mtcan wrote:mihaic wrote:Scase wrote:He's a less versatile Siakam/DD level player IMO, he's alright to bridge the gap, but not a key piece to win. I see him as a trade piece in the future for a much better player though.
He's better on D than Demar. He is still young, I don't remember exactly but my feeling is that Demar at same age as RJ's was a lesser player. I am too lazy to check stats
What RJ needs to develop is a mid-range, if he does he will be very good.
I think a lot of the negative sentiment towards RJ comes from his Knicks days when he was basically made to camp out in the 3 point line to catch and shoot or take inefficient mid-range shots. His shooting consistency needs work for sure but in Toronto, I have never seen him drive to the basket so relentlessly and this has changes his game significantly.
His play as a Raptor vs as a Knicks is night-and-day. Yes...the tunnel still exists but to a lesser extent and I'm not complaining when he's scoring on the majority of the drives either as baskets or free throws.
A consistent 20 ppg scorer who does it efficiently and isn't a net negative on D...that's not simply a bridge piece. Work on the shooting and he's a legit 3rd or 4th option on a winning team.
The issue is that his game on the raps is easy to shut down, just deny passes, thats it. He's got no real outside shot, if he develops a mid range, then maybe. But as of now, he's playing largely the same as he did in NYC, he's just getting way more of his shots assisted on.
Just to be clear, I dont think hes a bad player, I just think he's very limited.