That line isn't actually true, despite Jordan himself saying it, so using it as a comparison falls pretty flat.
That note is repeated constantly in the same spirit—regardless of its truth. It's not my comparison, it's something people say. Just like when Warriors fans dredge up the 5 sadboy Cavs fans on the internet that call into question how great Curry is. He went mid/high lottery, was the son of an NBA player, and was an NBA All-Rookie First Team selection (he had immediate success in the NBA). He is worthy of every ounce of praise that he gets. Reframing his story as a doubted, 'underrated' one is a narrative stretch.
You say that as if it's indisputable, but Steph was clearly underrated in hindsight or else there wouldn't have been six guys picked ahead of him. Can't-miss prospects don't fall outside the top-6. And Dell Curry was a marginal rotation player, so other than name familiarity, that didn't get Steph (and certainly not Seth) much traction with the scouts.
You could argue he could have been rated better as a college recruit? (he dominated at the high school level but was 160 lbs dripping wet) You could argue David Kahn was a terrible GM by picking Jonny Flynn over him? Those seem like two very specific POVs, idk. Here's Steph in his first NBA game. He was really good—right away! 18/7/7 in his first preseason game at Indian Wells.
I think you're ignoring context. No one questioned his offensive talent, but there were doubts about how it would translate to the NBA. (And probably to college, based on the minimal recruiting interest.) How he performed as soon as he got into the league is irrelevant. That's the same as the hindsight of him being underrated. You're judging where he was based on where he is.
Good on Steph for being a good human being. Good on Scoot for accepting he needs help and asking for it. In a world full of ego's these two stand out.
Not sure whats some of the most similar situations to the Dame-Scoot transition if Scoot is able to fulfil his potential. I see him as a clear star, much more of a lock than Sharpe who I'm also crazy high on. Perhaps Farve > Rodgers in Green Bay.
The word at the time was Don Nelson was trading the pick to Phoenix. That it was a done deal except for the phone call to the League. He changed his mind, went back on it, and really pissed off Phoenix, IIRC. Curry's early ankle issues along with his size and frame got better. And he worked his tail off to become a sweet shooting, undersized guard, in a no-PG offense. Having Thompson by his side helped, too. And Green. Steph's best comp is a shorter, better Reggie Miller 3.0. Giving Curry and his team all due credit, he still is below sub-par on D and not remotely the 2nd best PG ever to Magic ... as some are now claiming. Is he even a PG? And one who plays one end, only? (though a slight exaggeration) Not for me. The 2nd best guard on offense behind Jordan? Maybe. Better than Kobe? He's an amazing scoring guard whose long-range shooting is only challenged by Lillard.
I have Sharpe being one of the top 5 guys in the NBA if he clicks and I believe he will flourish next to Scoot. I am hopeful Scoot becomes a top 12 in the NBA guy. There is a huge difference between those two and I actually think Sharpe could be MVP if he puts it all together. I don't see that out of Scoot, but hey, if we have TWO MVP's on our team I won't complain.
I also prefer Sharpe to Scoot but they're both Blazers and they play different positions. Looking forward to Scoot to Sharpe alley-oops
I would love for Sharpe to be perceived as the star of the new Blazers. That means he developed exponentially. He has the ability, for sure. But I think Scoot is a star from day 1 as long as they turn the team over to him. Don't need 32 ppg from him. Maybe 16 ppg and 7 asp would be fine with solid defense. Obviously the work has to be put in on defense but his big frame allows him to be a bulldog. Eventually I would love to see 10 apg in the near future. Want to see a pg that is moving the ball, not ISO ball. Sharpe should be very good. We need a stud forward or center out of the next draft. Schmitz is already doing homework I am sure.
Sharpe's potential is off the charts. Only a poor work ethic (or God forbid a horrible injury) will keep him from being a star. I hope to hell that he and Scoot become good friends....because it appears that Scoot's has that high work ethic.
Just from Sharpe's physical attributes I'd agree he has a bit higher upside. Being 6'2" just makes accomplishments like MVP extremely unlikely. Many more guys in the SG/SF height of Sharpe can do that. I'd say Scoot has a natural leadership quality that Sharpe doesn't have. It's similar to BRoy and Dame. Doesn't mean Scoot will be the most talented Blazer or even the best player on the team, nor does it mean he has to be. But it makes him a lot of fun to root for and has the chance to elevate the play of many other guys on the team.
Since 2000, players in the same size range as Scoot that have won the NBA MVP: Allen Iverson Steve Nash x 2 Derrick Rose Steph Curry x 2 Russell Westbrook That's 7 MVP awards. Players in Sharpe's (who is 6' 5.25 - 6'5.75) size range: Kobe Bryant James Harden That's 2 MVP awards. It's worth noting that Kobe and James Harden led their team in assists in their MVP years.
Agreed on all points, and I’ll just expand on some of the things you’ve already mentioned. Aside from the ability he already has like you’ve mentioned, he has the physical attributes. He’s also entering the league to get the full experience of Westbrook’s decline while Curry and Dame thrive, and hell even CP3 is close to entering year 20. He has the physical gifts that I think he could average a triple double for several seasons like Russ has. But as we’ve seen, triple doubles are a meaningless stat. He’s already working out with Steph, and early glimpses of his ability to drive and kick suggests he could become a 10apg kind of guy. It really is a shame Russ couldn’t win a chip with KD for 8 seasons. Could you imagine pairing a young 6’10 scorer like that to pair with Scoot while he’s still young? I think that 25/10 is realistic for prime Scoot. I equate that to a 20/10 stat line in the early 2010’s.
I think it’s possible. It’s going to be all about egos at the end of the day I think. Will Scoot be the leader we all think he can be? When Sharpe becomes a better ISO scorer, is he going to be happy scoring off the ball, or is he going to want to play on the ball more? Scoot is obviously going to be the better player right away. I would say that in the next 4 years, Sharpe has zero chance of winning MVP, although Scoot could win MVP if he is essentially what Ja has become and our internal growth propels us to a top 2-3 seed. When Sharpe’s “if he clicks” year is anyone’s guess. I think that if prime CP3 had Devin Booker for a 8-10 year stretch, he would have won a championship, with a pretty high likelihood of both guys actually winning MVP. Any year one guy has their team in the hunt for a top seed with the other injured for a long stretch, they will have a shot to win it. CP3 and Booker are the closest comparison I can think of for Shae and Scoot. I think you are short-selling Scoot’s talent if you hope Scoot is a top 12 guy. Having a guy in any “Top 10” list is fluid from year to year. I’ll give you some hopeium if you’re hopeful he becomes a top 12 guy—I think that by the time Scoot is done, when we look at the best 10 year stretch of his career, he will be a top 10 player that season more often than not (assuming we are a contending team). Even if I don’t agree with this, many of TV said that Russ was an undisputed top 10 guy for a decade. Scoot has the skillset and physical attributes to take the good from Russ’ game and combine it with Steph/Dame’s shooting and leadership.
