Jared Sullinger career clone

[slightly biased bias fan]

Sully has been compared to many players but his true comparison is Z-Bo.

Check this out:

Rk   Player   From   To   G   GS   MP   FG   FGA   FG%   3P   3PA   3P%   2P   2PA   2P%   FT   FTA   FT%   ORB   DRB   TRB   AST   STL   BLK   TOV   PF   PTS
1   Zach Randolph   2002   2004   199   91   23.1   4.9   10.0   .490   0.0   0.1   .100   4.9   9.9   .492   2.2   2.9   .756   2.1   4.3   6.3   1.1   0.6   0.3   1.6   2.0   12.0
2   Jared Sullinger   2013   2015   170   98   25.9   4.7   10.5   .443   0.6   2.3   .277   4.0   8.3   .489   1.7   2.3   .764   2.8   4.8   7.5   1.6   0.6   0.6   1.3   3.2   11.7

[TheFlex]

If Sully can bring his FG% up to 50%, he will have a very bright future.

edit: I know the game favors the three but if he can refocus his outside shooting improvement to the elbow extended area instead of straightaway threes, I think it'll go a long way towards making him both better in general and more palatable to be on the floor with bigs of various other styles (i.e. versatile).

[BornReady]

If Sully can bring his FG% up to 50%, he will have a very bright future.

edit: I know the game favors the three but if he can refocus his outside shooting improvement to the elbow extended area instead of straightaway threes, I think it'll go a long way towards making him both better in general and more palatable to be on the floor with bigs of various other styles (i.e. versatile).

I agree

He should become a solid 3 point shooter
We aren't talking about Kevin love or dirk but just have a respectable 3P% to keep defences honest and focus on conditioning so he can play more mins without being worn out from running up and down the court

[clover]

If Jared Sullinger can get his body fat down to single digits, he should have a very good career.

[Msimonetta2]

Yeah there is no reason why one of your best young players is only playing 28 minutes a game.  Unless when he is played beyond that his production goes down the toilet....We will know Sully is a true building block when he is averaging 35 minutes a game, and that folks is all about conditioning which he has not figured out yet.

[Celtics4ever]

He has gained weight during the season if this continues his career clone will be Mel Turpin.   If not, he will be Al Horford Lite once he realizes he has no business shooting threes.  Sadly, I think he goes the route of Big Baby, a guy with talent who never got his act together.

[PhoSita]

Does Zach Randolph have single digit body fat?  Has he ever?  I rather doubt it.  Sheed probably never did, either.

That said, I don't see the comparison with ZBo.  I understand they're both 6'9" PFs with physique more like an undersized center than a PF, and I see that the basic counting stars for their early career years are similar.  It doesn't pass the eye test for me, though.  I think ZBo is naturally more physically gifted and skilled.  He has been a much, much more dangerous back to the basket player from the start.

Sullinger was a back to the basket center in college who has had to transition to a face up four role in the NBA because his post game doesn't cut it at this level against most opponents.  He's never going to be a go to option on the block.

Sully is much better than Glen Davis.  He's a much better finisher and has a better jumpshot, with plenty of potential to keep improving it.   The outside shot isn't going to disappear from Sullingers repertoire, just like it never disappeared from Sheed's.  I think Sully can one day become the kind of shooter Boris Diaw is now.  Sully is also a smarter player than Davis.  He's not a head case like Davis.

[D.o.s.]

Pho, I agree with you -- I actually think the Sullinger comps sell ZBo short (doubly so for Sheed) when it comes to their post games.

[The One]

He has gained weight during the season if this continues his career clone will be Mel Turpin.   If not, he will be Al Horford Lite once he realizes he has no business shooting threes.  Sadly, I think he goes the route of Big Baby, a guy with talent who never got his act together.

Big Baby?!?! That would be heartbreaking.

[Rosco917]

I hope Sully can over come this conditioning problem. Frankly, it begins in the head, he has to have the desire to get into nba condition.

Sully has a body more like Big Baby than Zach or Sheed. Sully has that big butt that will never allow him to be slim looking, but it's that "center mass" that gives him his power and ability to get where he wants on the court, much like an offensive lineman.

He needs to get serious, or he will be another Big Baby.

[makaveli]

don't insult z-bo, i saw him play in his early years, they might be there stat's wise. Zach had Paul Pierce type footwork, witch was apsolutely amazing for a big man, his game changed over the years, and he never was a 3pt chucker, like sully is.

[Celtics4ever]

I think Sully can one day become the kind of shooter Boris Diaw is now. 

Which is probably why your not a scout at any level.   JK  I am not optimistic about his shooting, it has been almost  as bad as it was last year.  Boris can drive Sully cannot, I do not ever think he will garner that versatility to be a shooting and jump shot threat.

I agree he is better than Glen Davis, I compared them only because both are limited by body type and tangible lack of effort during the off-season.

Sullinger was a back to the basket center in college who has had to transition to a face up four role in the NBA because his post game doesn't cut it at this level against most opponents.  He's never going to be a go to option on the block.

Funny, but I would ask you to look at his shooting statistics more closely.   You will find that he makes a higher percentage of close range shots than he does Boris Diaw ones.   His jump hook is nasty and effective.  He is at his best on the offensive boards all post shots.

I think he is tweener, as he is short, now tweener can thrives if they are athletic and strong enough.  He can only play well on one end of the court.

[clover]

I think Sully can one day become the kind of shooter Boris Diaw is now. 

Which is probably why your not a scout at any level.   JK  I am not optimistic about his shooting, it has been almost  as bad as it was last year.  Boris can drive Sully cannot, I do not ever think he will garner that versatility to be a shooting and jump shot threat.

I agree he is better than Glen Davis, I compared them only because both are limited by body type and tangible lack of effort during the off-season.

Sullinger was a back to the basket center in college who has had to transition to a face up four role in the NBA because his post game doesn't cut it at this level against most opponents.  He's never going to be a go to option on the block.

Funny, but I would ask you to look at his shooting statistics more closely.   You will find that he makes a higher percentage of close range shots than he does Boris Diaw ones.   His jump hook is nasty and effective.  He is at his best on the offensive boards all post shots.

I think he is tweener, as he is short, now tweener can thrives if they are athletic and strong enough.  He can only play well on one end of the court.

And KO shoots a much higher percentage from 0-3'....

[clover]

Sully has been compared to many players but his true comparison is Z-Bo.

Check this out:

Rk   Player   From   To   G   GS   MP   FG   FGA   FG%   3P   3PA   3P%   2P   2PA   2P%   FT   FTA   FT%   ORB   DRB   TRB   AST   STL   BLK   TOV   PF   PTS
1   Zach Randolph   2002   2004   199   91   23.1   4.9   10.0   .490   0.0   0.1   .100   4.9   9.9   .492   2.2   2.9   .756   2.1   4.3   6.3   1.1   0.6   0.3   1.6   2.0   12.0
2   Jared Sullinger   2013   2015   170   98   25.9   4.7   10.5   .443   0.6   2.3   .277   4.0   8.3   .489   1.7   2.3   .764   2.8   4.8   7.5   1.6   0.6   0.6   1.3   3.2   11.7

Just those raw #'s make Sully look a hair better than Randolph.

[PhoSita]

I think Sully can one day become the kind of shooter Boris Diaw is now. 

Which is probably why your not a scout at any level.   JK  I am not optimistic about his shooting, it has been almost  as bad as it was last year.  Boris can drive Sully cannot, I do not ever think he will garner that versatility to be a shooting and jump shot threat.

Take a look at Diaw's shooting averages from outside early in his career.  He's come a long way.

Still, Diaw is just a spot-up shooter from outside, not a high-leverage guy from that range.  That's what I'm talking about.  I think Sullinger can develop into a reliable threat spotting up outside, but as The Flex says, better for him to take those from above the break or the corner than straight away.


As for the back to basket stuff -- Sullinger has a couple of effective moves.  But he's light years away from being the kind of threat, with the kinds of moves, that Zach Randolph is and has been.  Sully is never going to score 20 a game getting fed in the post possession after possession.  Z-Bo has been a go-to guy in the post for much of his career.

As a post threat, Sullinger is more similar to somebody like David Lee or Carl Landry.  Which is  to say, it's a weapon he has, but not a major one (and Sully doesn't have the athleticism of either Lee or Landry).


By the way, it's rather obvious that Sullinger's shooting percentages inside are better than those outside.  That's true of nearly every player in the league.  More interesting would be how many points per possession the Celtics get from Sullinger working in the post versus taking jumpshots from 15-20 feet or further.