Augustin or Lawson
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Freestyle177
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Wow you guys are crazy!!! (the good kind 
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Both of these guys are under 6 feet tall and we're talking about their defensive upside? Neither will be a very good defender at the NBA level. I don't remember the last time I saw a guard at 5'10 or 5'11 that made a significant (or even a marginal impact) on the defensive end. Really, all a guard at that size can do is play the passing lanes very well, and pick off a few steals here and there. They rarely can shut down players at their position because they are simply not long and tall enough.
Athleticism? Thats one of the LAST things that matters for a PG. Look at Steve Nash. Look at Jason Kidd. Look at Deron Williams. John Stockton. While Kidd and Williams may be big-bodied guards, their athleticism doesn't give them a clear advantage over anyone. Sure Williams may have a huge dunk here and there, but thats not his bread and butter.
The most important attribute a PG can have is IQ. Thats how you get teammates involved and break down defenses. Everything else is just a plus, in my opinion. Nash doesn't get 12 assists a game because of athleticism or playing great defense.
Another point I'd like to bring up:
Why do you think there haven't been very many dominant PGs at 6'6" (ie Jamal Crawford). I believe its because they rely on their size, athleticism, and other attributes besides their IQ.
It's the guys who couldn't rely on those things that are the best PGs.
But I guess its one thing being a PG, and an entirely different thing being a shoot-first PG.
But to stay on topic, I like Augustin. He appears to be a better distributor. It really all depends on what a team needs and how the guard fits into their roster of other guards.
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Both of these guys are under 6 feet tall and we're talking about their defensive upside? Neither will be a very good defender at the NBA level. I don't remember the last time I saw a guard at 5'10 or 5'11 that made a significant (or even a marginal impact) on the defensive end. Really, all a guard at that size can do is play the passing lanes very well, and pick off a few steals here and there. They rarely can shut down players at their position because they are simply not long and tall enough.
Athleticism? Thats one of the LAST things that matters for a PG. Look at Steve Nash. Look at Jason Kidd. Look at Deron Williams. John Stockton. While Kidd and Williams may be big-bodied guards, their athleticism doesn't give them a clear advantage over anyone. Sure Williams may have a huge dunk here and there, but thats not his bread and butter.
The most important attribute a PG can have is IQ. Thats how you get teammates involved and break down defenses. Everything else is just a plus, in my opinion. Nash doesn't get 12 assists a game because of athleticism or playing great defense.
Another point I'd like to bring up:
Why do you think there haven't been very many dominant PGs at 6'6" (ie Jamal Crawford). I believe its because they rely on their size, athleticism, and other attributes besides their IQ.
It's the guys who couldn't rely on those things that are the best PGs.
But I guess its one thing being a PG, and an entirely different thing being a shoot-first PG.
But to stay on topic, I like Augustin. He appears to be a better distributor. It really all depends on what a team needs and how the guard fits into their roster of other guards.
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guaves13
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I'm a Suns fan and I would rather have Augustin on my team. He's shown that he is a much better floor general. He has better #'s at this stage than Chris Paul, Deron Williams, and TJ Ford did at the same stage of their college careers.
I don't buy the argument that Lawson is a better uptempo pg either. You could put DJ in that UNC offense and they would be just as good or even better.
Augustin has the vision, IQ, quickness, and shooting ability to be a very good pg in this league.
By the way freestyle, Chris Paul is the same size as these guys and he is a downright theif when it comes to steals. Guy almost had a triple double the other day with 9 steals. He has made it very difficult for my man Nash 3 times this year.
I don't buy the argument that Lawson is a better uptempo pg either. You could put DJ in that UNC offense and they would be just as good or even better.
Augustin has the vision, IQ, quickness, and shooting ability to be a very good pg in this league.
By the way freestyle, Chris Paul is the same size as these guys and he is a downright theif when it comes to steals. Guy almost had a triple double the other day with 9 steals. He has made it very difficult for my man Nash 3 times this year.
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Ruzious
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Freestyle177 wrote:Wow you guys are crazy!!! (the good kind
Both of these guys are under 6 feet tall and we're talking about their defensive upside? Neither will be a very good defender at the NBA level. I don't remember the last time I saw a guard at 5'10 or 5'11 that made a significant (or even a marginal impact) on the defensive end. Really, all a guard at that size can do is play the passing lanes very well, and pick off a few steals here and there. They rarely can shut down players at their position because they are simply not long and tall enough.
Have you ever watched Noah Lowry?
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skiz2
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guaves13 wrote:I'm a Suns fan and I would rather have Augustin on my team. He's shown that he is a much better floor general. He has better #'s at this stage than Chris Paul, Deron Williams, and TJ Ford did at the same stage of their college careers.
I don't buy the argument that Lawson is a better uptempo pg either. You could put DJ in that UNC offense and they would be just as good or even better.
Augustin has the vision, IQ, quickness, and shooting ability to be a very good pg in this league.
By the way freestyle, Chris Paul is the same size as these guys and he is a downright theif when it comes to steals. Guy almost had a triple double the other day with 9 steals. He has made it very difficult for my man Nash 3 times this year.
I am not going to call you a lunatic for chosing one over the other, because they are IMHO neck and neck in terms of who is a better PG prospect.
With that being said I will have to respectfully say I don't understand your arguement. Augustin may have better numbers than Williams, Paul and Ford at the same stage, but come on, numbers don't mean anything. Hell Troy Bell as a sophomore averaged 20 points, and 4 assists a game.
The big reason that Augustin is putting up the numbers he is putting up is because he is the teams first scoring option. Wheras Lawson is the teams 3rd behind Hansbrough and Ellington. Not to mention Augustin averages 11 more minutes a game than Lawson.
I don't know if you have seen Lawson play, but he is a blur up and down the court. IMHO he is the fastest end to end in the country with Derrick Rose a close second. The thing that makes Lawson the scariest however is how quick he changes speeds. He just changes gears and it is nearly impossible to completely shut him down. That is what IMHO makes him a better NBA prospect than Felton at the same stage. Felton was very fast as well, however he really had one speed that was really fast, while Ty can always change his speeds.
Just read this draftexpress article about Lawson it breaks it all down for you the numbers are VERY interesting:
http://www.draftexpress.com/article/NCA ... -Part-One/
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guaves13
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Yeah I've already read that about Lawson. I think he would look great on the Suns also but I just prefer Augustin. DJ looks pretty fast to me. In fact he also has the change of gears that you are talking about. He is incredibly explosive and quick.skiz2 wrote:-= original quote snipped =-
I am not going to call you a lunatic for chosing one over the other, because they are IMHO neck and neck in terms of who is a better PG prospect.
With that being said I will have to respectfully say I don't understand your arguement. Augustin may have better numbers than Williams, Paul and Ford at the same stage, but come on, numbers don't mean anything. Hell Troy Bell as a sophomore averaged 20 points, and 4 assists a game.
The big reason that Augustin is putting up the numbers he is putting up is because he is the teams first scoring option. Wheras Lawson is the teams 3rd behind Hansbrough and Ellington. Not to mention Augustin averages 11 more minutes a game than Lawson.
I don't know if you have seen Lawson play, but he is a blur up and down the court. IMHO he is the fastest end to end in the country with Derrick Rose a close second. The thing that makes Lawson the scariest however is how quick he changes speeds. He just changes gears and it is nearly impossible to completely shut him down. That is what IMHO makes him a better NBA prospect than Felton at the same stage. Felton was very fast as well, however he really had one speed that was really fast, while Ty can always change his speeds.
Just read this draftexpress article about Lawson it breaks it all down for you the numbers are VERY interesting:
http://www.draftexpress.com/article/NCA ... -Part-One/
One problem I see with Lawson is his perimeter shooting. DJ is much more advanced in that area.
I will admit I have seen much more of Texas than I have of UNC. Both guys would be great for PHX but I just see DJ as being a little more ready and polished.
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ISB
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skiz2 wrote:-= original quote snipped =-
The big reason that Augustin is putting up the numbers he is putting up is because he is the teams first scoring option. Wheras Lawson is the teams 3rd behind Hansbrough and Ellington. Not to mention Augustin averages 11 more minutes a game than Lawson.
it wouldn't be a stretch to say that Texas is a better team than UNC though.. it's not like Augustin is just getting all the shots on a crappy team. They are 23-4 against one of the toughest schedules in the country. Texas has wins over Tennessee, UCLA, Kansas, and Saint Mary's. UNC hasn't beaten a top 25 team yet.
The reason that Augustin is putting up better numbers is because he is a much better player. If you pick Lawson first in the draft it's because you like his upside IMO. As I said before, I don't necessarily think thats a crazy thing to do, depending on which team you are talking about, but I think Augustin is clearly better at this point in time.