bucknersrevenge wrote:zoyathedestroya wrote:This is interesting to me.
Kemba, Tatum, and Hayward ON the floor; Jaylen OFF the floor:
Kemba, Tatum, and Brown ON the floor; Hayward OFF the floor:
They're about the same offensively but defensively the trio with Gordon has been way better.
That's kinda eye-opening but unfortunately for me, it does confirm some of what my eyes see. Brown has made huge hurdles in ballhandling, passing, finishing at the rim and overall playing more under control. But defensively, the issues with him are still mental. He falls asleep. He's undisciplined. That's okay. He's still young. Many players don't master the nuances of defense until they hit their prime. But it does provide a stark contrast to Tatum who like Brown said he wanted to be a great 2-way player this year. At age 21, Tatum is 100% accomplishing that. Brown, at 23, has not so far. It does make it easier to understand why some here are harder on Jaylen. It does make it easier to understand why some would be okay parting with Jaylen under the right circumstance. But since I know he's not going anywhere for at least the next 3 years now, I can only hope this is something he improves on with time.
The difference is even starker when it's just Jaylen OR Gordon without the other two stars on the floor. The sample may still be too small to be negligible. It could be noise or it could be something.
Hayward ON the floor w/ the other three OFF:
Jaylen ON the floor w/ the other three OFF:
I think right now Jaylen is an above average individual defender who can battle against bigger PFs and decently defend wings/guards on iso but still struggles in PnR. I think while he's improved, he's still a below average team defender for the observations you stated. And in a league that requires more switching, constant rotation, anticipation, and timely help, team defensive acumen takes a higher priority than the ability to lock down one particular player. If he is really that good of a defender, it hasn't translated in the team numbers.
As an aside, look at the team's offensive efficiency when it's just Hayward w/o the other three stars. It's **** gross. If this sample is to be seen as enough, I think it can confirm my thinking that he's not really someone who can carry an offense on his own regardless of the teammates his playing with. So he's not a Kemba or a Lillard or Lebron. Put scrubs around them and they'll find a way to take over the offense. He's more of an enhancer like Horford was. He makes the game of the other stars around him easier with his facilitating/playmaking and great floor game.
