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Dejonte Murray.
Are we going to see a new trend in the NBA?
The best 23 and under players in the league are all 6'10 and over.
The difference in quality between the Guards and the Bigs (under 23) is astronomical, imo..I dont think anyone is even in the radar to make an all-star appereance while All these names will have legit shots at making the team next year.
Dejonte Murray.
It's harder for young guards to flourish since the league is stacked with all-time great talent at those positions.
Wiggins is the only non-big with real potential right now IMO.
Porzingis is kind of overrated IMO...watched some Knicks games and I don't really see him making an impact on those games.
Cousins is more early prime than up and coming, but still young enough. Add Turner, Antetokounmpo and probably Simmons too, even though the latter two aren't even 4.5's.
I've been thinking this recently, too. All the talk of the supposed decline of the big man, but in reality, it's like point guard early in the decade: there's no more loaded position, in terms of young talent. Size will always be paramount in basketball, it's just utilized differently. The days of limiting/stereotyping players 6-10'' and up are gone and have been replaced by an increasing number of bigs with more of a guard like skillset. It's partly natural evolution of the game, but I think Webber, Garnett, Wallace, Duncan, Nowitzki and Gasol, are primarily responsible for this. Lots of this generation of bigs grew up watching and patterning their game after them.
It's about time. We just went through a Dark Age for big men after the decline of Duncan/KG/Dirk/Shaq...
In a few years add DeAndre Ayton, Marvin Bagley, and if he continues to grow, Zion Williamson. A few others who have Elite upside but need a bit more patience include Mohammed Bamba and Bol Bol (Manute's son).
Ayton is mentioned by many services as being the most complete big man meets athletes prospect since Garnett. He's 2017. Bagley and Williamson are 2018.
Definitely seeing a renaissance.
Bol Bol hasn't impressed me, at all, tbh..I know he's still really raw, though, but it looks like he has a long way to go..
Agree about Ayton and Bagley, though..Williamson is just so physically overwhelming, his athleticism seems like it will translate well against D-1 and pros, even having only seen him vs. ty HS players(speaking for myself)..
Bol Bol is an odd case. Not sure how he pans out. But from a foundation of physical ability and basic skills standpoint, he appears to be an incredibly versatile athletic big man. His current game needs so much polishing that I understand skepticism. But that raw upside is intriguing.
Zion is a bit undersized for this conversation at the moment. Closer to 6-8 than 7-0, but if he gets to 6-10/6-11, he may be the best of the bunch.
Ayton has questions. He can let himself get lost when guards aren't getting him the ball. One of his best skills, his shooting stroke for a big, also finds him floating on the perimeter from time to time for longer than needed stretches.
I attribute a lot of these concerns to the nature of AAU ball and how guard dominant it is. If the ballhandler doesn't pass you the ball, I've seen many big men have these same issues.
When attacked and challenged, Ayton plays very hard. I've watched him switch onto even PGs and defend them. Quick feet and ability/ability to defend low as well as high.
Bagley is the most traditional of the bunch, but he's no Okafor. More like Pau Gasol. Has the back to the basket skills, rebounding, but can operate How of the high post. Slightly better athlete than Pau, but probably not the passer.
Bamba is very good but is rail thin. Same with Bowl.
Not sure how Bamba translates without another 30 pounds of muscle, but skills are there to be very intriguing. Maybe a better Serge Ibaka.
But what about the Ball bros?
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