Aaron Gordon

[NorthernLightning]

Not every great or good scorer is a great jump shooter or even free throw shooter. Think about Josh Smith and the hard-on most here had for acquiring him by trade or free agency. They didn't want Smith because of his jump shot.

Josh Smith is definitely not a "great scorer". He's probably not even a good scorer. I don't think that even people who advocated getting him though he was one.

Josh Smith is, and has always been, someone you keep on the floor because of his intensity, defense, and mismatch potential -- and hope that he wouldn't shoot too much. Of course, the latter has been a futile hope for pretty much any team he's played on.

Did Josh Smith ever make a bucket in his life? Oh, 16-18 ppg in his prime? Oh, that could be another reason worth mentioning for why you would want him on the floor.

[Future Celtics Owner]

Im afraid the jazz will take him. If danny likes him alot I can see him using a future 1st to move up

If he doesnt care and likes gordon, smart or even vonleh then I trust his judgement

I hope the jazz take him. He is not in the top 6 but I can see the fascination with him. I think its more infatuation. But if the did select him then that would bump someone to us.

[kozlodoev]

Not every great or good scorer is a great jump shooter or even free throw shooter. Think about Josh Smith and the hard-on most here had for acquiring him by trade or free agency. They didn't want Smith because of his jump shot.

Josh Smith is definitely not a "great scorer". He's probably not even a good scorer. I don't think that even people who advocated getting him though he was one.

Josh Smith is, and has always been, someone you keep on the floor because of his intensity, defense, and mismatch potential -- and hope that he wouldn't shoot too much. Of course, the latter has been a futile hope for pretty much any team he's played on.

Did Josh Smith ever make a bucket in his life? Oh, 16-18 ppg in his prime? Oh, that could be another reason worth mentioning for why you would want him on the floor.

Yeah, after playing a ton of minutes and/or taking a ton of shots, he has some points. Shocker. That doesn't make him a good scorer.

[cltc5]

I wish the belly achers about Gordo would take a hike.  There's nothing guarnteed abot how any of these players will perform and using college stats is a poor indicator.  Give the guys a chance geez

[crimson_stallion]

Yeah he's going to be one of the best players in the league, and he would fit absolutely perfectly next to Sully and KO, as well as at PF against the more athletic ones.

He's going to be basically unguardable within a few years, bullying SFs and blowing past PFs, in addition to being one of the very best defenders at the ideal size to guard the league's biggest stars.

Like a stronger, smarter Paul George.

Gordon is not even close to comparable to Paul George


George had the passing and ball handling ability to play SG with ease and is a very good (if not elite) shooter.

Gordon is a decent passer and ball handler at the SF spot but nowhere near as good as George in either area.  He also lacks any form of consistency jumper and is a historically terrible free throws shooter.

The fact that he connects free throws at about a 20% lower rate than Rajon Rondo is beyond disturbing.

A young Gerald Wallace is a much more realistic comparison and much closer to what is expect Gordon to become.  A hyper athlete and hustle guy with elite defense,  but pretty limited offense that is limited to mostly transition buckets, put backs,  and the occasional score of the dribble.

Like Walace,  I expect Gordon to be pretty much a nobody through the first few years of his career,  peak out as a borderline all-star (at best) for a year or two,  and then fade away in to a useless nobody one he loses his athleticism with age. By the time he's 30-32 he'll basically be a major offensive liability who will join teams on vet min deals so he can contribute some slightly above average defender (diminished along with his reduced athleticism) for 15 minutes a game.

If that's the type of player you want to take at #6 in a draft as stacked as this one,  then power to you.

Comparing him to a SG/SF who's top 10 in the league in scoring however...bit of a stretch.

[NorthernLightning]

Yeah he's going to be one of the best players in the league, and he would fit absolutely perfectly next to Sully and KO, as well as at PF against the more athletic ones.

He's going to be basically unguardable within a few years, bullying SFs and blowing past PFs, in addition to being one of the very best defenders at the ideal size to guard the league's biggest stars.

Like a stronger, smarter Paul George.

Gordon is not even close to comparable to Paul George


George had the passing and ball handling ability to play SG with ease and is a very good (if not elite) shooter.

Gordon is a decent passer and ball handler at the SF spot but nowhere near as good as George in either area.  He also lacks any form of consistency jumper and is a historically terrible free throws shooter.

The fact that he connects free throws at about a 20% lower rate than Rajon Rondo is beyond disturbing.

A young Gerald Wallace is a much more realistic comparison and much closer to what is expect Gordon to become.  A hyper athlete and hustle guy with elite defense,  but pretty limited offense that is limited to mostly transition buckets, put backs,  and the occasional score of the dribble.

Like Walace,  I expect Gordon to be pretty much a nobody through the first few years of his career,  peak out as a borderline all-star (at best) for a year or two,  and then fade away in to a useless nobody one he loses his athleticism with age. By the time he's 30-32 he'll basically be a major offensive liability who will join teams on vet min deals so he can contribute some slightly above average defender (diminished along with his reduced athleticism) for 15 minutes a game.

If that's the type of player you want to take at #6 in a draft as stacked as this one,  then power to you.

Comparing him to a SG/SF who's top 10 in the league in scoring however...bit of a stretch.

Gordon has a better frame to be significantly stronger than George. Instead of a SG/SF, Gordon is a SF/PF, but Gordon can be that level of star within 3 years, even if he's not sitting out at the 3 point line all game. Paul George's 42% fg% isn't very good at all.

[footey]

12.4 ppg in PAC 12 at  18 years old. He has no offense? Seriously?

[Donoghus]

12.4 ppg in PAC 12 at  18 years old. He has no offense? Seriously?

It's so hard to use college PPG to project anything at the NBA level.  I hate using it.

[greg683x]

on a completely unrelated note, remember this guy.



lock down, elite defense.  Can jump out of the gym.  Made for transition, athletically gifted.  Just needs to work on his jumpshot and develop an offense game and he'll be HUGE

[crimson_stallion]

Not every great or good scorer is a great jump shooter or even free throw shooter. Think about Josh Smith and the hard-on most here had for acquiring him by trade or free agency. They didn't want Smith because of his jump shot.

Josh Smith is definitely not a "great scorer". He's probably not even a good scorer. I don't think that even people who advocated getting him though he was one.

Josh Smith is, and has always been, someone you keep on the floor because of his intensity, defense, and mismatch potential -- and hope that he wouldn't shoot too much. Of course, the latter has been a futile hope for pretty much any team he's played on.

Did Josh Smith ever make a bucket in his life? Oh, 16-18 ppg in his prime? Oh, that could be another reason worth mentioning for why you would want him on the floor.

Yeah, after playing a ton of minutes and/or taking a ton of shots, he has some points. Shocker. That doesn't make him a good scorer.

Josh Smith is a good scorer.

Hes consistently averaged 17-18 PPG through his career despite his lack of a jump shot consistent jump shot.  He's been one of the most efficient scorers in the league around the basket  (69% FG last year < 5 feet).

If you can consistently average 16+ PPG on woth a decemt FG% (45%+) on an NBA playoff team  then you are a good scorer, no matter how you get those points.  If you get it in transition,  of drives,  at the foul line,  in the paint - those are all skills. Just because you aren't a his shooter, doesn't mean you aren't a good scorer. 

If you're saying an exceptional scorer or an elite scorer,  then different story.  But good scorer?   Sure,  Josh Smith is one.

But the question is,  will Gordon put up Josh Smith numbers?   I doubt it.  I think that despite Smith's criticisms as a shooter, he's still a significantly better one than Gordon.  He's never once shot as low as 44% from the free throw line. - that is hideously low.  Even Shaq managed to reach 50% most seasons, Smith has shot close to 70% in some of his former seasons.

 I actually don't think Smith is a bad shooter so much as just a guy with bad shot selection.  Kinda like Sully this season.  We all know Sully is a beast scorer down low,  and that he's got a pretty decent jumper.  This year though his percentages were Josh Smith like simple because he took way to many bad shots. Some will argue that this was the coaches choice - you could argue the same woth Josh Smith,  a he was forced in the more perimeter oriented SF position.

The difference here is that Smith is not just athletic,  he's got kinda crazy length and is pretty strong too.  That allows him to be more effective in the post then his 6'8"-6'9" size would suggest. Gordon had pretty average length for his size and is critically lacking in muscle, and I think he's a worse shooter than Smith too.

[NorthernLightning]

on a completely unrelated note, remember this guy.



lock down, elite defense.  Can jump out of the gym.  Made for transition, athletically gifted.  Just needs to work on his jumpshot and develop and offense game and he'll be HUGE

He wasn't intelligent, wasn't a good passer, wasn't a good ball handler, and probably wasn't a good worker. This is why it's important not to just group all "athletes with potential" together like they're all the same. There are those other key factors besides athleticism that indicate whether a player is likely to continue developing and reach a high level.

Besides, nobody even wanted Kedrick Brown. He was drafted as some sort of deal with his super-agent by moron gm from the past.

[NorthernLightning]

Gordon had pretty average length for his size and is critically lacking in muscle, and I think he's a worse shooter than Smith too.

Do you think Gordon has maxed out his strength at 18 years old? He might even still be growing, since he apparently grew an inch last year.

It should be obvious to all that Gordon will keep getting stronger over the next 5-7 years, and he's already pretty sturdy for a 220 lb kid.

It should be obvious that Gordon will end up with about the same strength as Smith.

[fitzhickey]

12.4 ppg in PAC 12 at  18 years old. He has no offense? Seriously?

Russell Westbrook averaged 13 ppg.
College ppg doesn't have much value as a measuring tool

[NorthernLightning]

What the Hell Happened To...Kedrick Brown?

He was very athletic, and that was it.  His offense was non-existent.  His defense wasn't there either.  He didn't grasp the offensive sets.  He looked lost when he was on the floor.  He was the telltale sign why guys from Community Colleges don't get picked that high

http://www.celticslife.com/2012/10/what-hell-happened-tokedrick-brown.html

[greg683x]

on a completely unrelated note, remember this guy.



lock down, elite defense.  Can jump out of the gym.  Made for transition, athletically gifted.  Just needs to work on his jumpshot and develop and offense game and he'll be HUGE

He wasn't intelligent, wasn't a good passer, wasn't a good ball handler, and probably wasn't a good worker. This is why it's important not to just group all "athletes with potential" together like they're all the same. There are those other key factors besides athleticism that indicate whether a player is likely to continue developing and reach a high level.

Besides, nobody even wanted Kedrick Brown. He was drafted as some sort of deal with his super-agent by moron gm from the past.

as ridiculous as you think it is to lump players like this together like theyre all the same, it's just as ridiculous to believe EVERYTHING you read about these players and see on a draft video and walk around like it's a forgone conclusion that they will live up to all the hype theyre given, their games will translate perfectly, and their bodies will fill out exactly how everyone thinks they will.