DrPampiloni wrote:I don't see how his numbers are better than Porzingis' numbers. If anything he is less efficient. His assists are inflated by usage. You can argue about salary, but JR is gonna get payed big-time this summer, and he will suddenly become equally overpaid. Health is always an unknown, for both actually. JR has also missed a full season if I recall correctly... Also guys here pretending that KP was not named an All-Star in his last (playing) season with the Knicks...
It's a combination of factors, I don't think one can look up boxscore numbers without taking role and context into consideration.
First of all, Randle's a much better teammate and leader than KP. We can dig deeper if you want to, but I think KP's diva tendencies are pretty much common knowledge by now. Him calling out Carlisle in the media is a perfect example of that. Randle is a much more grounded and humble individual.
Randle's assists are not just inflated by usage, that's incredibly reductive. Randle's a much better passer and playmaker than KP. It's not close. As a Dallas fan, you must've realized by now that KP's not a good passer (although he's improved in that area), let alone a playmaker. Randle's a legit point forward. He makes plays for his teammates, he can make the extra pass, he's starting to see plays before they happen and his passes are crisp and accurate.
Randle's playing a different role defensively than KP so it's hard (and perhaps unfair) to compare them on that end of the floor. KP's obviously a better rim protector, but he struggles defending in space. Randle has become a good defender at the 4 who can actually defend in space and who isn't tasked to protect the rim anyway. In his role, he's been more reliable than KP has been in his. He's also much better on the boards.
Randle's a much better isolation scorer, who attracts double teams and forces opposing defenses to collapse and leave guys open. Obviously, he's not as efficient and as impactful as the upper echelon players like Kawhi or Durant, but his impact goes far deeper than just his points. KP has 0 gravity an isolation scorer because he's inefficient and defenses don't necessarily (over)react, which means he can't open gaps in the defense. He does have gravity as a pick-and-pop player, but he's not someone you can run your offense through, because he's inefficient in isolation, and because he's not a playmaker. Randle is actually carrying that burden for the Knicks. Not to mention, getting your points as the first option vs the second option has a natural impact on scoring efficiency. For instance, KP averages 7.1 catch-and-shoot FGA per game, vs 4.7 for Randle. Offensively, Randle's role is closer to Luka's than KPs.
Randle missed a season because of a torn ACL. KP has had many injuries, and these injuries have taken a toll on his body. He's not the same athlete he was 3 years ago, and his game relied
heavily on athleticism. By the way, by the time he was named an All-Star in the East, I thought he was vastly overrated. He really was a fringe All-Star at best.
enjoy that horrible contract and thanks for the picks