Klay Thompson vs Peja

atlantabbq99 · Post #1 » by **atlantabbq99** » Sun Oct 26, 2014 1:09 pm

Who is better?

Who would you rather have on your team?

Is Peja better than Klay?

Is Klay already on the same level as Peja?

Has Klay already surpassed Peja?

Rich Michmond · Post #2 » by **Rich Michmond** » Sun Oct 26, 2014 1:20 pm

As a second/third option - Peja

As a role player - Klay. I'd rather have a 3 and D guy than a 3 and no D one

As a first option - I'd rather hang myself than have one of them as my main guy

turk3d · Post #3 » by **turk3d** » Sun Oct 26, 2014 1:47 pm

I think it's really too early to tell but I don't think I ever saw Peja guarding PGs.

Post #4 » by **tsherkin** » Sun Oct 26, 2014 1:58 pm

Rich Michmond wrote:As a second/third option - Peja

As a role player - Klay. I'd rather have a 3 and D guy than a 3 and no D one

As a first option - I'd rather hang myself than have one of them as my main guy

This; nice post.

Neither really strikes me as first-option caliber. Pro-Peja guys will be offended at the comparison based on Peja's 6th season (his third and final AS year), when he was a 24 ppg guy and 4th in the MVP vote for no sane reason, but I don't really believe that reflects accurately his value as a player.

He did typically score a bit more than Klay, though he was not a particularly good playoff performer. It may be a tad early for this comparison, but I'd generally side with Klay for a supporting cast/roleplayer spot and, like Rich said, I'd be very unhappy with either as my lead player.

Jaivl · Post #5 » by **Jaivl** » Sun Oct 26, 2014 1:58 pm

turk3d wrote:I think it's really too early to tell but I don't think I ever saw Peja guarding PGs.

I don't think I ever saw Peja guarding SGs either.

Post #6 » by **Quotatious** » Sun Oct 26, 2014 2:34 pm

My first instinct was to say "Peja easily", but his really poor RAPM numbers in his prime (I mean, way out of the top 100 in prior informed between 2002 and 2004), make me question his real impact. Even in his "peak" season in 2004 (and at the time, I thought he was very impressive, never expected to see him being able to lead the Kings so well in the RS), he was just 107th in NPI (+1.3 O, -0.9 D, +0.4 overall, and 251st in prior informed (+0.8 offense, -2.0 defense, -1.2 overall...) - that's shockingly bad, compared to what his boxscore numbers would suggest. Even his other prime seasons weren't particularly impressive in this regard. He looks better in xRAPM (+3.5 O, -1.6 D, +1.9 overall in 2004), but still not really elite.

Klay is certainly better defensively (and I don't even buy Thompson being an elite defender - Peja was just really bad).

Still, for now I'd prefer Stojakovic, but Thompson definitely has the potential to become better than him.

Joseph17 · Post #7 » by **Joseph17** » Sun Oct 26, 2014 3:39 pm

atlantabbq99 wrote:Who is better?

Who would you rather have on your team?

Is Peja better than Klay?

Is Klay already on the same level as Peja?

Has Klay already surpassed Peja?

Peja
Peja
Yes
No
No

Colbinii · Post #8 » by **Colbinii** » Sun Oct 26, 2014 3:57 pm

Jaivl wrote:
turk3d wrote:I think it's really too early to tell but I don't think I ever saw Peja guarding PGs.

I don't think I ever saw Peja guarding SGs either.

Come to think of it, I don't think I've ever seen Peja guard anyone.

HornetJail · Post #9 » by **HornetJail** » Sun Oct 26, 2014 4:02 pm

Depends-

Do I have a score-first guy next to him who needs someone to take pressure off him defensively? I'll take Klay.
Do I have a defensive guy next to him that can let some defensive lapses slide? Then I'll take Peja.

I think Peja was the better talent because of his great offense, but it depends on the rest of the roster. Next to a guy like Curry, I'll take Klay every time because of his defense.

SaintofKillers · Post #10 » by **SaintofKillers** » Sun Oct 26, 2014 4:07 pm

At this point and time, I'd say Peja.

Peja wasn't just a "catch and shoot" or pull-up shooter unlike Klay; he can create his own shot real good for a guy his size.

Klay was a better defender though but the disparity isn't as wide as many think. Peja was actually an underrated defender, capable of either bodying up in the post against typical SFs or keeping anyone with a non-elite first step in front of him. I've seen him shut down Nash and Dirk (probably the best 7-foot slasher in history when he was young) single-handedly.

Darren_Errman · Post #11 » by **Darren_Errman** » Sun Oct 26, 2014 7:48 pm

This preseason version of Klay is easily better than Peja. And i'm a Sacramento native. I have been following both the Kings and Warriors for almost 3 decades.

NBA fans around the country still haven't caught on that Klay has become a very good rim attacker. He is MUCH improved these last few months it's shocking to me.

Greatness · Post #12 » by **Greatness** » Sun Oct 26, 2014 8:18 pm

All five of the questions in the OP are essentially asking the exact same thing

TrueStoryGSW · Post #13 » by **TrueStoryGSW** » Mon Oct 27, 2014 1:02 pm

Too early to tell.