Zach Lavine's rise to greatness

[Hotdog]

lol touchy .... Do you actually even watch games and see how aware players are or just read off stats ? Do you know how the Grizzlies guards did against Lavine today ?

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Bout the same intelligence level ..

Yes, I watch them.

Ya, Zach still has to learn how to make some better decisions, as do all players. What is even your point? Name me all the 20 year olds that come into the league that know it all and don't make mistakes.

With Exum, we are still trying to figure out if he can make a layup. Trey Lyles we are still waiting to see if he can hit a shot. They play like garbage. Exum is only good at defense right now. Plays like a pansy in all other aspects of the game. We are still wondering if he'll have the balls to be an NBA player at this point. He plays way timid, but he gets a pass because he's young. Those are much larger mental red flags and hurdles than what Zach is working with.

 

[Deleted member 848]

Rubio is a better player, plain and simple-- and the team is a lot better with him on the court.

 

[Hotdog]

Rubio is a better player, plain and simple-- and the team is a lot better with him on the court.

That may be true right now, but soon wont be. Also Rubio is an awful shooter. Shoots sub 40% You shouldn't even be playing in the NBA if you shoot that bad.

Lavine is already a better shooter than him. That's pretty sad. But says more about Lavine.

 

[FalseFlagg K]

Yes, I watch them.

Ya, Zach still has to learn how to make some better decisions, as do all players. What is even your point? Name me all the 20 year olds that come into the league that know it all and don't make mistakes.

With Exum, we are still trying to figure out if he can make a layup. Trey Lyles we are still waiting to see if he can hit a shot. They play like garbage. Exum is only good at defense right now. Plays like a pansy in all other aspects of the game. We are still wondering if he'll have the balls to be an NBA player at this point. He plays way timid, but he gets a pass because he's young. Those are much larger mental red flags and hurdles than what Zach is working with.

my point is .. that even with a player like Exum producing diddly squat as far as his offensive output and numbers go he's had a positive impact on his teams overall performance. He only has to become marginally adequate offensively to be a very good player overall and everyone with half a brain can see he has the capability of doing so. A player like Lavine has already produced excellent numbers but has it helped his team .. at all .. because of his lack of bb IQ and defensive shortcomings. It's probably a matter of opinion as to which of the two has a bigger skill set / shortcomings to address, but last i checked basketball is a team sport so that aspect is what i base my judgement on. Lyles is a whole other ball game, i just don't see much in him at all.

 

[Saint Cy of JFC]

LaVine has been putting up some major numbers, can't argue that.

 

[Hotdog]

my point is .. that even with a player like Exum producing diddly squat as far as his offensive output and numbers go he's had a positive impact on his teams overall performance. He only has to become marginally adequate offensively to be a very good player overall and everyone with half a brain can see he has the capability of doing so. A player like Lavine has already produced excellent numbers but has it helped his team .. at all .. because of his lack of bb IQ and defensive shortcomings. It's probably a matter of opinion as to which of the two has a bigger skill set / shortcomings to address, but last i checked basketball is a team sport so that aspect is what i base my judgement on. Lyles is a whole other ball game, i just don't see much in him at all.

I don't think you can be so sure Exum was having such a great impact. We are performing more or less the same with out him. If he played on the 76ers they wouldn't be any better. The success we had was mostly because what Rudy did to the team. Exum was the best we could do and we are developing him. But he wasn't making us all that much better. Lavine on this team would make us a lot better. We already get no defense from the point guard position. He's a good passer too, which he doesn't get credit for.

 

[FalseFlagg K]

Dude i'm not arguing that Lavine is a waste of space by any means, just pointing out that if you are talking about him being on the way to being a great player ... at this stage i don't see that potential at all. I don't care what numbers he's putting up in a crap team that plays dumbly. He sure can shoot, he can pass but there are numerous players in that cstegory. As far as greatness he doesn't even remotely show those smarts that would elevate a player to that status. The dude gets totally trashed on defense. If you put him in our particular team right now would he make us a bit better ? Sure .. but i don't see him being a player who reads the game and influences his team strongly when you consider his overall game and ends up going to the next level with a really really good team.
He might develop and prove me wrong, i will have no problems admitting that if so. Just my opinion that greatness is not his destiny

 

[NAOS]

Something happened 7 games ago in Minnesota. During that stretch, LaVine went from playing low minutes (somewhere in the teens), to starter-level minutes. He's putting up stats. And the Wolves are 1-6 during that span.

 

[Hotdog]

Something happened 7 games ago in Minnesota. During that stretch, LaVine went from playing low minutes (somewhere in the teens), to starter-level minutes. He's putting up stats. And the Wolves are 1-6 during that span.

You really have no clue about basketball do you?

Let me slow this down for you. Basketball is a team sport. Kinda hard to win with a team that has the likes of a very old and washed up Prince and Garnett. Who start the games along with a teenager center, a sub 40% FG shooting point guard, and another kid (Wiggins) who is also a long ways away from winning, and deserves just as much blame for losing, if not more because he plays more minutes.

Why do you choose to blame losing on Lavine? He's actually playing great. He's putting up great numbers for a 20 year old... Why doesn't the makeup of the whole team enter the discussion? Don't you think it's kinda weird what you are trying to do? You think you are actually making a valid point? Seriously?

 

[Saint Cy of JFC]

You really have no clue about basketball do you?

Let me slow this down for you. Basketball is a team sport. Kinda hard to win with a team that has the likes of a very old and washed up Prince and Garnett. Who start the games along with a teenager center, a sub 40% FG shooting point guard, and another kid (Wiggins) who is also a long ways away from winning, and deserves just as much blame for losing, if not more because he plays more minutes.

Why do you choose to blame losing on Lavine? He's actually playing great. He's putting up great numbers for a 20 year old... Why doesn't the makeup of the whole team enter the discussion? Don't you think it's kinda weird what you are trying to do? You think you are actually making a valid point? Seriously?

Towns and Wiggins have definitely been playing winning basketball, so I dont think you can use them as an excuse. Everything else though, sure.

LaVine has been really good lately on offense, but you can't deny he is an awful defender.

Overall I'd probably prefer LaVine to Burks since he can actually shoot.

 

[NAOS]

Towns and Wiggins have definitely been playing winning basketball, so I dont think you can use them as an excuse. Everything else though, sure.

LaVine has been really good lately on offense, but you can't deny he is an awful defender.

Overall I'd probably prefer LaVine to Burks since he can actually shoot.

pls don't quote that guy.

I was just making observations. I haven't watched the games.

 

[Hotdog]

Towns and Wiggins have definitely been playing winning basketball, so I dont think you can use them as an excuse. Everything else though, sure.

LaVine has been really good lately on offense, but you can't deny he is an awful defender.

Overall I'd probably prefer LaVine to Burks since he can actually shoot.

Towns has been great, but he's still a teenager. Wiggins is playing ok. He's not a great rebounder or passer. He's got a ways to go.

This is such a dumb argument. Every single other 20 year old out there gets a pass and some time to put it together. Exum is trash and barely look like he can play, but that's totally normal because he is young. But not for Lavine I guess. He's expected to be great right now, or he'll never be good. The funny thing is, he does look great even right now. He's just on a crappy team.


Lavine is gonna be really good. He already is.

I'd take Lavine over Burks, Burke , Exum, Lyles, and Hood. And a lot for other players in the NBA

He's not a great defender. But he could become a decent one. Most guard's aren't great defenders anyways. It's hard to guard guards in the NBA. He would be great on our team because we already have good post defense. Which is the most important defense in the NBA. That and team defense. Heck, most players in the NBA can't defend. It's actually rare to be aren't cut good defender l. More rare than scorers. That's for sure.