Better Franchise Cornerstone: Fox, Bagley or Giles?

[206Fan]

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I was talking about the hype. People around the FO raved about Giles the same way they raved about Skal. This is FO produced hype too... nobody knew how Giles looked because he'd been hidden in practice. Who do you think put that information out there?

 

[sactowndog]

The answer is probably Fox based on his skillset and current landscape of the NBA with guards dominating. He has the ability to not only make teammates better but also change the entire style of the game both offensively and defensively. I'm starting to question his motor just a little too but I think that's mostly lack of strength and he's wearing down. It's also his second year in the league and I'm not sure he feels entirely comfortable yet playing with aggression and truly commanding his teammates. With that said I think it's pretty obvious that Fox doesn't have Buddy's motor (who does?) or Bagley's motor........but in general most starting PG's don't need that kind of motor and need to be more cerebral with a feel for flow of the game.

Bagley is not a franchise cornerstone. No matter how much potential and athleticism he has, he's never going to be true #1 that can get his shot whenever he wants it. More importantly he doesn't create shots for others. He may turn out to have leadership skills but he's not the type of player to "lead an offense". He could very well be super inside scorer and finisher. Best case scenario is the Amare Stoudemire and Chris Bosh comparisons. Prime Amare was the ultimate finisher and almost impossible to stop when paired with a great PG.

Giles is the wild-card and I don't think any of us (including Giles) himself really know what Giles potential/ceiling is yet. Giles natural skills and basketball IQ are incredible (especially for a 20 year old big man). Bagley is a better athlete with the higher motor but no question Giles is a smarter player that you can build an offense around and run the offense through. He can absolutely make teammates better and a guy like Bagley could really benefit from having two elite playmakers creating easy shots for him.

I don't think Giles is a natural high volume scorer though. The Webber comparisons are pretty accurate in terms of body, hands, and skills but I don't think Giles will ever be quite as comfortable being a 20-25 PPG scorer. He really likes to pass which will hamper his own offense and I don't think he's a natural aggressive finisher like Bagley is. Even when he's playing well Giles still comes off as a bit too robotic to me as well, he doesn't just get the ball and go like true scorers do. Giles could very easily be a 16-19 PPG scorer though and when you combine that with Fox, Bagley, and Buddy that should be more than enough. As usual the only big question with Giles is whether his knees are going to hold up and all we can do is hope for the best.

Many are comparing Fox in year 2 to Bagley and Giles in year 1. That doesn’t mean it won’t be Fox but a true comparison would be Fox last year versus Giles and Bagley this year. That compare is certainly less certain.

 

[sactowndog]

I mean, I bought into Skal's silky smooth jumper, but it didn't take long to see that that was all he had in the toolbox. Dude seemed to actually regress.

Giles is on the opposite end of the spectrum BBIQ-wise. He's gonna get pushed around by the heftier bigs until he packs on some muscle, but his growth has been scary good now that the big leagues have slowed down for him. Especially when one considers how long he's been out of the game.

I agree that he won't be our franchise guy (I'm still all in on Fox, despite the recent play - his shot will come around, and then it's over), but in a few years he's gonna be filling up the stat sheet.

The only thing I'm worried about with Harry is that Embiid will eat him on Saturday. That dude is freaking massive.

Yeah big strong centers is not in Giles wheel house at this point.

 

[gunks]

Many are comparing Fox in year 2 to Bagley and Giles in year 1. That doesn’t mean it won’t be Fox but a true comparison would be Fox last year versus Giles and Bagley this year. That compare is certainly less certain.

Good point! Fox last year was doo doo.

If Bags and Giles make any kind of leap like Fox did (even after falling back to earth he's still world's better than his rookie year) they're gonna both be absolutely monstrous!

Considering the work ethic of these guys, and the game to game growth they're showing it's not out of the realm of possibility either!

 

[Livinthedream]

I can never tell if the Bagley is Amare Stoudemire thing is a compliment or a dis. Amare was an absolute beast for sure. But he was one dimensional and played no D. I don't see that in Bagley. I see a Toronto era Chris Bosh with the ability to become the Miami Bosh when he starts hitting the 3. I did choose Bagley because that's what I see. Folks forget just how good and explosive Bosh was and he was carrying Toronto on his back.

I see the flashes in Giles, but I just don't know where he fits yet. I'm not as confident as others that he can or should put on weight because of his small frame. I also don't think he has the lateral quickness to guard the quicker PFs, or be able to switch off onto SFs or centers. He will fill up the stat sheet, but might not be dominant in any one area.

Fox is really good, but I'm waiting to see which part of his game he will bring night in and night out. Can he sustain a certain level of play throughout a season.

 

[NewArena]

FOX! We seen what he can be when he’s at a high level and he has not reached his potential yet. Such a hard worker and can literally take over a game

The other two can make a huge impact in their own way, but take over? No

 

[Swipa]

When this was first posted, I didn’t think it was anywhere near close. Bagley has since closed the gap significantly, which is very exciting for us indeed.

 

[jcwkings]

Fox makes guys around him better.Bagley is extremely talented but right now he is a go to scorer with tunnel vision. Once Bagley realizes how he can make plays for his teammates he has superstar potential.

 

[km23]

Fox makes guys around him better.Bagley is extremely talented but right now he is a go to scorer with tunnel vision. Once Bagley realizes how he can make plays for his teammates he has superstar potential.

I agree 2000 percent. We see the flashes sometimes where he will hit the open guy for a wide open 3, but for the most part its tunnel vision, but still dominant. I am super excited for the future and present

 

[Swipa]

Agree with both posters sandwiched between my comments. My point is that it’s getting closer. The question isn’t who is the better player today, it’s who will be the better one in the next few years. A month ago, this was a no-brainer for Fox. Today, we can all see the possibility that it could be Bagley. Seeing as how they both play for the same team, our team, that is very exciting.

 

[KingsFanSince85]

Maybe the question is who will be the alpha or is it possible to have multiple guys leading? I think you can but it has to be the right combination of personalities. Giles has a bit of KG in him personality wise.

I think Swipa is the perfect compliment to MB3, Giles and Buddy because when it comes down to it, he'll perform like a true point guard and make the correct decision ala John Stockton, Steve Nash, Jason Kidd and Earl Conley. If he's got it going on and has a good shot, he'll take it. Or if they start cheating off him, he'll play aggressively. Otherwise he'll get the ball into the hands of the player that has the best matchup or shot on any given possession.

Guys like Russell Westbrook and James Harden (when they ISO him at the top of the arc) are tremendous scorers, but they don't often make the right play and almost always look to score themselves. IMO, that tactic is hurtful in the postseason and can rub teammates the wrong way thus hurting team chemistry.

I don't think we'll ever have to worry about that with De'Aaron. No matter how much his offensive game develops, I still believe he'll usually look to make the correct play rather than look to score first and pass second. For him, it will be look to make the correct play first. There will be games when he has to be selfish because he's got the hot hand or because the defense is daring him to score. But those games won't be the norm IMO.

Because of the above, I don't believe there will be problems with Swipa, MB3, Giles and Buddy co-existing nor will there be issues between alpha leaders.

 

[ppine]

No reason to pick nits, when all three are already on the roster.

 

[Sac.1989]

Fox had the early season pick. Bagley's play right now is bringing us home though.

Glad as hell we have them both for years to come

 

[Kingz19]

Bagley will be the Kings franchise player. I have little doubt on his current trajectory that he’ll be the man and not just some all star that a team erroneously builds around for a decade. I’m talking a worthy franchise player. Fox, Buddy, and Harry will be here too. Very exciting

 

[Kingsfan23]

No reason to pick nits, when all three are already on the roster.

You mean Fox/Bagley/Buddy? Giles needs to show me he’s going to be a quality starter type before anything

 

[Chupacabra]

It's a tough one for me. I gave it to Bagley because he seems to consistently dominate the spaces that he operates in. He is going to become an unstoppable beast.

 

[Insomniacal Fan]

I was going to say Bagley, because I was thinking both Fox and Giles could be prone to injury. Glad I didn't.

 

[Tetsujin]

I was going to say Bagley, because I was thinking both Fox and Giles could be prone to injury. Glad I didn't.

What the hell kind of thing is that to say immediately after someone suffers a serious injury?

 

[HndsmCelt]

Too soon to tell if you really wanted to create a pecking order.and sometimes you can clearly see one but there are teams that have pieces that just flat work together. For example Stockton Malone and Hornececk, magic Kareem and Worthy. You can pick one and elevated over the others but at the end of the day it was really a team synergy. My money's on Harry being the final word in 5 years.

 

[Ozymandias]

Marvin and Fox are completely untouchable.... so i mean they sit atop the foodchain at 1a and 1b, there's no reason to really differentiate between them.

What really seperates them is you look at them and say 'these guys project as top level starters at their position'..

 

[Insomniacal Fan]

What the hell kind of thing is that to say immediately after someone suffers a serious injury?

The observation I was making is that it would be a pretty silly thing to say immediatly before a serious injury.