Duke4life831 wrote:BfB wrote:Duke4life831 wrote:
Completely different players at this stage of their careers. Tatum is the most skilled 17 year old I have ever seen at his height. I think he is going to dominate college ball. When it comes to NBA, not to sure. He isnt the greatest athlete and especially at the 3, you need to be pretty damn athletic. But maybe he will be skilled enough where he can make up for it
Man, we are in a strange place here with Ingrim and Tatum...
I've watched Tatum in person at least a dozen times, front and center. The kid personifies "smooth athlete". He's plenty explosive when he wants/needs to be. That's the way Paul George played most of the time before really becoming agressive - he used his skill much more than his power early on.
Tatum may lack the max vert of George, but to me their total packages are negligibly different - their scoring prowess comes from their ability to shoot, intelligence/instincts settingmup their moves, and the body control/balance necessary to get off great shots on tough set ups.
Ingrim has ungodly length and I certainly need to watch him more as I am way more familiar with Tatum's game, but I see Tatum as having superior basketball skills/athleticism package at this point and an easily projectable 235 frame, which would make him a terror as a 3.
Ingrim is still a money J away from being that uber-player, I have no such concerns with Tatum...that's just me though.
I should've worded it a little different. I think Tatum moves extremely well for his size, so I agree with the smoothness part, I do question his explosion though. Now this is from watching games on TV and online. So if in person you think different, I'd side with your opinion. You can definitely get a better feel for that stuff in person. As a Duke fan, I've been a massive Tatum fan for a long time, he was the most wanted recruit for me ever. I think his skill level is just off the charts, so I won't be disappointed if I an wrong about his explosiveness.
When it comes to Ingram he's a sneaky athlete. I think cause his frame it doesn't look as impressive, I don't know. But the kid has a surprisingly quick first step for his size and in the open floor the kid can run. His handles are good for his size but gets caught dribbling to high sometimes. And I agree if he gets his jumper down he has scary potential. He has great touch around the rim. I do question if his jumper ever does become consistent (around 60% FT shooter). If I was a GM and I was picking between Tatum and Ingram, I'm choosing Tatum with no hesitation.
I think there is plenty to work with on Ingrim's jumper mechanics. He's lazy with the mechanics - hip/shoulder alignment, armslot, and most frequently wrist snap/follow through. When he keeps these tight he looks like a shooter, but too often he just kind of goes up loose and lets the ball kinda float oit of his hand without getting tight soin on it.
For him, its more a question of if he's willing to put in the effort and attention to detail. He seems like a good kid from talking to him. He's from a small town, so its understandable if he's a bit laxidasical at this stage. Does he have it in him to turn into a grinder or does he want to just be chill and let things comemin their own time - thats really the only question I have as to whether he'll get to his top game.
