Aldridge vs Horford

[captain_cheapseats]

I think they are both very good young bigs, and I can't really decide which is better in a vacuum. Both can play 2 positions, can eat up 30+ minutes a night, and provide strong play in at least one aspect of the game (Horford boards, Aldridge offense) while holding their own in all other areas. I'd rather have Horford for the team I root for (Celtics), but can see picking Aldridge for other clubs.

[_BBIB_]

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No, no he's not. He's not good enough a scorer or help defender to be the anchor of either an offense or a defense, so he cannot (at least at this time) be considered a franchise big man.

Franchise player label goes on a player often with perceived upside before they reach that mark.

Horford's offensive game would have to develop tremendously but he has no physical limitations to prevent that from happening.

What he lacks in height/length he makes up with strength and athleticism

He also shows signs of developing a face up jumper as well as a go to post move

He's also a big man who is a great outlet passer,can get out and run, and can even push the ball up the floor and play point Center.

He's certainly a franchise player potentially

[tsherkin]

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Franchise player label goes on a player often with perceived upside before they reach that mark.

Horford's offensive game would have to develop tremendously but he has no physical limitations to prevent that from happening.

What he lacks in height/length he makes up with strength and athleticism

He's not a dominant athlete and he IS going to be 22 years old this summer; it's much too late for him to be reasonably expected to develop into a dominant post scorer. A solid poster scorer, sure, but it's clear that he's more comfortable as a high-post guy, as a natural power forward on offense.

He's certainly a franchise player potentially

NONE of what you said makes for a franchise player; you've described a guy who has the potential to be a healthy Marcus Camby with weaker shot-blocking and better man-on defense, just about. That's not a franchise big man.

Horford is now a capable starter and has the potential to become one of those borderline All-Star players. If things REALLY work out, he could be a multiple All-Star but he doesn't at all look like a player who could lynch-pin a franchise.

[WesWesley]

I wonder if a guy like Bibby is going to get HOrford some easy buckets.

Maybe then he can appear to be a better offensive player.

[High 5]

He's not a dominant athlete

If by dominant athlete you mean only Howard or Amare, then not quite. But people are really selling his ahtleticism short. Watch him lead the break, watch him leap higher than everyone else to get the put back dunk, watch up get up for the alley-oop. He is a GREAT athlete.

[tsherkin]

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If by dominant athlete you mean only Howard or Amare, then not quite. But people are really selling his ahtleticism short. Watch him lead the break, watch him leap higher than everyone else to get the put back dunk, watch up get up for the alley-oop. He is a GREAT athlete.

Yeah, he's got GOOD athleticism but his athletic ability doesn't translate into the sort of maneuvers that let Bosh, Amare and Dwight score at the volumes they do, you get what I mean?

He's not an explosive leaper, nor does he have a brutally quick first step that he can exploit, so he can't use his athleticism as a crutch to get points the way they can.

I don't mean to sell him short: Al can jump, he's got good footspeed and he's fast in transition, he's far from unathletic, without question, but he's not got elite athleticism, which is generally what separates him from the other young bigs... either that, or in someone like Al Jefferson's case, extremely polished finesse skills on O, which Al does not have.

[candy for lunch]

Aldridge will complement Oden better than Horford, so LMA is my pick

[High 5]

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Yeah, he's got GOOD athleticism but his athletic ability doesn't translate into the sort of maneuvers that let Bosh, Amare and Dwight score at the volumes they do, you get what I mean?

He's not an explosive leaper, nor does he have a brutally quick first step that he can exploit, so he can't use his athleticism as a crutch to get points the way they can.

I don't mean to sell him short: Al can jump, he's got good footspeed and he's fast in transition, he's far from unathletic, without question, but he's not got elite athleticism, which is generally what separates him from the other young bigs... either that, or in someone like Al Jefferson's case, extremely polished finesse skills on O, which Al does not have.

I agree that he'll never be a great scorer. I could see him peaking at about 17 or 18 points. He doesn't have their great offensive ability, but Horford has a lot to offer. He's a lot tougher than Amare and Bosh. Better rebounder and defender.

I think the Laker game was the perfect example of what Horford can do on the court. He dominated the glass, getting higher, going up stronger. He ripped the ball from two Lakers at one point. He played great defense on whoever met him in the post (mainly Gasol) and towards the end of the game Odom thought he had an easy layup until Horford stopped him dead in his tracks. Combined with some dunks, good offensive moves and medium ranged jump shots.

So while he doesn't have that consistent 20+ PPG talent, he makes up for it other areas. He definitely isn't Ben Wallace on offense.

[tsherkin]

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I agree that he'll never be a great scorer. I could see him peaking at about 17 or 18 points. He doesn't have their great offensive ability, but Horford has a lot to offer. He's a lot tougher than Amare and Bosh. Better rebounder and defender.

Yep, better defender than Amare and Bosh... questionable as to whether he's a better rebounder than either, though. Remember, Amare's been playing alongside Shawn Marion his entire career and STILL averaging 9.1 rpg on his career (including 9.6 rpg last year). The fact that Horford has an advantage in rebounding rate of only 3% is actually a rather significant indicator that there is relatively small a gap between the two of them, if there is one at all.

So while he doesn't have that consistent 20+ PPG talent, he makes up for it other areas. He definitely isn't Ben Wallace on offense.

Never said he was, I merely said he wasn't a franchise player. A franchise player is the guy around whom you build your team; that's not Horford. Mind, Bosh is a 22/9, 23/10 kinda guy and I don't consider him a franchise player either. Horford is, at least right now, a really valuable roleplayer (starting caliber, of course, but a roleplayer nonetheless).

Just like Camby, only to a lesser degree (for now, the future remains open to change on account of Horford being so young and only a rookie).

[conleyorbust]

What gives me hope for Al is that he shows signs of being a great "glue guy" on the court. He sets great picks, gets tons of boards, makes great outlet passes, moves well off the ball. Hopefully he turns into a bigger version of Unsled.

The Bibby trade should be good for him, we should be able to change our offense a little and go to the post more often because we have another guy can really space the floor and make a half decent entry pass.

[TrueLAfan]

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