Fischella wrote:I still remain a skeptic, I valued Shai for what he was, a combination Guard with unique skills and had him top10, but I don't see how he takes over, his D is super overrated because he is long and tall for a PG, but he doesn't play physical and more often than not he isn't a factor, as for his offense, he is a special talent, but I don't see him as your typical ball-dominant stud PG, the shooting (even though it looks better) and the athleticism, aren't there to dominate that way, and his old style/herky-jerky game is fun and effective, but not sure how far it gets you
I see people comparing him to Manu, and I get the idea, but Manu was so much more explosive, he might be a washed up Ginobili, who is still a very good player and a top7 player in a contender, and that alone is awesome to have, but people have been claiming that he is going to be a star star, and I can't really see that tbh.
You can't expect a kid who turned 20 today to be complete. The floor for him and the foundation of tools he has, are among the best in a very deep draft. He gets to the rim+his spots at will. Nobody has been able to stop him from blowing by. His passing isn't used much, but when he makes them, they are very good. His shot many scouts are already saying looks a little quicker in summer league and will get much better by the start of the season. As for his defense, it has nothing to do with his length (although that surely doesn't hurt). His defensive instincts and IQ are awesome for his age. He does get pushed around at times defensively and needs to get stronger for sure. When he's locked on though, he's an awesome defender for his age.
He's averaging 19/5/4/2.5 steals in only 27 mintues on good efficiency. Nothing about him is overrated so far. His upside is way higher than I thought. He wasn't utilized particularly well at Kentucky from what I can tell.
“This kid reminds me of a 6-6 Chris Paul. He wants to win everything.”
Olin Simplis- SGA’s trainer.