TheJordanRule wrote:dice wrote:Jcool0 wrote:
Its random just except it. Its not a huge thing. People love to make random comparisons that are rarely ever close. This is just another one. FYI when JR Smith was Zach's age he was averaging 15 points on 41% shooting (33% from 3) with a 15 PER. Zach's stats last year 25 points on 45% shooting (38% from 3) with a 19 PER.
to reiterate, lavine would not have been averaging 25 points on that nuggets team. he wouldn't have been averaging much more than j.r. smith. put j.r. on this bulls team in zach's place and he would've averaged 20+
comparing 2 players does not suggest that they are equally as good. it merely means that they are similar
Dice, I respect your view of Zach. I think you were spot on early about Zach as far as his deficiencies go and you have provided many useful critiques over the years but at this point I think your objectivity may have been compromised, brother.
i have defended him on occasion, so i don't think i'm being non-objective at all
Zach certainly doesn't play great defense but he is a passable defender.
he may indeed have improved to passable...if by passable you still mean below average
Zach scores relatively efficiently on high-volume
yep
and is slowly but surely improving his ability to pass
eh
Basketball IQ was never his strong suit but he has certainly trended up from where he was, and I think it's reasonable to assume that he will continue to grow in this regard.
could be
I don't expect Zach to become a superstar, although he has tons of talent and is still a couple years away from his prime, but Zach is a borderline all-star already
he's not a borderline all-star. few thought he was snubbed in a weak eastern field this season. and most nba players peak at age 25-26. he did not improve offensively this season and it's arguable whether he improved defensively despite being more active with regard to steals and blocks
I'm against moving Zach for anything other than another young borderline all-star. Young iso-scorers who can hit it from deep can contribute to this roster. I know that you don't like that self-centered, team interrupting style, but without iso-scoring you are not going to get the ball in the hoop sometimes when it matters, especially not on a roster that is this sorely lacking in creativity. The goal for this roster should be the playoffs for the simple reason that you can't walk if you haven't learned how to crawl. Jettisoning assets like Zach or Lauri for a draft pick or-- God forbid-- at the price of a JR Smith would probably result in a self inflicted wound. Neither Zach nor Lauri are untouchable-- far from it-- but they still have upside. It's not like either of those guys were busts or have grown too old so we should be above selling low or chasing low percentage plays.
i'm not going to speculate on what the minimum return should be because i'm confident that he's overrated by enough teams that whatever the best offer would be would surely be good enough
i brought it up earlier in the thread, but i speculated last season that i would be willing to deal lavine for rookie #19 pick kevin huerter and the expiring contract of kent bazemore. i proposed it on the hawks board and...it was not received well
the donald, always unpopular, did worse in EVERY state in 2020. and by a greater margin in red states! 50 independently-run elections, none of them rigged