes of Chris Kramer when Davidson played PU in Indy.
BB IQ/Understanding of the game: You already know it's Dell's son.
Moxy/Swag: Wash
Overall Maturity: Curry as well.
Most to prove: Jennings, don't under estimate the chip on the shoulder. He knows he has little to no hype to rest on. He's going right at his competition.

So yah..it basically comes down to what type of guard prospect you need most. Both should be very good.

[Smills91]

Give me Curry. Jennings is such a wast of a lotto pick.

[Joana]

The idea that Jennings is a better passer or a better pick'n'roll player than Curry is appalling. He has much better athletic tools, ball-handling and creativity, but that's all.

Have any of you actually seen Jennings play PG last season? Because if you think Curry isn't one, it's hilarious, by the same standards, to consider Jennings a true PG.

[Rasho Brezec]

^^Joana, you're one of the most knowledgeable posters around here and I always trust your insight, could you tell some more about Stephen Curry? Majority of Knicks board wants him, but I don't know anything about him, since college basketball is rather boring to me. Can he play PG at NBA level?

[gswhoops]

Much, much rather have Jennings. Honestly, I don't get all the Curry hype. Yes, he can shoot. He's not big or fast enough to score any other way, he can't defend any position on the court and he's the definition of a tweener (too small to play SG, not enough PG skills to play the 1). Jennings is a true PG with elite quickness...I'll take that any day over a single-skill guy like Curry.

Honestly, I hope Curry does go top 6 because that means there's absolutely no possibility the Warriors waste #7 on him...

[Smills91]

Much, much rather have Jennings. Honestly, I don't get all the Curry hype. Yes, he can shoot. He's not big or fast enough to score any other way, he can't defend any position on the court and he's the definition of a tweener (too small to play SG, not enough PG skills to play the 1). Jennings is a true PG with elite quickness...I'll take that any day over a single-skill guy like Curry.

Honestly, I hope Curry does go top 6 because that means there's absolutely no possibility the Warriors waste #7 on him...

Curry will be a better pro than Jennings. Maynor will be a better pro than Jennings. Hell MILLS will probably be a better pro than Jennings.

Things that Curry has that Jennings doesn't are ACTUAL skill-set(he can shoot the lights out). Basketball acumen is MUCH higher. I think jennings is a delinquent in this aspect. Also Curry being 6'4 is a BIG deal. I also think he does have PG skills the same way Mike Bibby does.

In 5 years from now, we'll look back at this draft and think, WOW Jennings was taken WAY TOO high. As people fall in love with his physical tools, but that's all he is, a quick, shoot first, me-oriented PG. I view him as a more slender Stephon Marbury in the NBA.

[Sid the Squid]

The idea that Jennings is a better passer or a better pick'n'roll player than Curry is appalling. He has much better athletic tools, ball-handling and creativity, but that's all.
.

BUT THAT'S ALL?

[Mumbles]

It will be hilarious if Brandon somehow ends up with the Kings.

[NetsForce]

Eh Curry just can't consistently make the snap decisions with the ball necessary for effective NBA point guards...

[cdubbz]

I dont buy all this Curry hype either. It's funny that he did become a pg over night once the media started addressing him about the draft and his skills. He has been saying that he is a pg at the next level and all that. I love love Curry, seems like a nice guy that wants to do well and i know as a draftee u have to hype yourself up and show confidence in your skills. I just dont think he has played the PG enough to play at the next level.

As a Warriors fan the only way ill be happy with curry is if we package him to a team that wants and thinks hes a pg. plus we already have ellis who is a tweener.

[cdubbz]

I dont buy all this Curry hype either. It's funny that he did become a pg over night once the media started addressing him about the draft and his skills. He has been saying that he is a pg at the next level and all that. I love love Curry, seems like a nice guy that wants to do well and i know as a draftee u have to hype yourself up and show confidence in your skills. I just dont think he has played the PG enough to play at the next level.

As a Warriors fan the only way ill be happy with curry is if we package him to a team that wants and thinks hes a pg. plus we already have ellis who is a tweener.

[NYC2BGI]

I would take S. Curry over Jennings for his shooting alone. He also seems to be a very smart player.

[noido]

I'd prefer Jennings, but its a risk-reward thing. He isn't there yet, but he could be a PG that will run a team full-time given another year or two (and IMO the trip to Italy, despite what position he played and how much court time he got was big - training with those coaches and the maturity gained would help a young PG especially).

Curry I dont see being a PG full time at any stage, I think he has to be paired with another ball handling guard. I do think he will be a really good pro though, he is very savvy on the court. His situation reminds me somewhat of Delonte's situation a couple of years back, he will try to get drafted as a 1 because he has bad size for the 2, might play the 1 for a year or so, then someone will switch him to more of a combo guard role and he will flourish.

[sweetlou23]

http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/200 ... -workouts/

Jennings seems to be a true point while Curry more of a combo guard. Both are very skilled. curry is the better scorer and shooter. Jennings is more athletic, has a better handle and may be a better passer. If you need a true point go with jennings.

[Joana]

The idea that Jennings is a better passer or a better pick'n'roll player than Curry is appalling. He has much better athletic tools, ball-handling and creativity, but that's all.

BUT THAT'S ALL?

Ahaha, I didn't mean it that way. Of course those traits are meaningful, especially to run the point. However, there are lots of players with better athletic tools, ball-handling and creativity than Curry - standouts like Telfair or Marcus Banks. Nevertheless, Curry will be a better NBA player than those 2 guys.

^^Joana, you're one of the most knowledgeable posters around here and I always trust your insight, could you tell some more about Stephen Curry? Majority of Knicks board wants him, but I don't know anything about him, since college basketball is rather boring to me. Can he play PG at NBA level?

Thanks for your words, Rasho, but don't trust too much on my judgements, as I'm wrong at an alarming rate. The draft, and the art of assessing players, isn't a science - and that's what makes it such a good topic of discussion for basketball nerds.

Evaluating point-guards is, in my view, even more complicated than assessing draftees who play other positions. Particularly when you add in the circumstances some of the top pg prospects in this draft faced last season: Curry and Maynor played for very weak teams, had almost no help at from teammates and were asked to score a lot; Jennings played for a team too strong for his ability and was forbidden from running the point except in garbage time; Holiday was asked to play off-the-ball, Lawson played for a Coach who uses a very atypical system and was surrounded with amazing talent, Flynn only defended zones, etc.. And to me it's very difficult to figure out if a player can play the PG position at the NBA level (as a typical point-guard, as one who runs the team, sets the offence the proper way, defend other pgs, makes the teammates better, etc.) without seeing him being asked to play that way. Plus, Curry is someone I didn't pay a lot of attention this season and didn't rewatch games, as he'll be gone before the Bucks pick. So, I'm not sure about the correct answer to your question.

Anyway, I think my opinion on Curry is pretty similar to the conventional one: he's an awesome jump-shooter, especially from distance. He shoots off the dribble, in spot up situations, contested, when doubled, whatever. Most times I saw him he was hitting contested shots, with defenders all over him, at a very high rate. He'll definitely be great firing jumpers, much like his dad. He's also an awesome passer, as Coach Knight said. But not exactly a great passer in the sense that he sees that passing lane nobody else figured out. He's more a great passer from a technical perspective, he's an extremely accurate passer all of his passes, even when under strong defensive pressure, no matter how difficult they may be to execute, go straight "between the numbers". I think this is generally a very underrated aspect of the game. A good passer helps his teammates a lot, especially if you have shooters like Ray Allen or Rip Hamilton (or Curry himself!), who have great form running out of screens to catch the ball, or bigs with not so great hands (Mikki Moore is a rich man because he was lucky to find Kidd as his teammate).

Now, in terms of being a creative force, I don't think he's that good. He'll hit the screener if you ask him to play the pick'n'roll, he'll distribute the ball okay, he'll make a great play here and there, but I'm not certain if he's someone who will be able to find the open guy consistently (pretty much like Duhon). Plus, I'm not sure if he's going to be able to break down his man and force the defence to react without the help of a screen - I think he won't, in spite of his excellent ball-handling. That's not a definitive impediment though, Calderon can't do that either and still collects tons of assists. Speaking about Calderon, Curry will be a defensive liability defending pgs in the NBA, he isn't quick enough with his feet to stay in front of them or to catch up. On the other hand, he looks like a very intelligent player, one who understands the game: he pushes the ball when it is available, plays slower when forced to and reacts well to what the game dictates. He's also someone who brings good intangibles I think, he likes to lead and someone teamamtes will respect. And he's very "handsy" defensively, with a very good intuition on where the ball is going to be. So, the way I see it, Curry may lack the speed, the "blowbyability", the passing instincts and the defensive quality to be a NBA point-guard. Then again, maybe his remaining skill-set can be enough to overcome those problems.

It's a shame he was forced to look for his own scoring opportunities so much and we can't have a better grasp of his potential at the position. Anyway, ideally you'd pair Curry with a ball-dominant wing or bigger guard, someone with playmaking abilities. As a true pg, I don't think he'll be good enough. But it's certainly worth a try, because, worst case scenario, you still have a terrific shooter in your roster.

p.s. - btw, I always thought Jennings would be a Donnie Walsh kind of pick.