bwgood77 wrote:GoodBehavior wrote:Looks like a better version of Thon Maker. A backup center who can shoot from downtown. I don't think he has the fluidity to guard the 4 at the next level. I don't see the Ayton/Smith combo working, even Jones said it's for "stints," implying that Smith will probably be a backup center rather than the starting pf next to Ayton.
Because of his size, he's probably a couple of years away from contributing meaningful minutes. He's skinny and center of gravity isn't ideal. Need to get much, much stronger.
I don't hate the pick. More meh. He brings energy, which this team needs after Oubre left. He brings weakside protection. His shooting should translate, and probably the chief reason why he was drafted.
You don't think Ayton could guard the 4s either in a pairing of the two?
I have to revised my initial thinking after seeing him play against NBA talents. He's much smaller than I thought, in fact I don't think he's that much bigger than Cam. His frame makes me think he's probably going to be strictly a stretch 4, with very limited minutes at the 5. I guess they called him Stix for a reason.
On the positives, kid can shot. And that drive to his left was pretty impressive. He didn't look bad playing defense in the perimeter either. Much better than advertised pre-draft. Overall defensively, he wasn't great but he'll probably get there. The one negative is his defensive instinct and reads are pretty raw. His defense might limit his contribution this year and people are going to call him a bust right off the bat. Which is probably expected but unfair.
I am actually more positive on the pick than before. His future as a super-role player on this team is pretty bright. A stretch 4 who runs around screens (dragging other teams best defender [Giannis, Porzingis, etc]) and provide weakside protection is the best front court compliment to DA. It's also a huge rarity in the game. He's much, much more than your typical stretch 4. Most stretch 4 don't provide weakside protection, or any defense for that matter. Not to mention that Jalen can drive if defender tries to run him off the line (Bridges for example hasn't shown this), rebound, etc.