Jalen Breaks Down Ja Morant
Ja is elite. Dang it, I heard all the hype but did I look into it before I made my choices? No! I mean I knew he was good, I didn't realize he was THAT good...
Anyone know why he wasn't recruited? Didn't he play with Zion? How did EVERYONE miss on him? Grades?
IIRC, he was pretty undersized and had a growth spurt. Basically what happened with Russell Westbrook at UCLA.
March 23rd, 2019 at 11:25 PM ^
Yeah but Murray St. ain't UCLA.
Russ was still a 3* top 150 player with multiple P5 offers.
March 24th, 2019 at 12:12 AM ^
I didn’t say this is a perfect comparison, but it’s very similar. This has happened with plenty of guys though. Look at CJ McCollum for example.
I thought this was a conversation about Game of Thrones and Jorah Mormont
Jon Snow is his replacement when he needs a breather.
If I'm the Knicks, I take Ja with the first pick and don't even think twice about it.
That sounds like the perfect Knicks move, but only if they trade him for an overpaid vet while still on his rookie deal.
I'd rather have Ja than Zion. That just me...
Rose’s description / breakdown is flawless.
March 23rd, 2019 at 10:10 PM ^
While Zion is the clear number one. His weight and conditioning is gonna be a huge issue at the next level imo. The guy needs to get down into the 240-250 range. If anything, he needs to pull a Draymond Green/Lebron from summer 2014 and do a hardcore cut/weight loss. He will certainly lose some muscle, but his body will thank him when he gets into the 2nd half of the NBA season. I’m also very interested to see where he plays as well (both location and position).
He’s an insane athlete in leaping ability/top-end speed, but not quick enough laterally to guard or shake off NBA perimeter players at all, and he loses is size advantage if he goes inside, where he will be met by guys 4-5 inches taller and much longer than him as well. Even though he is serviceable at the college level, his perimeter shooting is also going to be a red-flag barring a great improvement.
At this moment, he looks like a 6-5/6-6 young Blake Griffin. Zion May have the highest ceiling of anyone in this draft, but he has a lot of issues. If he was in lay year’s draft, I’d have him behind Ayton, Bagley, and Jaren Jackson.
Ja’s biggest knock will be his lack of big time competition, but everything about the kid screams a young Westbrook/De’aaron Fox. He is a great slasher who is so smooth and in control, and has only a few flaws, which are all easier to fix than Zion’s.
I feel bad for one of these kids, because one of them will probably end up in NYC, where absurd amounts of pressure will be on them from day 1. Although it wouldn’t be appealing on the surface, the best place for them would be Memphis if they luck out and draft up top. Jaren Jackson looks to be the real deal and either of these guys would be an incredible foundation for a rather quick rebuild in a market where they wouldn’t be under a microscope. Atlanta/Phoenix would be another great place for them, as they would have established stars and other talent to take the pressure off during their early years.
This isn’t an Oden/Durant situation, but I’m happy I’m not a GM picking #1
March 24th, 2019 at 12:59 AM ^
Thank you for the laugh.