Let's see some player comparisons for Batum since comparing him to Tayshaun Prince is seen as a disgrace on this forum All welcomed to join in
I actually like the prince comparison, but he's (batum) better. Pippen is the best version of them all.
No, you clearly don't understand what I'm getting at. Kawhi Leonard is the prototypical scoring small forward. He's a Paul George type guy. I'm sure he'll have numerous All-Star games, and in that regard he is better than Batum. I won't argue that. Batum is a utility player. He's arguably the best utility player in the league. He scores, he passes, he rebounds, and he defends. The only name you could come up with is Tayshaun Prince, and Batum is better than Prince. He's a better passer, a better rebounder, and if you compare their numbers at 25 years old, he's a better shooter. Utility guys like Batum are rare. Much rarer than scoring wings like George or Leonard. You don't appreciate that aspect of the game, and that's fine. That's your prerogative. I will also point out that averages are a statistical fact of what actually happened. Rebound percentages and per 36 are projections of what could happen. There are other variables that could affect those numbers. The only fact that matters is that Batum averaged more rebounds than Leonard, so based on that fact, he is a better rebounder.
The fact that you can't come up with someone else besides Prince as the base line, or Pippen as the extreme, proves how difficult it is to find players like Batum. How many scoring wings are there in the league? How many have there been in the last ten years? There are a bunch of guys like Kawhi Leonard. He's not a unique snowflake, no matter how much you want him to be.
Guys like Paul George aren't rare Guys like Batum are Paul George is an all-star and at times a borderline superstar. What's rarer A borderline superstar or role player? Christ.
Stats be damned, some people won't budge off of their positions. Anthony and James aren't on the list because Anthony didn't average 5 assists, and James didn't average 7 rebounds. Also, while Kawhi Leonard had a very good NBA Finals (18/6/2), his overall playoff stats were 14/7/2, meaning he wasn't consistent, either. He had 5 playoff games of over 20 points, and 3 of them happened to be in the NBA Finals. That doesn't seem very consistent to me, considering the Spurs played 22 postseason games. For the season, Leonard went 13/6/2. I suppose saying assists don't matter is one way to try and discredit Batum's season, but when you're asking why Anthony and James aren't on the list with Durant and Batum, you're kind of defeating your own argument. I happen to think Leonard is a very good player, much like Tayshaun Prince. Offensively, he can't come close to comparing to what Nic is doing, though, at this stage of his career.
It's actually making my argument Who cares what his obscure filtered stat line is when it doesn't prove he's better than other players not on the list It's nice gimmick to pull, but that's all it is
Come up with someone else besides Prince? Why would I do that? I've already said I think Prince is a pretty good comparison for Nic. Am I' required to think of every comparison possible, while you sit there and don't even make one? Prince and Batum played pretty similar roles with similar numbers, and both are best suited as role players on championship teams. Kawhi Leonard is better than both.
Kawhi Leonard isn't just "a scoring wing". He shoots the 3, hits over 50% from the field overall, has a low usage rate, and plays excellent defense. Shawn Marion and Lamar Odom are the only forwards who have ever put up a season comparable to Leonard's combination of those things. Nobody's ever done it before age 25. http://bkref.com/tiny/KsoS1 It's not hard to cherry pick stats to make a player unique.
