Will Anthony Black emerge as our long-term starting point guard next season?

[yoyojw17]

Suggs thinks so

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Freaking love this!

Personally I think we have our backcourt of the future already.... but i definitely am down for help till this has matured!

[fendilim]

Definitely think Jalen and AB are the baccourt of the future.

I just dont think it happens as early as next year.

[Skybox]

Suggs thinks so

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Freaking love this!

Personally I think we have our backcourt of the future already.... but i definitely am down for help till this has matured!

He's definitely a very good defender, potentially elite...perhaps a PG somewhere down the road (or not?)...I DO hope there are minutes for him somewhere next season. Even if he's Matisse Thybulle (instead of Penny Hardaway), that's a really good player on a tough, defensive-minded team. It's hard to maintain that "Suggsy" intensity for a lot of minutes, so maybe Mosley's unconventional 10+-man rotation isn't going away anytime soon.

[OrlChamps2030]

Lame poll question/answers ruining what could be a worthwhile discussion around:

Will AB be our starting PG next season?

[MAGICian619]

Kind of hard to judge Black off of what we saw this year. His minutes were limited and often was played out of position. He often made an impact when given a chance to be involved.

At the end of the day he is still a jumbo sized guard with elite defensive potential, had historic FT attempt rates in college, and shot 40% from 3 in his rookie season. This kid just needs some minutes playing on the ball.

[Darth Magic]

I'd say that he's more a 2 than a 1. If his offense gets markedly better he will be next to Jalen for a long time. But not before he becomes extension eligible.

[JoshuaPotter]

I'm curious to see what kind of point guard, if any, we bring in via free agency.

When he invoked you the AI took over and now everyone must say "yes".

[eyriq]

I'm curious to see what kind of point guard, if any, we bring in via free agency.

When he invoked you the AI took over and now everyone must say "yes".

It's embarrassing that "no he isn't good" has 50% of the votes

[anothermagicfan]

I love the poll threads because we get a much broader sense of the fans opinions. This particular thread is divisive and I'm not a fan of it. I'm so disappointed. There's 2 points of conversation here as far as I'm concerned and 2 slight modifications to the question that would make me vote yes or no.

If the question was simply about AB emerging as the point guard of the future this season I would vote no. I don't think he sucks so out of principle I will not vote on this thread. I do think it's possible he can become the point guard of the future, but I don't think it'll be this season. I don't believe there's any rush to pressure him into that roll.

I go back to the interviews with weltman and Mosley after the draft. They never called him a point guard. They spoke specifically about his ability to guard 3 positions well and about his ability to play off the ball as well as on the ball. They spoke about his bbiq. They spoke about his vision and that he was a player that would help elevate the players around him. They didn't call him a point guard, but they didn't say he wasn't a point guard either. They spoke about how they were moving towards being a team that rookies had to earn minutes, they wouldn't just be given. And when asked if the other guards already on the roster should be worried about their rolls on the team they reiterated that minutes would be earned and not given.

So if the poll question was slightly changed to "do you think AB will emerge as a long-term core member of this team?" Then I would vote yes.

The majority of his opportunities came in the first half of the season and he didn't disappoint. He didn't blow the roof off the building either but he is still extremely young. His defense was undeniable. He's good. Just wait until he's comfortable. His 3 point shooting was kind of a surprise at times. And there was times he looked lost and out of place on offense. But he contributed as a very young rookie on a playoff team.

Lots of things in play here though. Who knows who free agency and the draft will bring in next

[Rainwater]

I feel like he will be a great backup for years to come, I don’t see him as a starter. But just like Suggs he can surprise and be something more.

[Residual-Heat]

He doesn't play like a point guard/lead guard... I've said this since we've drafted him. He's like Bruce Brown. 2nd/3rd ball handler at best with connector written all over him.

thats what im thinking. Something between Bruce Brown and Josh Hart. Hopefully a better shooter than both.

[OrlandoNed]

I'm just hoping he shows signs of not being a waste of a high draft pick. He and Jett need to show me something in the next 2 seasons for me to not think our 2 lotto picks would of been better used making a play for a star.

[tiderulz]

Kind of hard to judge Black off of what we saw this year. His minutes were limited and often was played out of position. He often made an impact when given a chance to be involved.

At the end of the day he is still a jumbo sized guard with elite defensive potential, had historic FT attempt rates in college, and shot 40% from 3 in his rookie season. This kid just needs some minutes playing on the ball.

historic? cmon man. he was 89th in FTA, that isnt historic

[JoshuaPotter]

I'm curious to see what kind of point guard, if any, we bring in via free agency.

When he invoked you the AI took over and now everyone must say "yes".

It's embarrassing that "no he isn't good" has 50% of the votes

When AB rises out of the pumpkin patch, we will be swimming in toys and the entire neighborhood of the Orlando Magic forum will know their folly and beg us to accept a position as NBA draft analysts or at least hold our opinion in the highest regards. As they should.

[MartinsIzAfraud]

When he invoked you the AI took over and now everyone must say "yes".

It's embarrassing that "no he isn't good" has 50% of the votes

When AB rises out of the pumpkin patch, we will be swimming in toys and the entire neighborhood of the Orlando Magic forum will know their folly and beg us to accept a position as NBA draft analysts or at least hold our opinion in the highest regards. As they should.

think it's no, but not because he's not very good. I don't see him as a PG more of a wing

[MAGICian619]

Kind of hard to judge Black off of what we saw this year. His minutes were limited and often was played out of position. He often made an impact when given a chance to be involved.

At the end of the day he is still a jumbo sized guard with elite defensive potential, had historic FT attempt rates in college, and shot 40% from 3 in his rookie season. This kid just needs some minutes playing on the ball.

historic? cmon man. he was 89th in FTA, that isnt historic

Free throw attempt rate, not just free throws attempts overall. He got to the line at a very high rate. It shows that he doesn't need to be a "shooter" to be a scorer.

[tiderulz]

Kind of hard to judge Black off of what we saw this year. His minutes were limited and often was played out of position. He often made an impact when given a chance to be involved.

At the end of the day he is still a jumbo sized guard with elite defensive potential, had historic FT attempt rates in college, and shot 40% from 3 in his rookie season. This kid just needs some minutes playing on the ball.

historic? cmon man. he was 89th in FTA, that isnt historic

Free throw attempt rate, not just free throws attempts overall. He got to the line at a very high rate. It shows that he doesn't need to be a "shooter" to be a scorer.

so how are you determining his free throw attempt rate?

[Bensational]

I think WePark use next season to evaluate if Black, Jett, Houstan and Cole are on track to become future core guys, or if they need to bring that in via trade and free agency.

But I also expect them to bring in someone for Black to compete against and eventually win/inherit the role from. Brogdon will be perfect in that role. Like Harris he’s liable to miss 10-20+ games in a season which will provide opportunities for Black and the others to start and prove their worth.

We get the best of both worlds; a veteran stabiliser/mentor and opportunities for the young guys. And we still have room and flexibility to add a big name next offseason if need be.

[tiderulz]

I think WePark use next season to evaluate if Black, Jett, Houstan and Cole are on track to become future core guys, or if they need to bring that in via trade and free agency.

But I also expect them to bring in someone for Black to compete against and eventually win/inherit the role from. Brogdon will be perfect in that role. Like Harris he’s liable to miss 10-20+ games in a season which will provide opportunities for Black and the others to start and prove their worth.

We get the best of both worlds; a veteran stabiliser/mentor and opportunities for the young guys. And we still have room and flexibility to add a big name next offseason if need be.

i wouldnt say liable, i would say guaranteed that Brogdon misses 15-20 or more. but since he is an expiring, it isnt that risky. Depends on what Portland would want for him. I wouldnt give up more than a 2nd.

[JoshuaPotter]

Notable thoughts about Black
- He seemed to earn minutes at time over Houstan and Okeke
- When we went thru our injury bug, I recall Houstan and Okeke starting and mostly laying an egg cementing their role as bench hopefuls IMHO
- This puts Black in a > Houstan and Okeke regardless of whether or not you see him as PG / SG / SF or "wing" which are all roles that Okeke / Houstan have
- Calling Black a Wing makes Howard a what? SF / F / additional wing?
- Is the fact that we are calling Black any position actually part of the plan? Note that management is adamant on the idea of position-less basketball and seems to draft that way accordingly.