But if we're going to fawn over Blake Griffen for averaging 24 and 14 or whatever he's at right now in college ball, you should also acknowledge that the competition he's playing against is nothing like what Jennings is facing in the Euroleage, not to mention moving to a different country where you don't speak the same language as most of the players on the team. His coach was basically forced to resign because the ownership was unhappy with how he was using his players. Clearly there's a lot more going on there than just a young hotshot American player being unable to assert himself. I haven't seen Jennings himself complain about playing time. There have been several articles written about him already (look in the draft thread to find links) and it seems like he's working hard and acting like a professional.
His on-court performance hasn't taken off yet, but how many high school players dropped into the NBA have excelled right away? Lebron and umm, that's about it. My point about his high school career is that 5 years ago he would have been taken in the lottery for sure on his high school credentials alone. Top high school player in the nation awards will do that for you. And he would probably ride the bench for two years, learn the system, and then take over a starting spot once he matured. That's the way this has gone in the past. He has the track record of an elite prospect and all the skills to play PG in the NBA. That he hasn't lit up the Euroleague this early into the season is no reason to write him off already. He's the first person ever to do what he's doing. Ever. It's far too soon to be calling it a success or a failure.
Your last statement makes it sound like you're angry with him already for choosing to turn pro instead of going to college. How do you know he wants the ball more? He's the one that made the decision to turn down a starting spot at Arizona. And considering he listed "playing with Jaryd Bayless" and "playing for Lute Olson" as his primary reasons for choosing Arizona in the first place, I don't think you can fault him for moving on after they both did. He didn't "open himself up for criticism" any more than other young players with real decisions to make about their careers do. Lebron, KG, Dwight Howard, and Kobe all chose to skip college and "play for pay" too. They're basketball players. This is their whole life. You don't have to cut him any slack if you don't want to, but I hope you're at least prepared to eat your words if it turns out your assessment was premature.
His on-court performance hasn't taken off yet, but how many high school players dropped into the NBA have excelled right away? Lebron and umm, that's about it. My point about his high school career is that 5 years ago he would have been taken in the lottery for sure on his high school credentials alone. Top high school player in the nation awards will do that for you. And he would probably ride the bench for two years, learn the system, and then take over a starting spot once he matured. That's the way this has gone in the past. He has the track record of an elite prospect and all the skills to play PG in the NBA. That he hasn't lit up the Euroleague this early into the season is no reason to write him off already. He's the first person ever to do what he's doing. Ever. It's far too soon to be calling it a success or a failure.
Your last statement makes it sound like you're angry with him already for choosing to turn pro instead of going to college. How do you know he wants the ball more? He's the one that made the decision to turn down a starting spot at Arizona. And considering he listed "playing with Jaryd Bayless" and "playing for Lute Olson" as his primary reasons for choosing Arizona in the first place, I don't think you can fault him for moving on after they both did. He didn't "open himself up for criticism" any more than other young players with real decisions to make about their careers do. Lebron, KG, Dwight Howard, and Kobe all chose to skip college and "play for pay" too. They're basketball players. This is their whole life. You don't have to cut him any slack if you don't want to, but I hope you're at least prepared to eat your words if it turns out your assessment was premature.
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