Prime Penny Hardaway in 2025
Posted: Mon Mar 24, 2025 2:07 pm
How would you rank Penny if his peak form was transported to 2024/25 season?
What counts as "prime" Penny?
3rd year Penny at 24?
Explosively athletic, incredibly bouncy. Great body control, especially mid-air. Great vision. Nasty transition threat. Weak range. Strong handle, pretty nasty slasher.
He'd be good, but if he couldn't figure out how to shoot well more than 10 feet from the basket, he'd be in some trouble, or it would at least put a bit of a ceiling on his total utility. He was a mediocre shooter at range even with the shortened line, and he wasn't ever really a stunner in the middle. But he did have a high release and stupid bounce, so when he was popping the turnaround in and around the key, it was very difficult to contest well.
Great height, good post game for a guard despite being so slender. And again, incredible athleticism coupled to length and a handle, so he'd be dangerous regardless. He got inside 10 feet pretty easily, too, and he was deadly when he got there.
He'd probably be a top-10 player in today's game. Might be better if he stayed healthy and got his jumper to settle a little.