Possible Free agents

How is Gordon not worth the max?. 23 years old. Has improved incrementally every single year. Has a decent 3 pt shot. Will easily be a 20-10 guy next year. WCS sucks. Plain and Simple. He has a lot more issues than a broken jumper. WCS probably won’t even be on the Kings next year.
Gordon's versatility is important. His best position is the 4 but he can play the 3 and on a good defensive team could match up great as a small ball 5. I agree with you he's improved every year. If the Kings offered the max to Gordon I wouldn't be mad, I'd rather this team pay a young player than pay a player like Zbo or Hill.
 
How is Gordon not worth the max?. 23 years old. Has improved incrementally every single year. Has a decent 3 pt shot. Will easily be a 20-10 guy next year. WCS sucks. Plain and Simple. He has a lot more issues than a broken jumper. WCS probably won’t even be on the Kings next year.
The Kings will never be an elite team with Willie. The guy is the worst starting center in the NBA.

At best we can be a low rung playoff team with Willie in the rotation. Nothing more.

You cannot have a player with so many holes to his game (mental and physical; O and D) be part of your rotation and expect to compete at the highest level.

Last night Fox and Boggy and Buddy were sporadically brilliant.

The reason we needed OT to beat a beat-up Heat team is because Willie gets abused and outworked against the likes of James Johnson and their rookie center who has more power and poise in the paint.

If we had an advantage at that position we would be more than 29th in offensive and 29th in defense.

Even when Willie drew that offensive charge on James Johnson he was out of position and lucky to get the whistle.

The replay showed that his shoulders were turned and it was only the refs blocked view that was fortuous for Willie.

Willie has a combination of low IQ and low grit. He doesn't want to get dirty. He wants to play pretty.

Willie sets the WORST picks I have ever seen in 30 plus years of NBA watching. Actually that is not completely accurate because to set a bad pick you actually have to, you know, set a pick. More than half of the time, his picks are phantom picks, similar to Jason Thompson's fake hustle.

Willie reacts to situations like he's seeing them for the first time. He's going on 25 years old with a rookie mindset. He's constantly off balance and throws up the weakest s**t when he tries to create his own shot. This would not be so bad if he was a stout defender.

But he is not keen or alert or bullying or anticipatory or any of the qualities you need from a front line defender.

Willie does good job with lob passes and throwing them down. This is his formidable skill.

But just like Lonzo Bust is not going to make a career out of being a great defensive rebounding PG, Willie needs to do more than be a beneficiary of great setups from his teammates.

Here's the problem: We have a GM who thinks Willie can be "elite". Vlade already botched on the draft pick on a center with Papa G. Is Vlade going to be willing to admit to the err of his ways again?

Admission the guy has not panned out is mounting self-indictment. His ego needs to be set aside for the good of the team and I don't know if he is going to be willing to do so and attract further attention to his dubious draft record.

If we do what I think as I stated months ago before the bandwagon jumpers jumped on, I think we throw max dollars Julius Randle. With the likes of Bagley and Bamba in our projected range, and Giles waiting in the wings, we can convert a draft pick last year and this year and our free agency dollars into fantastic upgrade over a chronic underachiever. That is three viable resources to move on from Willie.

This is right path. It is an easy call!

Even if we go with Miles Bridges in the draft, a strong play, we still have a shockingly reliable Kosta Koufos who is catching the ball and showing touch over the last 2-3 months who could come back and do a more credible job as a starter than Willie.

The only basis to bring back Willie next season is delusion.

When Vlade made his incredulous "elite" comment, I said let's wait for Willie to average 12 PPG 10 RPG and 2 BPG over 5 games before we refer to said player as elite. I do NOT need to peruse the game logs to ascertain if these statistical thresholds have been broached!

Even when WIllie puts up numbers they are usually empty. His infrequent shot blocks usually do not result in change of possession.

I have said before I will say it again: He's just not that good. The stretch he had before the All-Star break was fools good and I did not fall for it.

Myles Turner with Oladipo is leading the Pacers to 3rd seed in the East. Myles is a brilliant pick and pop player and league leader in swats. The guy is awesome and 3 years younger. He was the obvious pick that could have mitigated all this meandering and floundering.

Some point along the way Willie decided he wanted to be the next Boogie : high usage 25 PPG force. He is as delusional as the assessment of the GM of his potential and ability. Long suffering Kings fans deserve better than a player who is all talk and paltry action.
 
I think Gordon can be had but the stars have to align Orlando would have to draft Porter or Bagley.

Here are the teams that can offer Hordon a max:

Atlanta:
Dallas: Would probably chase Randle first
Lakers: awpuld be chasing Bron and Randle
Philadelphia: Have Simmons and Covington
Chicago: Have Markenann at PF

Now after the draft Atlanta and Dallas could possibly be out of the running by getting Bagley or Jackson.

That should leave 1-2 teams fighting for Gordon with us hopefully Orlando can grab Bagley or Porter to make this happen.
 
If we cant draft Ayton bring back Demarcus Cousins who finally has a team around him for us to light up the west, if we dont draft Saric, Hezonja is a lock.
 

bajaden

Hall of Famer
Gordon's versatility is important. His best position is the 4 but he can play the 3 and on a good defensive team could match up great as a small ball 5. I agree with you he's improved every year. If the Kings offered the max to Gordon I wouldn't be mad, I'd rather this team pay a young player than pay a player like Zbo or Hill.
I'm absolutely fascinated by this excessive love for Gordon. Don't misunderstand, I wouldn't be opposed to having him on the team, but there is no way on god's earth that I would pay him a max salary. Let me try to put this in perspective. Willie is in his third year in the league, and so far, these are his numbers:

12.5 ppg - 52.1% fgp - 25.0% 3pp (not relevant since he hardly takes a three) - 7.0 rpg - 2.2 apg - 1.1 stl's per game - 0.9 blk's per game. Most of you wouldn't give Willie a max extension based on those numbers, and neither would I. So lets compare Gordon's 3rd year, since he's currently in his 4th year:

12.7 ppg - 45.4% fgp - 28.8% 3pp (relevant because he does take three's) - 5.1 rpg - 1.9 apg - 0.8 stl's per game - 0.5 blk's per game. Gordon's 3rd year numbers are worse than Willie's 3rd yr numbers. If you won't give Willie a max extension, why would you give one to Gordon? Yeah, Gordon's scoring average this year has gone up to 18 ppg, but mostly because he's taking more shots, not because of his efficiency. Although, I will credit him with improving his 3pp to 34%, which has probably helped, but it's hardly what I call an efficient number. To be considered a good 3pt shooter you should be shooting 37% or better.

I will give you that Gordon is still young, and he could blossom into the player everyone expects him to be. Or not!!!! His growth rate is similar to Willie's, and no one here seems to love Willie, who is actually a more efficient player through his first three years. Gordon is a great athlete, but so is Willie. Gordon is a good defender, but Willie is a better overall defender. You see where I'm going with this? I'm trying to rationalize the love for one player and the hate for another, and the only difference I can see, is that one is already on the team and you get to see him play every day. How long before you would start to hate Gordon?

Look, I realize that they don't actually play the same position, but in many ways, they came into the league with similar expectations, and similar skills, and the facts show, or at least the stats show, that through three years, Willie is the better player and no one wants to give him a max extension. Don't misunderstand me, I would love to acquire Gordon, but I don't want to overpay for him. I think after 4 years in the NBA you should pay a player a salary based on his accomplishments, not on whatever his potential might be. I think after 4 years, you lose that potential card. The one thing that Gordon does have going for him efficiency wise, is his ability to get to the line. Other than that, I don't see much improvement. I'm skeptical of his 3pt shooting.
 
The Kings will never be an elite team with Willie. The guy is the worst starting center in the NBA.

At best we can be a low rung playoff team with Willie in the rotation. Nothing more.

You cannot have a player with so many holes to his game (mental and physical; O and D) be part of your rotation and expect to compete at the highest level.

Last night Fox and Boggy and Buddy were sporadically brilliant.

The reason we needed OT to beat a beat-up Heat team is because Willie gets abused and outworked against the likes of James Johnson and their rookie center who has more power and poise in the paint.

If we had an advantage at that position we would be more than 29th in offensive and 29th in defense.

Even when Willie drew that offensive charge on James Johnson he was out of position and lucky to get the whistle.

The replay showed that his shoulders were turned and it was only the refs blocked view that was fortuous for Willie.

Willie has a combination of low IQ and low grit. He doesn't want to get dirty. He wants to play pretty.

Willie sets the WORST picks I have ever seen in 30 plus years of NBA watching. Actually that is not completely accurate because to set a bad pick you actually have to, you know, set a pick. More than half of the time, his picks are phantom picks, similar to Jason Thompson's fake hustle.

Willie reacts to situations like he's seeing them for the first time. He's going on 25 years old with a rookie mindset. He's constantly off balance and throws up the weakest s**t when he tries to create his own shot. This would not be so bad if he was a stout defender.

But he is not keen or alert or bullying or anticipatory or any of the qualities you need from a front line defender.

Willie does good job with lob passes and throwing them down. This is his formidable skill.

But just like Lonzo Bust is not going to make a career out of being a great defensive rebounding PG, Willie needs to do more than be a beneficiary of great setups from his teammates.

Here's the problem: We have a GM who thinks Willie can be "elite". Vlade already botched on the draft pick on a center with Papa G. Is Vlade going to be willing to admit to the err of his ways again?

Admission the guy has not panned out is mounting self-indictment. His ego needs to be set aside for the good of the team and I don't know if he is going to be willing to do so and attract further attention to his dubious draft record.

If we do what I think as I stated months ago before the bandwagon jumpers jumped on, I think we throw max dollars Julius Randle. With the likes of Bagley and Bamba in our projected range, and Giles waiting in the wings, we can convert a draft pick last year and this year and our free agency dollars into fantastic upgrade over a chronic underachiever. That is three viable resources to move on from Willie.

This is right path. It is an easy call!

Even if we go with Miles Bridges in the draft, a strong play, we still have a shockingly reliable Kosta Koufos who is catching the ball and showing touch over the last 2-3 months who could come back and do a more credible job as a starter than Willie.

The only basis to bring back Willie next season is delusion.

When Vlade made his incredulous "elite" comment, I said let's wait for Willie to average 12 PPG 10 RPG and 2 BPG over 5 games before we refer to said player as elite. I do NOT need to peruse the game logs to ascertain if these statistical thresholds have been broached!

Even when WIllie puts up numbers they are usually empty. His infrequent shot blocks usually do not result in change of possession.

I have said before I will say it again: He's just not that good. The stretch he had before the All-Star break was fools good and I did not fall for it.

Myles Turner with Oladipo is leading the Pacers to 3rd seed in the East. Myles is a brilliant pick and pop player and league leader in swats. The guy is awesome and 3 years younger. He was the obvious pick that could have mitigated all this meandering and floundering.

Some point along the way Willie decided he wanted to be the next Boogie : high usage 25 PPG force. He is as delusional as the assessment of the GM of his potential and ability. Long suffering Kings fans deserve better than a player who is all talk and paltry action.
Maybe right. I know i wouldn't make any bets on WCS ever being a consistantly top 15 starting center. His mental toughness/focus/grit and seeminly wavering passion and aggression are the biggest flags i have with him and would like to see him moved while he may be seen as valuable now, and upgrade his position eother via the draft or free agency.

Since it appears we are tumbling out of draft position, id guess we will be looking at Miles bridges or Bamba (if we are lucky). If we take Miles Bridges, Id love to see WCS traded with a future pick or best case scenario cap relief for either Bamba or Wedel Carter.
 
I'm absolutely fascinated by this excessive love for Gordon. Don't misunderstand, I wouldn't be opposed to having him on the team, but there is no way on god's earth that I would pay him a max salary. Let me try to put this in perspective. Willie is in his third year in the league, and so far, these are his numbers:

12.5 ppg - 52.1% fgp - 25.0% 3pp (not relevant since he hardly takes a three) - 7.0 rpg - 2.2 apg - 1.1 stl's per game - 0.9 blk's per game. Most of you wouldn't give Willie a max extension based on those numbers, and neither would I. So lets compare Gordon's 3rd year, since he's currently in his 4th year:

12.7 ppg - 45.4% fgp - 28.8% 3pp (relevant because he does take three's) - 5.1 rpg - 1.9 apg - 0.8 stl's per game - 0.5 blk's per game. Gordon's 3rd year numbers are worse than Willie's 3rd yr numbers. If you won't give Willie a max extension, why would you give one to Gordon? Yeah, Gordon's scoring average this year has gone up to 18 ppg, but mostly because he's taking more shots, not because of his efficiency. Although, I will credit him with improving his 3pp to 34%, which has probably helped, but it's hardly what I call an efficient number. To be considered a good 3pt shooter you should be shooting 37% or better.

I will give you that Gordon is still young, and he could blossom into the player everyone expects him to be. Or not!!!! His growth rate is similar to Willie's, and no one here seems to love Willie, who is actually a more efficient player through his first three years. Gordon is a great athlete, but so is Willie. Gordon is a good defender, but Willie is a better overall defender. You see where I'm going with this? I'm trying to rationalize the love for one player and the hate for another, and the only difference I can see, is that one is already on the team and you get to see him play every day. How long before you would start to hate Gordon?

Look, I realize that they don't actually play the same position, but in many ways, they came into the league with similar expectations, and similar skills, and the facts show, or at least the stats show, that through three years, Willie is the better player and no one wants to give him a max extension. Don't misunderstand me, I would love to acquire Gordon, but I don't want to overpay for him. I think after 4 years in the NBA you should pay a player a salary based on his accomplishments, not on whatever his potential might be. I think after 4 years, you lose that potential card. The one thing that Gordon does have going for him efficiency wise, is his ability to get to the line. Other than that, I don't see much improvement. I'm skeptical of his 3pt shooting.
Completely agree Gordon on max would be a mistake. In 2 years time it would likely be considered an albatross contract and completely handicap us moving forward
 
I'm absolutely fascinated by this excessive love for Gordon. Don't misunderstand, I wouldn't be opposed to having him on the team, but there is no way on god's earth that I would pay him a max salary. Let me try to put this in perspective. Willie is in his third year in the league, and so far, these are his numbers:

12.5 ppg - 52.1% fgp - 25.0% 3pp (not relevant since he hardly takes a three) - 7.0 rpg - 2.2 apg - 1.1 stl's per game - 0.9 blk's per game. Most of you wouldn't give Willie a max extension based on those numbers, and neither would I. So lets compare Gordon's 3rd year, since he's currently in his 4th year:

12.7 ppg - 45.4% fgp - 28.8% 3pp (relevant because he does take three's) - 5.1 rpg - 1.9 apg - 0.8 stl's per game - 0.5 blk's per game. Gordon's 3rd year numbers are worse than Willie's 3rd yr numbers. If you won't give Willie a max extension, why would you give one to Gordon? Yeah, Gordon's scoring average this year has gone up to 18 ppg, but mostly because he's taking more shots, not because of his efficiency. Although, I will credit him with improving his 3pp to 34%, which has probably helped, but it's hardly what I call an efficient number. To be considered a good 3pt shooter you should be shooting 37% or better.

I will give you that Gordon is still young, and he could blossom into the player everyone expects him to be. Or not!!!! His growth rate is similar to Willie's, and no one here seems to love Willie, who is actually a more efficient player through his first three years. Gordon is a great athlete, but so is Willie. Gordon is a good defender, but Willie is a better overall defender. You see where I'm going with this? I'm trying to rationalize the love for one player and the hate for another, and the only difference I can see, is that one is already on the team and you get to see him play every day. How long before you would start to hate Gordon?

Look, I realize that they don't actually play the same position, but in many ways, they came into the league with similar expectations, and similar skills, and the facts show, or at least the stats show, that through three years, Willie is the better player and no one wants to give him a max extension. Don't misunderstand me, I would love to acquire Gordon, but I don't want to overpay for him. I think after 4 years in the NBA you should pay a player a salary based on his accomplishments, not on whatever his potential might be. I think after 4 years, you lose that potential card. The one thing that Gordon does have going for him efficiency wise, is his ability to get to the line. Other than that, I don't see much improvement. I'm skeptical of his 3pt shooting.
I appreciate that you like WCS over Gordon, I just like Gordon better long term. IMO most around the league would value Gordon more than WCS. I don't think WCS will ever develop into a threat on the offensive end, to me Gordon's offensive potential and versatility is greater than Willy's. The way I look at it is the Kings are going to be bad for awhile. If you're going to pay anyone, pay the young high upside guy over a Zbo or Hill. Gordon's got better every year, he still only 22.
 
Aaron Gordon would be a massive gamble. He's either on his way to becoming a real solid player or he's just a decent player on a bad team that's going to cripple your franchise with an albatross contract.

I don't mind rolling the dice but I wouldn't do it on Gordon.
 
I'm absolutely fascinated by this excessive love for Gordon. Don't misunderstand, I wouldn't be opposed to having him on the team, but there is no way on god's earth that I would pay him a max salary. Let me try to put this in perspective. Willie is in his third year in the league, and so far, these are his numbers:

12.5 ppg - 52.1% fgp - 25.0% 3pp (not relevant since he hardly takes a three) - 7.0 rpg - 2.2 apg - 1.1 stl's per game - 0.9 blk's per game. Most of you wouldn't give Willie a max extension based on those numbers, and neither would I. So lets compare Gordon's 3rd year, since he's currently in his 4th year:

12.7 ppg - 45.4% fgp - 28.8% 3pp (relevant because he does take three's) - 5.1 rpg - 1.9 apg - 0.8 stl's per game - 0.5 blk's per game. Gordon's 3rd year numbers are worse than Willie's 3rd yr numbers. If you won't give Willie a max extension, why would you give one to Gordon? Yeah, Gordon's scoring average this year has gone up to 18 ppg, but mostly because he's taking more shots, not because of his efficiency. Although, I will credit him with improving his 3pp to 34%, which has probably helped, but it's hardly what I call an efficient number. To be considered a good 3pt shooter you should be shooting 37% or better.

I will give you that Gordon is still young, and he could blossom into the player everyone expects him to be. Or not!!!! His growth rate is similar to Willie's, and no one here seems to love Willie, who is actually a more efficient player through his first three years. Gordon is a great athlete, but so is Willie. Gordon is a good defender, but Willie is a better overall defender. You see where I'm going with this? I'm trying to rationalize the love for one player and the hate for another, and the only difference I can see, is that one is already on the team and you get to see him play every day. How long before you would start to hate Gordon?

Look, I realize that they don't actually play the same position, but in many ways, they came into the league with similar expectations, and similar skills, and the facts show, or at least the stats show, that through three years, Willie is the better player and no one wants to give him a max extension. Don't misunderstand me, I would love to acquire Gordon, but I don't want to overpay for him. I think after 4 years in the NBA you should pay a player a salary based on his accomplishments, not on whatever his potential might be. I think after 4 years, you lose that potential card. The one thing that Gordon does have going for him efficiency wise, is his ability to get to the line. Other than that, I don't see much improvement. I'm skeptical of his 3pt shooting.
I've already had the discussion about Gordon with you..so won't go into it again. However, you're missing the most important thing. Gordon was only 21yearsold in his 3rd year. WCS is 24yearsold in 3rd year. When does age fly out of the window when comparing players?
 
Aaron Gordon would be a massive gamble. He's either on his way to becoming a real solid player or he's just a decent player on a bad team that's going to cripple your franchise with an albatross contract.

I don't mind rolling the dice but I wouldn't do it on Gordon.
I’d easily gamble on him put him at power forward and watch him blossom. Our transition offense would be good too getting Gordon after drafting Mikal Bridges would be an A+ off season.

Fox-Bogdan-Bridges-Gordon-Giles
That lineup has defensive versatility, passing, shooting, and elite athleticism
 
As the resident Zona fan I have love for Gordon but I do feel a bit like bajaden in wondering why so many are high on him. He's maybe a slightly better WCS at a position where he's going to be expected to contribute more offensively than he is capable in the modern NBA. Love the guy, but like many big men with his particular skillset, he may have arrived 10 years too late to be an impact player in the league.
 

bajaden

Hall of Famer
I've already had the discussion about Gordon with you..so won't go into it again. However, you're missing the most important thing. Gordon was only 21yearsold in his 3rd year. WCS is 24yearsold in 3rd year. When does age fly out of the window when comparing players?
As I've said many times, the only age I care about is years of NBA experience. Neither player is old. Willie didn't start playing organized basketball until he was in his sophmore year of highschool, so experience wise, he's behind most players his age. Players like Gordon started playing when they were in grade school. Every player is an individual, but everyone wants a cookie cutter version of a player. Same age, same experience, same everything. Doesn't work that way.
 
There really is no comparison with Gordon and WCS.
One has a very low BbIQ, no mental stamina, and no killer Instinct.(WCS) The other player(Gordon) has all the qualities in spades.

Sometimes stats are for losers and they don’t tell the whole story.
 
As the resident Zona fan I have love for Gordon but I do feel a bit like bajaden in wondering why so many are high on him. He's maybe a slightly better WCS at a position where he's going to be expected to contribute more offensively than he is capable in the modern NBA. Love the guy, but like many big men with his particular skillset, he may have arrived 10 years too late to be an impact player in the league.
I see Gordon totally different than you, to me he's a modern NBA 4. He can switch to the 3 and also play a small ball 5, he shoots 5.8 3pt attempts a game. Nothing old school to his game in my eyes.
 
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ESPN listed the top 25 players under 25 about a week ago.

  1. Giannis Antetokounmpo
  2. Anthony Davis
  3. Joel Embiid
  4. Karl-Anthony Towns
  5. Nikola Jokic
  6. Ben Simmons
  7. Kristaps Porzingis
  8. Bradley Beal
  9. Donovan Mitchell
  10. Devin Booker
  11. Gary Harris
  12. Andre Drummond
  13. Clint Capela
  14. Jayson Tatum
  15. Otto Porter
  16. Brandon Ingram
  17. Steven Adams
  18. Lonzo Ball
  19. Lauri Markkanen
  20. Jamal Murray
  21. Aaron Gordon
  22. Jaylen Brown
  23. Andrew Wiggins
  24. Kyle Kuzma
  25. Myles Turner
  26. Dario Saric
This offseason Gordon is available, if you can get one of these top young players you do it. Notice no Kings anywhere on this list. People on this board think some are always down on the Kings players but put down the pom poms and really take a look at our talent. Kings have cap space why wouldnt they make a run at Gordon.
 
ESPN listed the top 25 players under 25 about a week ago.

  1. Giannis Antetokounmpo
  2. Anthony Davis
  3. Joel Embiid
  4. Karl-Anthony Towns
  5. Nikola Jokic
  6. Ben Simmons
  7. Kristaps Porzingis
  8. Bradley Beal
  9. Donovan Mitchell
  10. Devin Booker
  11. Gary Harris
  12. Andre Drummond
  13. Clint Capela
  14. Jayson Tatum
  15. Otto Porter
  16. Brandon Ingram
  17. Steven Adams
  18. Lonzo Ball
  19. Lauri Markkanen
  20. Jamal Murray
  21. Aaron Gordon
  22. Jaylen Brown
  23. Andrew Wiggins
  24. Kyle Kuzma
  25. Myles Turner
  26. Dario Saric
This offseason Gordon is available, if you can get one of these top young players you do it. Notice no Kings anywhere on this list. People on this board think some are always down on the Kings players but put down the pom poms and really take a look at our talent. Kings have cap space why wouldnt they make a run at Gordon.
Because you're talking a max deal for a guy who isn't great at any one particular thing. I would have been ok with signing Otto Porter this last offseason but he is one of the better shooters in the league, rebounds well and plays excellent defense. He just impacts the game at a much higher level despite not putting up quite the same rebounding and PPG numbers that Gordon does.

I wouldn't mind having Gordon on the team but not at the money he is likely to command. I have a feeling that we're going to be talking about him in a few years the same way we would be talking about Ryan Anderson right now if we had landed him on that big contract a couple years ago. It wouldn't be pretty.
 

dude12

Hall of Famer
The guy is having a breakout year, he's going to be in the running for most improved player in the NBA.
Understood, but not a max player. If I'm the Kings, I'm very careful bout giving a max contract until I absolutely know what Giles is, the draft pick and how good that person is and that would be the time I dabble in max contract unless they could against all odds land a vet all-star type on a max.
 

kingsboi

Hall of Famer
ESPN listed the top 25 players under 25 about a week ago.

  1. Giannis Antetokounmpo
  2. Anthony Davis
  3. Joel Embiid
  4. Karl-Anthony Towns
  5. Nikola Jokic
  6. Ben Simmons
  7. Kristaps Porzingis
  8. Bradley Beal
  9. Donovan Mitchell
  10. Devin Booker
  11. Gary Harris
  12. Andre Drummond
  13. Clint Capela
  14. Jayson Tatum
  15. Otto Porter
  16. Brandon Ingram
  17. Steven Adams
  18. Lonzo Ball
  19. Lauri Markkanen
  20. Jamal Murray
  21. Aaron Gordon
  22. Jaylen Brown
  23. Andrew Wiggins
  24. Kyle Kuzma
  25. Myles Turner
  26. Dario Saric
This offseason Gordon is available, if you can get one of these top young players you do it. Notice no Kings anywhere on this list. People on this board think some are always down on the Kings players but put down the pom poms and really take a look at our talent. Kings have cap space why wouldnt they make a run at Gordon.
Julius Randle should of made that list
 
Thanks. There are only two redeeming things about ESPN at the moment. The "Zach Lowe 10 things I like" articles and their easy to read box scores that fit on one screen.

Sounds like Aaron Gordon may have a case of WCS-itis where he has all the tools in the world to be a certain type of player but he sees himself being more of a flashy Durant type player instead. He has enough of an outside game to keep his defenders honest, but he should be using his strength and athleticism as his bread and butter most the time. That would explain his low efficiency percentages.

WCS has the same problem. He wants to be like KAT but he will never be anything like him no matter how hard he tries because he's not fluid enough. The more WCS "develops" his offensive game, the worse his offense gets. His efficiency has declined every year he's been in the league and he hasn't improved at all from his rookie season. That was the season where he was the WCS we expected. Protected the rim, took high percentage shots and had a number of chase down blocks and hustle plays that had us excited for his future.

I don't know if I want to watch a guy with the same problem who costs 5x as much. Because if your big men aren't efficient, then where is your efficiency going to come from? The offense will be terrible.
 
Thanks. There are only two redeeming things about ESPN at the moment. The "Zach Lowe 10 things I like" articles and their easy to read box scores that fit on one screen.

Sounds like Aaron Gordon may have a case of WCS-itis where he has all the tools in the world to be a certain type of player but he sees himself being more of a flashy Durant type player instead. He has enough of an outside game to keep his defenders honest, but he should be using his strength and athleticism as his bread and butter most the time. That would explain his low efficiency percentages.

WCS has the same problem. He wants to be like KAT but he will never be anything like him no matter how hard he tries because he's not fluid enough. The more WCS "develops" his offensive game, the worse his offense gets. His efficiency has declined every year he's been in the league and he hasn't improved at all from his rookie season. That was the season where he was the WCS we expected. Protected the rim, took high percentage shots and had a number of chase down blocks and hustle plays that had us excited for his future.

I don't know if I want to watch a guy with the same problem who costs 5x as much. Because if your big men aren't efficient, then where is your efficiency going to come from? The offense will be terrible.
One area I really see similarity is that they both flash just enough brilliance at times to make you think they finally have put everything together and then they fall off. I had courtside seats a year ago to see Magic play the Blazers and Gordon just absolutely balled that game. He got to the line a ton and probably won it for them. And he was doing it to start the season but he has fallen off. Granted the Magic are a mess and he doesn't have the team around him to make him better, but I still see him as that high end role player not a star in this league (it would totally be ok for a team with all the pieces in place to reach for him, but not a team trying to build still). And for the "oh, he can play the 3" I just don't see it, because his shooting isn't good enough.
 

bajaden

Hall of Famer
The guy is having a breakout year, he's going to be in the running for most improved player in the NBA.
This is where I disagree. I think there's a difference between showing good improvement, and having a break out year. Yes, he's scoring 6 pt's more a game, but his efficiency overall hasn't improved, he's simply taking more shots. He's improved his rebounding by a couple as well. Let me ask you this, if Willie scores 18 pts a game next season and averages 8 boards a game, while maintaining his current efficiency, will that be a break out year for him. I'm also befuddled as to why some think today, that Gordon has a higher ceiling than Willie, when Willie's third year in the league was better than Gordon's third year in the league. I'm trying to follow the logic here. Is it because Gordon was drafted higher? Younger perhaps?

As I said, I do like Gordon and think that jury is still out. But I want to see him consistently hit the three point shot for more than half a year before I become a believer. After four years in the league, I believe in paying a player on his results, not on his potential. He's had four years to develop and show that potential, and so far, Draymond Green he's not. At least not yet.
 

bajaden

Hall of Famer
ESPN listed the top 25 players under 25 about a week ago.

  1. Giannis Antetokounmpo
  2. Anthony Davis
  3. Joel Embiid
  4. Karl-Anthony Towns
  5. Nikola Jokic
  6. Ben Simmons
  7. Kristaps Porzingis
  8. Bradley Beal
  9. Donovan Mitchell
  10. Devin Booker
  11. Gary Harris
  12. Andre Drummond
  13. Clint Capela
  14. Jayson Tatum
  15. Otto Porter
  16. Brandon Ingram
  17. Steven Adams
  18. Lonzo Ball
  19. Lauri Markkanen
  20. Jamal Murray
  21. Aaron Gordon
  22. Jaylen Brown
  23. Andrew Wiggins
  24. Kyle Kuzma
  25. Myles Turner
  26. Dario Saric
This offseason Gordon is available, if you can get one of these top young players you do it. Notice no Kings anywhere on this list. People on this board think some are always down on the Kings players but put down the pom poms and really take a look at our talent. Kings have cap space why wouldnt they make a run at Gordon.
So because someone at ESPN thought these were the top players 25 and under, it's gospel? Sorry, but I don't worship at that altar. No Kyrie Irving, no Zach Lavine, no Oladipo? I could go on. I could argue that Fox has had a better season than Ball, who has gotten all the publicity. The only stat area where Ball is better, is in assists, which is no shock since that's the horse he rode in on.. At the end of the day, it's just someone's opinion, and I have my own.