Keegan named to national select team
- Thread starter Tetsujin
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How would you measure such a thing? I don’t believe they run a combine for players already in the league.
We all know there’s been a myriad of players that have improved greatly once in the league. Did improving in areas such as speed and quickness have anything to do their vast overall improvement? It’s a difficult thing to say, let alone prove.
We all know there’s been a myriad of players that have improved greatly once in the league. Did improving in areas such as speed and quickness have anything to do their vast overall improvement? It’s a difficult thing to say, let alone prove.
when a guy has put on as much sheer muscle as Keegan has and seemingly sped up the mechanics of his already fantastic shooting stroke over a single summer, I’m not sure why we’re arguing about whether or not Keegan can improve x aspect of his game.
Also gotta love how Keegan has somehow replaced Bam in the Fox/Monk/Bam triangle of friendship.
Maybe Keegan will develop heat vision to burn the retinas out of the eyes of shooters he's defending!
I don't think it's unreasonable to ground discussions of player potential in historical precedent. (Silly stuff is fine too, but I didn't think that was the spirit of the discussion. Pardon me if I misinterpreted)
I don't think it's unreasonable to ground discussions of player potential in historical precedent. (Silly stuff is fine too, but I didn't think that was the spirit of the discussion. Pardon me if I misinterpreted)
Keegan's lateral quickness is what it is. I'm sure a small incremental improvement can be made but the main improvement is going to come through quicker processing and better recognition.
A lot of this stuff is genetics. It's like drafting a player and hoping he can jump higher. It's not like shooting. You just kind of have what you have for the most part.
A lot of this stuff is genetics. It's like drafting a player and hoping he can jump higher. It's not like shooting. You just kind of have what you have for the most part.
Yeah you nailed it. It's not players are getting "more athletic" although that's still obviously possible for young guys. It's them learning the NBA game, understanding NBA defensive schemes and just understanding players around the league at a higher level. Failing on defense in the NBA really isn't just getting blown by in ISO defense. Happens occasionally, but it's more often than not a breakdown or a missed rotation at some point in the possession. That's the biggest reason it's next to impossible for rookies/young players to be good defenders. Herb Jones and Walker Kessler the last few seasons have been extreme extreme outliers in terms of their defensive impact as rookies. There's nothing prepares you for guarding NBA offensive talent other than getting those game reps.
I think about how old Tim Duncan, who probably couldn't jump over a pinecone the last few years of his career, was still one of the best defenders in the NBA the last few seasons of his career. His defensive IQ and understanding on how to play NBA defense was just so much better than everyone else's that even when his athleticism left him, he was still able to make an incredible impact on that end of the floor.
Well you were arguing against Keegan but painting a picture on the entirety of the NBA, and while I have no specific metric to point at for this because I don't know where it would exist, I can say unequivocally human being can get quicker and faster through their 20s.
The most prevalent I'd say is Usain Bolt
He consistently improved his times from age 21 through age 27
https://www.thespeedproject.com/athletes/usain-bolt/
But just go look at Track athletes times from freshman in College to Senior in College, then those who go on, look at them progress as they get into worlds and Olympics.
The most prevalent I'd say is Usain Bolt
He consistently improved his times from age 21 through age 27
https://www.thespeedproject.com/athletes/usain-bolt/
But just go look at Track athletes times from freshman in College to Senior in College, then those who go on, look at them progress as they get into worlds and Olympics.
Bolt’s world record 100m dash time was set when he was 22 (similar to most WR holders in the pre-PED era). Not sure what metric you’re using, but 22 does seem to be a consistent athletic peak among the best of the best sprinters.
Athletic peaks in other sports aren’t really relevant to my inquiry though. Basketball is more than just sprinting + vertical leaping + greco-roman wrestling. There are lots of exciting ways for Keegan to improve. But ”speed and quickness” seems like an impossible thing to develop. As far as I can tell, those attributes only go one direction, down. If they didn’t, it would be so unusual as to be suspicious.
I wasn’t really looking for people to look up metrics to answer my question. I was expecting somebody to think of some player that had a good story. A qualitative approach is fine with me.
Athletic peaks in other sports aren’t really relevant to my inquiry though. Basketball is more than just sprinting + vertical leaping + greco-roman wrestling. There are lots of exciting ways for Keegan to improve. But ”speed and quickness” seems like an impossible thing to develop. As far as I can tell, those attributes only go one direction, down. If they didn’t, it would be so unusual as to be suspicious.
I wasn’t really looking for people to look up metrics to answer my question. I was expecting somebody to think of some player that had a good story. A qualitative approach is fine with me.
There is a good article as well on Myles Turner improving his body mechanics. http://www.draftexpress.com/amp/art...nce-and-the-NBA-Draft-and-Myles-Turner--4961/
If you're not an elite athlete at the NBA level you're just not. Period. Monte didn't draft Keegan for elite athletic ability so great news, it's doesn't matter unless he envisioned Keegan to be an elite athlete which Monte's never even suggested. He knows who Keegan is so it really doesn't matter. Now, the question is when athletic ability becomes an issue, if it even does. Then it's a question of how well Monte stacked assets to get that athleticism. It's like with Sasha, people are seeming to suggest his defense is what will determine his time. Will it? It's simply not fair to lump need onto any player if you've basically just gone for a certain type when it comes to roster build. This is a shooting/skill team. Now let the cream of that crop rise to the top. Back in the day J-Will was arguably the best passer on a PASSING team. He was traded for a better shooter/pnr scorer. Play it out and don't be disappointed when what on the surface appears to be the worst move ends up the very best move. If at some point shooting has to give way to something else Monte has plenty of options to play with.