Why Sullinger will always be better than Randle

[rqk]

Randle will never be as good offensively as Sullinger
Randle can be guarded by a long strong defensive player.  He can't get off his shot inside because he is both very left handed and he isn't that explosive from a standstill.  He won't be able to bully opposing players as he could in college since the defenders will be longer and stronger.

Sullinger has great touch with either hand around the basket and uses his body to shield his wide array of shots.

Randle's outside shot might improve but Sullinger has beautiful form on his shot.

Randle has an advantage on the fast break and is quicker on the drive.

Neither Randle or Sullinger will be great defenders.  Randle might have more quickness but he hasn't shown any defensive ability in college.

Randle has a bigger motor than Sullinger but I am still happy with Sullinger's effort.

THey are both great rebounders

In conclusion of all the players who might be available at pick 6, Randle is the only one I don't want the Celtics to pick because of his limited upside and I prefer Sullinger

[droopdog7]

While Randle may not be as good as Sully (or he may, I am not making a prediction), I do want to say that most Celtic fans (as usual) are overrating our guy.  Sully is a solid player.  But that is about it.  And it won't really get all that much better. 

I'd call Sully's ceiling, bench rotational guy on a deep playoff team.

[BballTim]

While Randle may not be as good as Sully (or he may, I am not making a prediction), I do want to say that most Celtic fans (as usual) are overrating our guy.  Sully is a solid player.  But that is about it.  And it won't really get all that much better. 

I'd call Sully's ceiling, bench rotational guy on a deep playoff team.

   It's hard to imagine that's more accurate than the people who are (as usual) overrating our guy.

[rqk]

I think Sullinger is better than you are ranking him.  But I do believe he will always be better than Randle.

[Celtics4ever]

Sullinger has beautiful form on his shot.

And what did he shoot from downtown 28%?  Actually, his form is not as nice as you portray it.

You forget that Randle has a higher leaping ability.  Of course, you don't mention that as it blows holes in your argument.   I think Sully is a solid player which leads me to the other guy...

While Randle may not be as good as Sully (or he may, I am not making a prediction), I do want to say that most Celtic fans (as usual) are overrating our guy.  Sully is a solid player.  But that is about it.  And it won't really get all that much better. 

I'd call Sully's ceiling, bench rotational guy on a deep playoff team.

I concur, TP.

[droopdog7]

I think Sullinger is better than you are ranking him.  But I do believe he will always be better than Randle.

Perhaps.  But I don't think so of course.  In Sully's second year in the league, he already has taken his game beyond the 3-point.  And that is not a good thing, especially given that he is not a great shooter.

This evolution is usually reserved for veterans that no longer have the desire or ability to play inside (e.g., Bosh, McHale, Wallace, and on and on).  Sully will always struggle to play inside and he isn't the kind of shooter to stick outside.

So overall, we have a guy that can't consistently play inside or outside.  He rebounds well so that is a plus.  And defensively he is below average.  So what am I missing?

I suppose the only real hope that Sully has to change his trajectory is to lose a significant amount of weight.  That would probably fundamentally change his abilities I suppose.  And it could happen.  But even that is not a guarantee that become a star (or even a very very good player). 

[BigAlTheFuture]

I think Randle will be better than Sullinger.

[Tr1boy]

Randle will be better than Sullinger.  The only way Sullinger will be better is, all of a sudden he becomes more explosive

Randle has better post moves, better handles (can go end to end) , better shot blocker (not that he is advanced or anything), better lateral quickness and slightly better rebounder

Sullinger is a better jump shooter and has better passing skills.

When you tally it all up, Randle gets the edge imo.  Just fits the description of a true pf better where as Sullinger is a PF but is slow like a Center. Has to play out of position at C spot alot of times

[Who]

I think Sully is already a top 15 (or thereabouts) power forward in the NBA. I think he'll be a quality starting PF in the NBA for a long time (8-10 years) even if he never becomes an All-Star quality player.

I agree that Randle has a chance to be better than Sully but he needs a lot of things to go right for him for that to happen. I also think that Randle's chance of being worse than Sully are significantly higher than his chances of surpassing Sully. Randle's game needs a lot of work. I don't think it'll translate well to the NBA. I believe Randle will need to rebuild his game from the ground up once he enters the NBA.

[Sketch5]

Can Randle play at least one NBA game before we start debating who's better? Can't really go by collage anymore to determine how good a player is going to be.

[hpantazo]

Randle will be better than Sullinger.  The only way Sullinger will be better is, all of a sudden he becomes more explosive

Randle has better post moves, better handles (can go end to end) , better shot blocker (not that he is advanced or anything), better lateral quickness and slightly better rebounder

Sullinger is a better jump shooter and has better passing skills.

When you tally it all up, Randle gets the edge imo.  Just fits the description of a true pf better where as Sullinger is a PF but is slow like a Center. Has to play out of position at C spot alot of times

Sullinger is a true power forward. The only reason he played center is because we didn't have a real center. That will change next season. Sullinger imo will be much better than Randle in the long run.

[vinnie]

And of course, KO is better than both of them, as he is on his way to becoming a combination of Kevin Love/Dirk Nowitzki -- 

[hpantazo]

And of course, KO is better than both of them, as he is on his way to becoming a combination of Kevin Love/Dirk Nowitzki -- 

with a dash of Larry Bird and a pinch of Kevin McHale

[Fred Roberts]

Randle's body is likely to hold up better, for longer. His frame is leaner and bulky from muscle. Sully has a natural tendency to stack on blubber. I'd weight the body type and athletic advantage significantly in Randle's favor.

Both have solid characters and good bbiq's. Sully seems to have a sneaky touch and a nicer wingspan that helps around the cup. I imagine Randle can develop a mid to long range game just as well as Sully can.

Slight edge to Randle bc of his potential for longevity in the league. Sully's back issue could resurface. Either way, Randle doesn't make sense at 6 so let's keep Sully and move on to other areas if need.

[rqk]

The context of this observation is that I don't want the Celtics to draft Randle.  Based on the responses to the original post there doesn't seem to be a concensus as to who will be better.

However,  It seems clear that neither player is perceived to be significantly better or to have great upside.  (I still think some are underestimating Sullinger but nowhere have I said he was the second coming just that Randle isn't either)

So my claim is that of all the players that are being considered at number 6,  I don't want the Celtics to choose Randle since he doesn't add a significant amount to the team no matter what your opionion relative to Sullinger is.