I'm gonna disagree on that one. There aren't many 6'3" guards jumping outta the gym like that. I love Ja's game.
Oh Morant is an NBA worthy Athlete no doubt, but not even close to the level of Zion, Zions like a Lebron, or Gronkowski type Athlete one of those dudes that are one of a kind.
Westbrook is a generational athlete. We've never seen that kind of explosiveness from a Point Guard. Morant is on the same level.
I think Ja is a better bet for long-term NBA greatness than Zion. I see Zion as Amar'e or Larry Johnson, which is terrific. Can he be the Shaq of power forwards? Maybe. I worry his bulk is going to lead to him having injury issues about 6 years into his career. Ja is Russell Westbrook with stability. That's scary good.
That's pretty much my whole point. How can it be otherworldly if I see someone else do it all the time?
I personally wouldn't use that term, but I could suggest that the source of the play is part of what makes it impressive. That kind of pass coming from a huge physical specimen known for his preternatural athleticism is naturally going to be more significant than the same pass coming from an understandably uber-talented point guard. Similarly, a shot block from Ja along the lines of those Zion routinely does might also be worthy of being called "otherworldly".
Doesn't have the strength level (or frame to add it in the future) or raw speed / quickness of Westbrook. That in combination with his vertical explosiveness is what makes him special. And Zion might just have the best speed/strength/explosiveness combination we have ever seen at 18 years old. Morant is a great athlete for a PG, but Zion is just a whole different deal.
There's a million things that go into athleticism. Whether or not you agree that strength is one of those really doesn't matter, but it most definitely allows a player to apply it in more situations and more effectively.
athleticism NOUN mass noun The physical qualities that are characteristic of athletes, such as strength, fitness, and agility. ‘what he lacks in stature, he more than makes up for with speed and athleticism’ Thats the oxford definition. I believe Zion is the better athlete of the two. If you disagree if you think Morant is the better more “explosive” athlete why wouldnt you take him over Zion? His basketball skills are better then Zion’s, at least in my opinion.
Even the skills question is very relative and complicated. One could argue for his size / position, Zion's skill level is more unique and impactful in terms of winning basketball games. And I'm not even considering the defensive side of the ball....
Well in a way I think this is a bit like the KD / Oden draft. Those are the clear cut guys. Who grade out really well in just about every where. I hope both can stay healthy. I know you watch more than I do but ive seen a few games from each. My feeling is Morant is the elite basketball player with elite athleticism. Zion is a very good (not yet elite) basketball player, who has a generationally dominant body and however were defining athleticism. Both have good BBIQ, can jump out of the gym, make good plays for their teams. Zions a more diverse defender in college though I wonder how his defense will be in the NBA he’s kind of a tweener.
It was an impressive pass, but that's the type of pass they'll open up SportsCenter with and that'll have articles written about that one pass only... I get why it was impressive from him. I've just seen everything he's done overexaggerated all year when it doesn't even need to be because it's already impressive.
For sure. I just have reservations about how translatable to the NBA certain players are when their athleticism and strengths are their biggest advantages in college basketball. Obviously we've never seen someone with his combination of physicality and athleticism before, but those two things are always neutralized the most when guys get to the NBA. So a guy who's dominating off elite skills AND elite athleticism will win out for me over a guy who has legendary athleticism and good skills. Zion's longevity is definitely a question for me compared to Morant. I see why Zion is liked more than Morant and he could easily be the much better player, I just like Morant more and think he has a higher floor as an athletic, great passing PG (Passing translates the most IMO), with just as high of a ceiling as Zion.
Hopefully this doesn't come of as judgy or preachy. I'm sure you don't mean to, but these kind of comments come across as you qualifying what people should and should not be allowed to get excited about, or how excited they should be permitted to get. There's nothing wrong with different people having different views on who and what catches their interest. Why would it affect you at all if people make a big deal about something that isn't a big deal to you? When people are fangirling over Zion and you come in with the "Yeah but Morant..." stuff, it almost smacks of jealousy, like it somehow is a detriment to you personally that they're not fangirling over Ja. That's why people say you seem "salty" about the Zion love.
The detriment is everything Zion does is broadcasted everywhere while other guys dont get the attention they deserve. As a Blazer fan you should know that! It sucks when every sports news site wants to spend all their time on LA and Lebron or New York sports and wants to spread the rumors about Dame to LA. Its not salt, imo anyways its just annoying as a sports fan when the royal “they” only highlight or talk about one story. Zions really, reallly good and does many impressive things but so do a lot of guys that they dont pay attention to.
Nah you're good. I guess I see why it'd seem like that? I don't mean for it to come across like that, I'm just stating my opinion of why I think Zion is overhyped by comparing a pass he made that people got extremely excited about to another top prospect who does it routinely without a ton of fanfare. People can be excited over whatever, I don't really care about that, I'm just stating my opinion that I think Zion gets a ton of hype. It's not out of jealousy or anything like that. If anything, it's rooted in the fact that I wish more people on here watched College Basketball outside of March Madness and paid attention to more than just the hot trend at the time (Last year, it was Trae Young).
All signals point to Ja being a negative defender (slight negative is his upside imo) and not sold that he'll develop into being a great pull up shooter, which might be the single most important skill for guards towards unlocking superstar upside offensively and could also nerf his playmaking a bit. Zion isn't without his question marks, but I think his are less crucial towards hitting his high end outcomes and make him both the higher floor and higher upside prospect for me.
