Eye of the Tiger: The Tidjane Salaun Thread

[JDR720]

You could've said the same about Kai. The difference is so far TJ seems to have at least one actual NBA skill and isn't dumb.

[KembaWalker]

if all he ever is is a 6'9 3point spammer that can grab some boards then the worst case scenario is we reset the clock on a younger PJ. I think he's already avoided complete bust possibility. that would have been if he came in and was a 25% shooter from NBA distance or something. I think thats pretty clearly not the case, though I guess his percentages will definitely drop from preseason if he's only playing garbage time or emergency injury minutes

TS needs to not be a defensive liability in order to be compared to PJ. the bigger concern is that he's so inexperienced that he's a more athletic but more lost version of Davis Bertans

PJ Washington was a god awful defender. Like, he was never even close to average. Salaun with his effort alone will be better defensively than PJ ever was for us before his rookie contract is up

[amcoolio]

I like everything I've seen out of Big Tiddy, but he won't be an all-star unless he improves his handle dramatically. He already doesn't have the athleticism to take people to the rim reliability. Then again, if he had any sort of handle, he would probably have been the #1 overall pick. Maybe the development team can work some magic.

[yosemiteben]

You could've said the same about Kai. The difference is so far TJ seems to have at least one actual NBA skill and isn't dumb.

There is no comparison in talent level, feel for the game, and BBIQ between Kai and Salaun.

At age 18 Salaun was a key rotation player for a competitive team in a top international league.

At age 18 Kai played 17 MPG for a mediocre college team.

[MPM]

if all he ever is is a 6'9 3point spammer that can grab some boards then the worst case scenario is we reset the clock on a younger PJ. I think he's already avoided complete bust possibility. that would have been if he came in and was a 25% shooter from NBA distance or something. I think thats pretty clearly not the case, though I guess his percentages will definitely drop from preseason if he's only playing garbage time or emergency injury minutes

TS needs to not be a defensive liability in order to be compared to PJ. the bigger concern is that he's so inexperienced that he's a more athletic but more lost version of Davis Bertans

PJ Washington was a god awful defender. Like, he was never even close to average. Salaun with his effort alone will be better defensively than PJ ever was for us before his rookie contract is up

PJ's sticky rep remains a mystery to me - a defender that can't defend and a three-point shooter that can't shoot. Even with Kyrie and Luka's gravity, my man shot 31.4% from 3 last year. Give me Tidz all day, every day.

[KembaWalker]

TS needs to not be a defensive liability in order to be compared to PJ. the bigger concern is that he's so inexperienced that he's a more athletic but more lost version of Davis Bertans

PJ Washington was a god awful defender. Like, he was never even close to average. Salaun with his effort alone will be better defensively than PJ ever was for us before his rookie contract is up

PJ's sticky rep remains a mystery to me - a defender that can't defend and a three-point shooter that can't shoot. Even with Kyrie and Luka's gravity, my man shot 31.4% from 3 last year. Give me Tidz all day, every day.

PJ has always had garbage defensive metrics and eye test defense, traded Grant Williams telling us he couldn’t shoot, PJ shoots worse than Grant, Dallas gaslights the world into thinking PJ is some lockdown defender instead of just admitting they made a pretty bad trade. One of the lowkey best sports gaslights I’ve seen in a long time, helped by them making the finals. I’m glad to see him in another jersey

[JMAC3]

I like everything I've seen out of Big Tiddy, but he won't be an all-star unless he improves his handle dramatically. He already doesn't have the athleticism to take people to the rim reliability. Then again, if he had any sort of handle, he would probably have been the #1 overall pick. Maybe the development team can work some magic.

Exactly this, if he already had every tool to be an all-star when he turned 19 a few weeks ago then yes he would have been a no brainer #1 pick in this class.

[Jamaaliver]

You guys may have seriously grabbed the "Giannis of the 2024 Draft Class".

Congrats!!!

Jeff Peterson has you guys on the right track, and I look forward to a great rivalry between our squads.

#RisacherIsStillBetter

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[MPM]

You guys may have seriously grabbed the "Giannis of the 2024 Draft Class".

Congrats!!!

Jeff Peterson has you guys on the right track, and I look forward to a great rivalry between our squads.

#RisacherIsStillBetter

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Thanks man. Really excited about what he can become. Offensive dud last night but his all around play was fantastic - as the vid shows, his ability to match up 1 to 5 is legit, his floor awareness seems to improve game-to-game, and if his shot holds, we've done very, very well for ourselves. Definitely see him getting bigger and settling into a 4/5 role - only one that's infinitely switchable.

Risacher was a great get for sure but pre-draft I was questioning the perceived gap between he and Salaun - seemed narrower than most were implying.

Would love to see the I-85 rivalry heat up.

[wilson115]

"He's only 19 years old now, lots of time to get even stronger."

+1, Mr. Plowright.

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[Liver_Pooty]

"He's only 19 years old now, lots of time to get even stronger."

+1, Mr. Plowright.

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That's a monster of a kid lol

[GiggitySmalls]

He looks like he can hold 250 260 and it not be a problem. He's likely at 230ish.

Sent from my SM-F936U using RealGM mobile app

[NCHeels2008]

"He's only 19 years old now, lots of time to get even stronger."

+1, Mr. Plowright.

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That's a monster of a kid lol

considering the alternatives I'm very happy with the choice, motor without fear and a great body are awesome starting points

[NCHeels2008]

and firing JB for Steve Clifford was the absolute worst thing you can do

the last couple years was a whirlwind of absolute insanity

a lot of things have felt like active sabotage more than anything else. can you imagine telling someone in May 2022 coming off a 43-39 season that two years later, we would have drafted our center of the future, and drafted someone of Miller's caliber in back-to-back drafts, but that we went 21-61 in 2024 with Steve Clifford as our head coach?

Clifford somehow becoming coach again wouldn't have blown me away as long as you assured me MJ was still owner when he was brought back

[NCHeels2008]

top tier energy garbage guy aka cedric Ceballos/gerald wallace, mixed with some jaylen brown and an ounce of giannis. he's a role player architype, otherwise.

This sentence is absolutely wild read lol.
So he needs to be Gerald Wallace, mixed with Jaylen Brown and a bit of Giannis or he is a role player....

Let me get this straight, he needs to be an All-star mixed with a Finals MVP but wait there is more... he also needs to have a bit of an 8 time All-NBA guy as well..... or he is role player.

I legit am laughing out loud at this.

Yea I said median outcome was Lakers Rui and in a weak draft at the top that's a good outcome IMO

[JMAC3]

Salaun has an elite body and elite work ethic from everything we have heard.
I think an underrated part of his development is growing in Coach Lee defensive minded system from day 1.
There is no reason he can't become a really really good defender at multiple positions.

I think OG Anunoby is a decent comp for him if the offense continues to be somewhat limited.

[yosemiteben]

It's truly wild to me that we drafted a guy that is 19 years old, 6'10" with an NBA ready body and a 7'2" wingspan, that just shot 40.5% from three in preseason on 7.5 attempts per game, and some are trashing this dude and acting like he was an obvious draft mistake.

Wtf does success look like if this guy isn't worth getting excited about?

[SWedd523]

It's truly wild to me that we drafted a guy that is 19 years old, 6'10" with an NBA ready body and a 7'2" wingspan, that just shot 40.5% from three in preseason on 7.5 attempts per game, and some are trashing this dude and acting like he was an obvious draft mistake.

Wtf does success look like if this guy isn't worth getting excited about?

Some folks get married to certain ideas and don't have the emotional intelligence to move the hell on

[Liver_Pooty]

It's truly wild to me that we drafted a guy that is 19 years old, 6'10" with an NBA ready body and a 7'2" wingspan, that just shot 40.5% from three in preseason on 7.5 attempts per game, and some are trashing this dude and acting like he was an obvious draft mistake.

Wtf does success look like if this guy isn't worth getting excited about?

Some folks get married to certain ideas and don't have the emotional intelligence to move the hell on

To be fair I was going to make me hanging myself off my porch as my halloween decoration after the pick.

Now im excited.

[yosemiteben]

Mildly surprised to see DNP CDs after his solid preseason. Not really complaining, but definitely did think he'd carved out a rotation spot, particularly given the volume of injuries we have.