I know it's probably based on shallow similarities that don't really matter, but can someone break down the difference between Porzingis as he enters the league and Bargnani when he was entering the league? Because every highlight reel I see of Porzingis just reminds me of Bargs.
What, tall and European?
That, plus being a stretch 4/5 who doesn't play much in the post, isn't physically imposing, doesn't rebound or defend well for his size, but is offensively versatile with good range and a lot of "upside". Plus it probably doesn't hurt that one just left the Knicks and one just joined them.
Again, I don't know the guy's game very well, I just see a lot of similarities.
Oh, yeah, that Knicks connection cements it.
Porzi's always been a great rebounder, Bargs, not so much.
Really? I know Euro stats don't always translate well to the NBA and it's hard to compare different Euro leagues to each other, but Porzingis averaged 7.7 rebounds per 36 this past year. Which isn't a very good rate for a 7 footer in the NBA, but even setting that aside, in Bargnani's last year of Euro play he averaged 8.2 per 36. Their numbers are very similar and if anything Bargs had a slight edge going into the draft.
come on, Bargnani was playing in the Lega1 and Porzingis (not Porzingas) was playing in the ACB, two different worlds in European Basketball. The ACB is a stronger regular season competition than Euroleague, where things only get interesting in the playoffs.
That said, Bargnani is not a physical player, Porzingis is. He's not strong enough for NBA yet, but he'll get stronger and maybe he'll be able to keep his mobility and athleticism in the process. He's a totally different player from Bargnani. The only thing they have in common are the NY Knucklebockers and being Euro 7 footers.
Go Celtics!
Thank you! See, this is the kind of contrast I was looking for, since I don't follow Euro ball at all. And for the record, I have at least been spelling his name right - you can take that up with the OP.
I still don't agree that he's a "totally different player" than Bargnani - there does seem to be a fair amount of overlap in their games beyond being white Euros who play the same position. But I should say that I don't think being compared to Bargnani needs to be a bad thing - he's become a walking punchline at this point, but he was drafted #1 for a reason; he absolutely had All-Star talent even though he never realized it. It's like, if you compared someone physically to Fab Melo it would sound insulting, but Fab Melo absolutely had the physical tools to at least be a competent center, he was just an idiot even by NBA standards.
