sunskerr wrote:bwgood77 wrote:Oh, they'd for sure give you Eason before Smith. Are you sure you're not thinking of this from a fantasy perspective and you need steals?
Steals are massively underrated in value defensively in the modern day just gonna throw that in there. There is a reason OKC plays for them. If you can steal the ball and play disciplined defense you are a huge asset. Tari can do that.
Also a lot of players that gamble poorly get sussed out quickly due to better coaching and analytics so they end up being played less than in years past (i.e. there's a higher chance a player with good steals is a good defender now than in the past). He also rates higher than Jabari in the three advanced stats I like to most (EPM, DARKO, LEBRON). Also a great rebounder who can sort of stretch the floor.
If you like Bari simply because he is taller and you think he has a chance at being a star then that's fine and a perfectly valid way to build a team(going after bigger upside prospects). I wouldn't be bummed or anything with Jabari coming back. It's just that if you held a gun to my head to ask me who is better in five years, based on the model in my head how I evaluate guys, I'd say Eason. But it wouldn't be like a sure thing (none of this kind of stuff is, especially when it comes to lower usage young guys).bwgood77 wrote:Why are you so much higher on Amen than Jabari? I figured they'd be higher on Jabari than Amen. He's younger, he's a PF who can hit the 3. He's not a great 3 pt shooter, but you have Amen who is older, is a wing, cannot shoot the 3 (under 25%), is a bad FT shooter (sub 70%). He's a nice athlete but a Jabari skill set is a bit more rare. Thompson can only score right around the rim. Nice defender and finisher but I don't see why his value would be really high and Jabari low. Maybe if he was younger.
I think you are focusing on Amens negatives too harshly. Amen rates ridiculously well in his limited minutes going back to last year in my 3 favorite metrics. This year he took a big leap.
On court he is an elite rebounder. Elite at the fast break. He can handle the ball. His vision is pretty good as well. That overall offensive skill means he has a chance at playing point guard, which separates him from his brother who doesn't have those things.
He also is not just a nice defender, but is, again, ELITE. So we have these holes in his game, namely shooting, but all his strengths are advanced/good or near elite to elite level. That's why I compare him to Giannis - the skill profile is the same. The stat lines come out similar as well, though he may never be as invincible in the paint like Giannis.
Also when it comes to expert opinions on developing players in real life and dynasty there is a reason I actually do listen to guys like Josh Lloyd (and other people should too) for input on young prospects...if a guy rates highly in dynasty it typically means they have a development path that tracks with real life basketball skill and thus long-term sticking power in the league. I.e. in general a guy rated highly in dynasty is going to be rated that highly in part because he has real life potential, not just fancy stats.
I agree with everything you said Sunskerr. I bet the Rockets would value holding onto Eason over Jabari in a theoretical Booker trade. For all the reasons you mentioned, plus I'll add he's a dirty work player whose game would fit into the games of Sengun and Booker way better as he can fill the gaps they cannot. This will be even more valuable if they keep Reed and he becomes the PG in a season or 2 as he's another weak defender. Jabari for all his talent is a lesser (much lesser) version of J³ and simply can't do all the stuff Eason can.
Eason might also be more level headed as he's a lower draft and won't have such a high opinion of himself like top 4 pick Jabari.
I'll bet the Rockets value Jabari 3rd in the pecking order between Amen, Eason and Jabari. Which makes him very likely to be a Sun if this trade happens this summer. IMO
