Last call, does anybody still think Zion will underwhelm in his rookie season ?

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Do you think he'll be a bust ?

Poll ended at Sun Oct 20, 2019 1:12 pm

Yes, I do
45
29%
Nah
112
71%
 
Total votes: 157

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Re: Last call, does anybody still think Zion will underwhelm in his rookie season ? 

Post#101 » by spacemonkey » Fri Oct 11, 2019 12:03 am

What I don't really understand is why so many are absolutely certain he's going to be injury riddled.

Like, where's all this coming from, apart from being RealMDs?

Zion has been big and explosive for some time now. If so many are busy prognosticating something chronic, shouldn't some of that have manifested by now?

All the hand wringing over potential injury is really weird, let's wait until he actually gets injured in an NBA game first.
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Re: Last call, does anybody still think Zion will underwhelm in his rookie season ? 

Post#102 » by Stillwater » Fri Oct 11, 2019 12:05 am

who are the 34 fools that said he would bust? he has the highest floor since Lebron James...gtfo :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:
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Re: Last call, does anybody still think Zion will underwhelm in his rookie season ? 

Post#103 » by Johnny Bball » Fri Oct 11, 2019 12:29 am

Stillwater wrote:who are the 34 fools that said he would bust? he has the highest floor since Lebron James...gtfo :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:


Lol. Pretty certain they read the question on the thread, then read the OP, then didn't see that the question is completely different than the question asked in the title. I did.
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Re: Last call, does anybody still think Zion will underwhelm in his rookie season ? 

Post#104 » by RoyceDa59 » Fri Oct 11, 2019 12:48 am

He’s an absolute beast.


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Re: Last call, does anybody still think Zion will underwhelm in his rookie season ? 

Post#105 » by GiannisAnte34 » Fri Oct 11, 2019 12:51 am

spacemonkey wrote:What I don't really understand is why so many are absolutely certain he's going to be injury riddled.

Like, where's all this coming from, apart from being RealMDs?

Zion has been big and explosive for some time now. If so many are busy prognosticating something chronic, shouldn't some of that have manifested by now?

All the hand wringing over potential injury is really weird, let's wait until he actually gets injured in an NBA game first.


uhh Zion suffered a knee injury already
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Re: Last call, does anybody still think Zion will underwhelm in his rookie season ? 

Post#106 » by coldfish » Fri Oct 11, 2019 1:28 am

Lots of people mentioning Lebron so let's go there. This is Lebron's rookie year:
20.9p 5.5r 5.9a 41.7%fg 29.0%3p 18.3per 48.8%ts

I would be surprised if Zion doesn't beat most of those stats. That said, it was really Lebron's 2nd year that got things going for him.
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Re: Last call, does anybody still think Zion will underwhelm in his rookie season ? 

Post#107 » by Marcus » Fri Oct 11, 2019 1:29 am

GiannisAnte34 wrote:
spacemonkey wrote:What I don't really understand is why so many are absolutely certain he's going to be injury riddled.

Like, where's all this coming from, apart from being RealMDs?

Zion has been big and explosive for some time now. If so many are busy prognosticating something chronic, shouldn't some of that have manifested by now?

All the hand wringing over potential injury is really weird, let's wait until he actually gets injured in an NBA game first.


uhh Zion suffered a knee injury already


lmao he bumped knees with a guy in summer league.

everything health wise with this kid has been freak accidents

eye poke, blown out shoe, knee knock.

he lands fine, he cuts under control...….nvm…..yall got it.
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Re: Last call, does anybody still think Zion will underwhelm in his rookie season ? 

Post#108 » by 2LeTTeRS » Fri Oct 11, 2019 2:20 am

I think people underestimate just how difficult it is to guard an undersized wrecking ball going straight at your chest. I spent a lot of my life playing as a 6'4 245 pound big man and can tell you that a lot of bigs struggle more with a shorter stockier player that isn't afraid to crash directly into their bodies than they do against other string beans.

Additionally as a Durhamite I can tell you that Zions star power is real. My wife works at a collection agency with a workforce that is 80% females and even that office was buzzing every time the Blue Devil's played last season. The guy seems humble and earnest while also being the most exciting player that most of us have every seen at the college level.

I see no way that he doesn't become a star and while I get that they play different positions; I see Zion becoming everything that Grant Hill was en route to being before being derailed by injuries if he stays healthy (and out of trouble).
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Re: Last call, does anybody still think Zion will underwhelm in his rookie season ? 

Post#109 » by CS707 » Fri Oct 11, 2019 3:17 am

2nd year seems to be the popular underwhelm year.
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Re: Last call, does anybody still think Zion will underwhelm in his rookie season ? 

Post#110 » by clyde21 » Fri Oct 11, 2019 3:38 am

Memgrizz0 wrote:
MotownMadness wrote:But yeah hes too freakish not to have a big impact on both sides. He'll do alot of pacing around the rim just looking for any opportunity to attack it.


You clearly don’t watch him on defense



uhmm, Zion is an elite defender, wait until he gets in game shape you know since he has played organized basketball in months and is just getting used to the pace of the NBA
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Re: Last call, does anybody still think Zion will underwhelm in his rookie season ? 

Post#111 » by GreatWhiteStiff » Fri Oct 11, 2019 3:53 am

Jabroni Lames wrote:I mean, Zion is being compared to Lebron... who is in the MJ conversation for GOAT. How could he possibly live up to THAT kind of hype?

That said, Lebron was extremely inefficient in his rookie year..... a ORTG of 99 and a TS% of .488, which we now know to be really bad. Zion will probably exceed that.


We knew it then, too.
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Re: Last call, does anybody still think Zion will underwhelm in his rookie season ? 

Post#112 » by _Game7_ » Fri Oct 11, 2019 3:57 am

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Re: Last call, does anybody still think Zion will underwhelm in his rookie season ? 

Post#113 » by LeMasta » Fri Oct 11, 2019 4:00 am

he might not live up to the hype but its far more unlikely he ends up becoming a bust
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Re: Last call, does anybody still think Zion will underwhelm in his rookie season ? 

Post#114 » by Duke4life831 » Fri Oct 11, 2019 4:07 am

Marcus wrote:
GiannisAnte34 wrote:
spacemonkey wrote:What I don't really understand is why so many are absolutely certain he's going to be injury riddled.

Like, where's all this coming from, apart from being RealMDs?

Zion has been big and explosive for some time now. If so many are busy prognosticating something chronic, shouldn't some of that have manifested by now?

All the hand wringing over potential injury is really weird, let's wait until he actually gets injured in an NBA game first.


uhh Zion suffered a knee injury already


lmao he bumped knees with a guy in summer league.

everything health wise with this kid has been freak accidents

eye poke, blown out shoe, knee knock.

he lands fine, he cuts under control...….nvm…..yall got it.


Bruised foot in high school kept him out about a month as well for what its worth.

I sure aint no doctor, but the fact that his knee didn't get torn up when his shoe blew out might mean something. I mean that knee twisted pretty damn bad, and the dude had enough torque on that play to blow through his shoe. He also didnt even miss a month because of that injury and he himself came out after and said he was ready to go and cleared a week after but Duke wanted to be cautious.

I mean the dude's legs are freaking tree trunks, maybe just maybe his legs and knees are prepared for it. And like you said its not like he has awkward landings all the time either. At Duke he slipped a lot on the court, but I haven't really seen that yet so far in the preseason.
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Re: Last call, does anybody still think Zion will underwhelm in his rookie season ? 

Post#115 » by GrandTheftRondo » Fri Oct 11, 2019 8:42 am

snaquille oatmeal wrote:
Funcrusher wrote:
LastNameEver wrote:People think an usersized big consistently getting shots at the rim is an indictment.

Seriously. Would you rather him take mid-range shots or even threes than the most statistically efficient shot in the game (layups and dunks)? Like, people realize that's essentially Giannis' shot chart, right? Who is a superstar. A. Superstar.

Well if he only has one way to score he will be easy to figure out. Isn’t this issue the same as Simmons?

Simmons moves well for his size but he isn’t an athletic god like Zion. He isn’t built like a bull either. Zion blows by his defender and can simply barge or jump over any help.

Simmons refuses to shoot any sort of jumpers. Zion is far more willing and is more aggressive offensively in general.
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Re: Last call, does anybody still think Zion will underwhelm in his rookie season ? 

Post#116 » by UcanUwill » Fri Oct 11, 2019 9:07 am

axeman23 wrote:
Funcrusher wrote:
snaquille oatmeal wrote:Isn’t his shot chart all within 5 feet from the basket?

And that's a bad thing?


It is for Ben Simmons, apparently... :dontknow:


Simmons is a guard tho, and Zion's shot is at least existent. Definitely need to add more versatility to his scoring to become legendary player, but he is on pace.
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Re: Last call, does anybody still think Zion will underwhelm in his rookie season ? 

Post#117 » by UcanUwill » Fri Oct 11, 2019 9:12 am

spacemonkey wrote:What I don't really understand is why so many are absolutely certain he's going to be injury riddled.

Like, where's all this coming from, apart from being RealMDs?

Zion has been big and explosive for some time now. If so many are busy prognosticating something chronic, shouldn't some of that have manifested by now?

All the hand wringing over potential injury is really weird, let's wait until he actually gets injured in an NBA game first.


His playing style and athleticism with all that weight, definitely worrysome. Thats the only concern to me, I know his game in itself translates 100%. People who called him next Bennett or just a glorified Dunker have no clue what they are talking about.

All these freak athletes like Rose and Westbrook blew their knees doing those high jumping finishes near the rim, exactly what Zion does all the time. SO freak injury is possible, but you add his massive weight into consideration, chronic injury is in play too, because its hard to ask for your legs to hold up all these jumps and explosive moves when you near 300 pounds.
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Re: Last call, does anybody still think Zion will underwhelm in his rookie season ? 

Post#118 » by Salieri » Fri Oct 11, 2019 2:24 pm

VDT wrote:He needs to lose at least 20 lbs and possibly more. He looks even less like a basketball player than prime Shaq and uses his athleticism more than Shaq.

Long term he needs to improve his jumper so that he becomes a more complete player but also so that he can score without putting too much strain on his body.


Who cares what he looks like? What matters is what he actually does as a basketball player. Jokic looks like a neckbeard gamer with a strict pizza diet and he clearly is an outstanding basketball player.

Looks don't matter. He would only need to lose weight if his coaches along with his medical team suggest him so. Otherwise, for the style of ball he plays I don't see a problem with all that mass. He's finesse enough as he is now, in fact he surprised me by how nimble and quick he is, and he clearly has no problem moving that weight, which in turn could prove to be beneficial if he starts banging in the post back to the basket.

And of course he needs to improve his jumper, pretty much every single player practices his jumper because you're never too good and there is always room for improvement. I don't doubt his work ethic and he is just starting his NBA career, so I don't see that as a problem but just a logical evolution that will come with passing summers.

On topic: I'm one of the posters who voted "bust" because I didn't realize that was the option. The wording in the poll options fooled me.

I don't think he will be a bust and I sure don't want him to be a bust. It's just that I have a hard time picturing him living up to the hype because I think his skillset and body aren't the optimal ones for this era where shooting is vital. But I'm hoping he proves me wrong and he has enough raw talent and excellence that he carves a niche for himself a la Marc Gasol, who proved that big, slow, old school defensive centers can shine in today's NBA if they are good enough.

I hope he does amazing, I just don't think the chances are ultra high. But I'm rooting for him.
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Re: Last call, does anybody still think Zion will underwhelm in his rookie season ? 

Post#119 » by MotownMadness » Fri Oct 11, 2019 2:29 pm

Drummond is around 300 lbs and has never even missed a game that i can recall and always lives above the rim.

I think he'll stay healthy like that cause they both have those massive tree trunk legs to support their athleticism at that size.
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Re: Last call, does anybody still think Zion will underwhelm in his rookie season ? 

Post#120 » by JonFromVA » Fri Oct 11, 2019 7:30 pm

coldfish wrote:Lots of people mentioning Lebron so let's go there. This is Lebron's rookie year:
20.9p 5.5r 5.9a 41.7%fg 29.0%3p 18.3per 48.8%ts

I would be surprised if Zion doesn't beat most of those stats. That said, it was really Lebron's 2nd year that got things going for him.


Keep in mind, LeBron came straight from high-school and was added to a dysfunctional team that had to be blown up. He wasn't even paired with any sort of playmaker or floor spacer until a trade brought in Jeff McInnis.

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