AB the PG development thread

[Fortune Teller]

I’m at the game tonight and Black looks awful. McCain, Philly’s 20-year-old rookie, looks significantly better and doesn’t have a season under his belt.

Welcome to the nba.... Some players take longer to develop than others

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Yes, I get that. But AB wasn't a late first-rounder or second round pick, in which case we'd be thrilled with his disruptive defense and not so worried about his abysmal shooting percentages. He was the #6 pick in a good draft and he still can't dribble or shoot in Year 2. His FG% (41) and 3PT% (25) are lower than his rookie year.

I only bring up the comparison to McCain because the contrast was so glaring in that game that I assumed McCain entered the draft as an upper-classman. Then I looked it up and saw he was 20, just like AB. The difference is he has actual basketball skills.

I'm sure Welt will patiently wait for AB to develop throughout the 4 years of his rookie deal, then re-sign him, then realize in Year 5 or 6 that he is what he is (see Mo Bamba, Chuma Okeke, Cole Anthony). Maybe that's why they didn't sign a PG this summer, so they could force-feed him and see what happens. But if Cole and Gary weren't terrible he wouldn't be playing.

[KillMonger]

I’m at the game tonight and Black looks awful. McCain, Philly’s 20-year-old rookie, looks significantly better and doesn’t have a season under his belt.

Welcome to the nba.... Some players take longer to develop than others

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Yes, I get that. But AB wasn't a late first-rounder or second round pick, in which case we'd be thrilled with his disruptive defense and not so worried about his abysmal shooting percentages. He was the #6 pick in a good draft and he still can't dribble or shoot in Year 2. His FG% (41) and 3PT% (25) are lower than his rookie year.

I only bring up the comparison to McCain because the contrast was so glaring in that game that I assumed McCain entered the draft as an upper-classman. Then I looked it up and saw he was 20, just like AB. The difference is he has actual basketball skills.

I'm sure Welt will patiently wait for AB to develop throughout the 4 years of his rookie deal, then re-sign him, then realize in Year 5 or 6 that he is what he is (see Mo Bamba, Chuma Okeke, Cole Anthony). Maybe that's why they didn't sign a PG this summer, so they could force-feed him and see what happens. But if Cole and Gary weren't terrible he wouldn't be playing.

That's how you see it so be it.... I'd rather just let it play out so we know what we have.... Its rare you know what a player is going to be at 20 years old..... At that age most of what you're going to see is flashes, pretty much what we're seeing now.... What McCain is doing isn't normal my guy..... Top picks normally take time.... Ask Jabari Smith

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[eyriq]

McCain is unreal in how good he is on offense. AB was just as good on defense as a rookie.

[Bensational]

McCain is a different game to AB. Cole is the guy we had hoped could do what McCain is doing, and now Jett.

I hope AB can give us Dyson Daniels defense with more playmaking. That’s a more interesting target to monitor.

[GelbeWand09]

In the end AB is just not fast enough and his handle is to bad to get everywhere he wants to. But that's a skill that's fundamental for a PG. Just watch the Sixers game and how much trouble he had dribbling inside the 3point area. This got nothing to do with development. He won't get faster or more athletic with age.
That's just a essential problem. You at least need a backcourt partner who offsets his weakness. Suggs can get by his defender but the chance is higher he dribbles on his foot than that he gets where he wants to be. Both doesn't have a off the dribble game and are spot up shooters and AB is even not a good (volume) shooter in those situations (at least that's a thing you can improve).
As much as people believe the future backcourt are those two, I just can't imagine it. You just can't have a good offense with such limitations at the guard spot even with 2 point forwards. You need a "normal" guard and 2 out of Suggs, AB and KCP.
The Daniel's comparison doesn't help either as long as we have 3 Daniel's and not Daniel's & Tray type (with much less usage ).

[cedric76]

You guys don't realise how good is AB for this team

[I Rasharted]

You just can't have a good offense with such limitations at the guard spot even with 2 point forwards. You need a "normal" guard and 2 out of Suggs, AB and KCP.

[basketballRob]

In the end AB is just not fast enough and his handle is to bad to get everywhere he wants to. But that's a skill that's fundamental for a PG. Just watch the Sixers game and how much trouble he had dribbling inside the 3point area. This got nothing to do with development. He won't get faster or more athletic with age.
That's just a essential problem. You at least need a backcourt partner who offsets his weakness. Suggs can get by his defender but the chance is higher he dribbles on his foot than that he gets where he wants to be. Both doesn't have a off the dribble game and are spot up shooters and AB is even not a good (volume) shooter in those situations (at least that's a thing you can improve).
As much as people believe the future backcourt are those two, I just can't imagine it. You just can't have a good offense with such limitations at the guard spot even with 2 point forwards. You need a "normal" guard and 2 out of Suggs, AB and KCP.
The Daniel's comparison doesn't help either as long as we have 3 Daniel's and not Daniel's & Tray type (with much less usage ).

Black is fast enough to get by players. He needs to be more aggressive. His handle has improved in year 2, and I see no reason it won't improve more. He didn't attempt to drive into the paint against Philadelphia, it wasn't that he can't.

I remember your take last year at this time was he wasn't a PG at all.

After the Charlotte game, all the posts were about how AB was the PG of the future.

I think Black needs to learn how to be more consistent. Maybe that's improving the way he eats or sleeps. He didn't seem to have the same energy in the Philadelphia game as the Charlotte game.

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[GelbeWand09]

In the end AB is just not fast enough and his handle is to bad to get everywhere he wants to. But that's a skill that's fundamental for a PG. Just watch the Sixers game and how much trouble he had dribbling inside the 3point area. This got nothing to do with development. He won't get faster or more athletic with age.
That's just a essential problem. You at least need a backcourt partner who offsets his weakness. Suggs can get by his defender but the chance is higher he dribbles on his foot than that he gets where he wants to be. Both doesn't have a off the dribble game and are spot up shooters and AB is even not a good (volume) shooter in those situations (at least that's a thing you can improve).
As much as people believe the future backcourt are those two, I just can't imagine it. You just can't have a good offense with such limitations at the guard spot even with 2 point forwards. You need a "normal" guard and 2 out of Suggs, AB and KCP.
The Daniel's comparison doesn't help either as long as we have 3 Daniel's and not Daniel's & Tray type (with much less usage ).

Black is fast enough to get by players. He needs to be more aggressive. His handle has improved in year 2, and I see no reason it won't improve more.

After the Charlotte game, all the posts were about how AB was the PG of the future.

I think Black needs to learn how to be more consistent. Maybe that's improving the way he eats or sleeps. He didn't seem to have the same energy in the Philadelphia game as the Charlotte game.

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Sorry, i have a complete different opinion. There is a reason he can only attack after a pick, or the defender doesnt have defensive stance or he got a open lane. He even had trouble last game getting inside the 3Pline in the halfcourt. I dont even talk about rim pressure or getting to the rim.
Tell me PG's that have that massive problem getting to the basket? Even players called ''slow'' for the position like Haliburton or Cade doesnt even have half the problem AB has. We talking about maybe the most athletic & most skilled position. He got good speed after 4-5 steps but no burst/explosion in the first 2-3 to beat his defender. When he gets to the basket he got absolutely no lift, so he has to finish with awkward shots over the defender. There is definitely a athletic & ballhandling problem with AB at PG.
Again i dont say AB gonna be a bad player. I think he's gonna be a really good role player & connector but i dont see him ever become the solution of our backcourt problems because he doesnt have the athletic abilities & is too way back in the skills department. We need a totally different kind of guard next to AB & Suggs, which is absoluty doable because Suggs is most effective in 28-30 minutes & off the ball anyway. Enough playing time for this kind of guard instead of KCP.

[basketballRob]

Bring tissues

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He's clearly the starting PG of the future. Move Suggs back to the 2 and move KCP to the bench when Paolo gets back or they can just bring him in early or have him finish games at the 1.

Nice post after the Charlotte game.

I'm just comparing posts from one game to the next. One game AB is the PG of the future, and then the next game he isn't.

We've also had Paolo and Franz suck posts after a bad game or stretch of games before.

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[basketballRob]

In the end AB is just not fast enough and his handle is to bad to get everywhere he wants to. But that's a skill that's fundamental for a PG. Just watch the Sixers game and how much trouble he had dribbling inside the 3point area. This got nothing to do with development. He won't get faster or more athletic with age.
That's just a essential problem. You at least need a backcourt partner who offsets his weakness. Suggs can get by his defender but the chance is higher he dribbles on his foot than that he gets where he wants to be. Both doesn't have a off the dribble game and are spot up shooters and AB is even not a good (volume) shooter in those situations (at least that's a thing you can improve).
As much as people believe the future backcourt are those two, I just can't imagine it. You just can't have a good offense with such limitations at the guard spot even with 2 point forwards. You need a "normal" guard and 2 out of Suggs, AB and KCP.
The Daniel's comparison doesn't help either as long as we have 3 Daniel's and not Daniel's & Tray type (with much less usage ).

Black is fast enough to get by players. He needs to be more aggressive. His handle has improved in year 2, and I see no reason it won't improve more.

After the Charlotte game, all the posts were about how AB was the PG of the future.

I think Black needs to learn how to be more consistent. Maybe that's improving the way he eats or sleeps. He didn't seem to have the same energy in the Philadelphia game as the Charlotte game.

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Sorry, i have a complete different opinion. There is a reason he can only attack after a pick, or the defender doesnt have defensive stance or he got a open lane. He even had trouble last game getting inside the 3Pline in the halfcourt. I dont even talk about rim pressure or getting to the rim.
Tell me PG's that have that massive problem getting to the basket? Even players called ''slow'' for the position like Haliburton or Cade doesnt even have half the problem AB has. We talking about maybe the most athletic & most skilled position. He got good speed after 4-5 steps but no burst/explosion in the first 2-3 to beat his defender. When he gets to the basket he got absolutely no lift, so he has to finish with awkward shots over the defender. There is definitely a athletic & ballhandling problem with AB at PG.
Again i dont say AB gonna be a bad player. I think he's gonna be a really good role player & connector but i dont see him ever become the solution of our backcourt problems because he doesnt have the athletic abilities & is too way back in the skills department. We need a totally different kind of guard next to AB & Suggs, which is absoluty doable because Suggs is most effective in 28-30 minutes & off the ball anyway. Enough playing time for this kind of guard instead of KCP.

He didn't even try to drive into the paint the last game. He completely deferred without trying to attack. He just needs to be more aggressive and keep his dribble alive



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[basketballRob]

I remember last preseason and the first couple of preseason games Paolo didn't look good. The whole narrative on here and Reddit was that he wasn't good.

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[eyriq]

The most important developments are:

1. We've unlocked his playmaking as seen by an assist percentage of 23.9%
2. He's a rotation staple, 4th in minutes played
3. He's excelling in his role and is third in sweater vest points

He's replaced Ingles playmaking and is leading the bench.

[Bensational]

In the end AB is just not fast enough and his handle is to bad to get everywhere he wants to. But that's a skill that's fundamental for a PG. Just watch the Sixers game and how much trouble he had dribbling inside the 3point area. This got nothing to do with development. He won't get faster or more athletic with age.
That's just a essential problem. You at least need a backcourt partner who offsets his weakness. Suggs can get by his defender but the chance is higher he dribbles on his foot than that he gets where he wants to be. Both doesn't have a off the dribble game and are spot up shooters and AB is even not a good (volume) shooter in those situations (at least that's a thing you can improve).
As much as people believe the future backcourt are those two, I just can't imagine it. You just can't have a good offense with such limitations at the guard spot even with 2 point forwards. You need a "normal" guard and 2 out of Suggs, AB and KCP.
The Daniel's comparison doesn't help either as long as we have 3 Daniel's and not Daniel's & Tray type (with much less usage ).

Boston is the blueprint, and I think Suggs and AB could match the production of White and JRue in time. Consistent 3pt shooting is the biggest gap between those two backcourts, other than age and experience. We don’t need Trae same way Boston doesn’t. Boston would much rather have Daniels replace White/JRue than Trae. If the offense “needs” a Trae type it would be saying more about our top 2 options than the role players surrounding them.

[Skybox]

In the end AB is just not fast enough and his handle is to bad to get everywhere he wants to. But that's a skill that's fundamental for a PG. Just watch the Sixers game and how much trouble he had dribbling inside the 3point area. This got nothing to do with development. He won't get faster or more athletic with age.
That's just a essential problem. You at least need a backcourt partner who offsets his weakness. Suggs can get by his defender but the chance is higher he dribbles on his foot than that he gets where he wants to be. Both doesn't have a off the dribble game and are spot up shooters and AB is even not a good (volume) shooter in those situations (at least that's a thing you can improve).
As much as people believe the future backcourt are those two, I just can't imagine it. You just can't have a good offense with such limitations at the guard spot even with 2 point forwards. You need a "normal" guard and 2 out of Suggs, AB and KCP.
The Daniel's comparison doesn't help either as long as we have 3 Daniel's and not Daniel's & Tray type (with much less usage ).

Boston is the blueprint, and I think Suggs and AB could match the production of White and JRue in time. Consistent 3pt shooting is the biggest gap between those two backcourts, other than age and experience. We don’t need Trae same way Boston doesn’t. Boston would much rather have Daniels replace White/JRue than Trae. If the offense “needs” a Trae type it would be saying more about our top 2 options than the role players surrounding them.

I agree with this take (to a degree) but we still need a legit bench PG (like Pritchard) if AB is in the starting lineup. I understand AB isn't starting but you have to accept that he would be if he were Jrue or Derrick White. We're all excited about AB's jump this season, but it's cherry-picking to lean on assist % and minutes played when his assists per game are 3.9 and his ppg are only 7.6. Those aren't starting PG numbers yet and he's playing significant minutes (24.3 mpg). Those are only acceptable numbers for a mediocre offense...which we will have if we improve a bit more on that end.

[Bensational]

Boston is the blueprint, and I think Suggs and AB could match the production of White and JRue in time. Consistent 3pt shooting is the biggest gap between those two backcourts, other than age and experience. We don’t need Trae same way Boston doesn’t. Boston would much rather have Daniels replace White/JRue than Trae. If the offense “needs” a Trae type it would be saying more about our top 2 options than the role players surrounding them.

I agree with this take (to a degree) but we still need a legit bench PG (like Pritchard) if AB is in the starting lineup. I understand AB isn't starting but you have to accept that he would be if he were Jrue or Derrick White. We're all excited about AB's jump this season, but it's cherry-picking to lean on assist % and minutes played when his assists per game are 3.9 and his ppg are only 7.6. Those aren't starting PG numbers yet and he's playing significant minutes (24.3 mpg). Those are only acceptable numbers for a mediocre offense...which we will have if we improve a bit more on that end.

Yeah if/when AB becomes a starter a 6th man like Pritchard will be required. A bench scorer is already required since Cole is MIA and Jett is on a short leash. Probably don’t want to bring them in this season and have them eat into AB’s developmental minutes (which likely means struggling bench offense for the season).

AB is playing 24mpg, not starter’s minutes, so trying to compare his numbers to starter numbers isn’t fair. Per36 AB averages 5.8apg, which is best on the team amongst guys getting regular rotation minutes. That’s the same level as Tatum in Boston (their team leader) and better than what Boston are getting out of White, JRue and Pritchard per36. AB’s scoring numbers are lower and much more inefficient but he’s young and that’s to be expected for now.

[Bensational]

Amongst players who have played 5 games or more and over 100 minutes so far this season, via per36 stats, AB is ranked in the top 50 in assists per game. He's just below FVV, but ahead of names like Kyrie, Fox, White, JRue, Rozier and Monte Morris.

In terms of total assist production, AB is doing fine and on the right track. His big challenges will be improving his shooting and volume, increasing his aggression at attacking the paint, and if playing alongside Paolo and Franz the big challenge will be developing the confidence to not defer on so many plays.

[eyriq]

Amongst players who have played 5 games or more and over 100 minutes so far this season, via per36 stats, AB is ranked in the top 50 in assists per game. He's just below FVV, but ahead of names like Kyrie, Fox, White, JRue, Rozier and Monte Morris.

In terms of total assist production, AB is doing fine and on the right track. His big challenges will be improving his shooting and volume, increasing his aggression at attacking the paint, and if playing alongside Paolo and Franz the big challenge will be developing the confidence to not defer on so many plays.

Great context. The playmaking talent is clearly there. I'm watching to see him sustain intensity and confidence over an entire game, which I think is currently the limiting factor on his usage.

[MasterGMer]

Amongst players who have played 5 games or more and over 100 minutes so far this season, via per36 stats, AB is ranked in the top 50 in assists per game. He's just below FVV, but ahead of names like Kyrie, Fox, White, JRue, Rozier and Monte Morris.

In terms of total assist production, AB is doing fine and on the right track. His big challenges will be improving his shooting and volume, increasing his aggression at attacking the paint, and if playing alongside Paolo and Franz the big challenge will be developing the confidence to not defer on so many plays.

Great context. The playmaking talent is clearly there. I'm watching to see him sustain intensity and confidence over an entire game, which I think is currently the limiting factor on his usage.

From what I saw from AB, he has improved a lot from last season. But one thing I want to point out is his assertiveness with the ball. It needs to be one of his second nature. Because he is going to hold that rotation spot and play a lot minutes for the entire season and beyond. Good job, AB!

[Bensational]

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@ 01:29 - Arenas is talking about Bronny James here but what he’s saying definitely applies to AB, too.