Upon further review I take klay Thompson over kawai Leonard.
The only thing is kawai has a championship mentality while klay can be a little coog bitch. Not to mention he plays with zero pressure because it's all on curry.
But still, He's a good defender and the most explosive scorer in the game.
Klay isn't even in the top 5 for explosive scorers. I think he is underrated by many because of Curry and he's gotten better each season, but Curry, Durant, Carmello, Harden, and Westbrook are all more explosive.
Explosive is tough to define. Is Anthony Davis not as explosive as the others because he doesn't shoot 3's?
Leonard is too superior at everything other than shooting to be ranked below Klay imo.
Upon further review I take klay Thompson over kawai Leonard.
The only thing is kawai has a championship mentality while klay can be a little coog bitch. Not to mention he plays with zero pressure because it's all on curry.
But still, He's a good defender and the most explosive scorer in the game.
No chance. Thompson's probably not in my top 15. I'd take Gasol or Draymond Green over him for sure. I'd probably take George or Rose or Butler over him too.
Upon further review I take klay Thompson over kawai Leonard.
The only thing is kawai has a championship mentality while klay can be a little coog bitch. Not to mention he plays with zero pressure because it's all on curry.
But still, He's a good defender and the most explosive scorer in the game.
Klay isn't even in the top 5 for explosive scorers. I think he is underrated by many because of Curry and he's gotten better each season, but Curry, Durant, Carmello, Harden, and Westbrook are all more explosive.
Explosive is tough to define. Is Anthony Davis not as explosive as the others because he doesn't shoot 3's?
Leonard is too superior at everything other than shooting to be ranked below Klay imo.
Klay is a great guy to play opposite of a great player but I don't believe he's a #1 on a any team. That means he's not even a top 20 guy. He isn't a great defender, so take him away from curry......it's not like we're talking westbrook who dominates both ends of the court but had the 2nd best player in the world on his team.
Leonard can score and is one of the top defensive guys in the league. Would take him 10 out of 10
I've followed the NBA even less than the usual low amount but Kawhi Leonard in the top ten? Really? Isn't he like the third or fourth option on the Spurs?
I've followed the NBA even less than the usual low amount but Kawhi Leonard in the top ten? Really? Isn't he like the third or fourth option on the Spurs?
He led the team in scoring (by almost 2.5 ppg) and won NBA defensive POY.
Klay is probably somewhere between 12-18. He's a damn good player. Looking at his stats, he has improved each year he's been in the league, and improved quite a bit. His shooting percentages are going up, even with increased volume.
I made the post in another thread that this year his 3 point percentage was higher than Reggie Miller's ever was and Klay made more 3's than Reggie ever did. He's also become much more than a shooter and has a good off the dribble game. He's a tall two guard that gives good effort on defense too.
Agree with most of your list, the only real difference is I have Carmelo instead of Boogie Cousins. Both players are really high talents, but both are losers and have issues. I just give the nod to Melo because he has taken his team to the playoffs, whereas Cousins hasn't even sniffed the playoffs, not even sure he has come close to .500. As horrible of a teammate as Melo can be, he is arguably the best pure scorer in the NBA and he does rebound fairly well for a SF.
Agree with most of your list, the only real difference is I have Carmelo instead of Boogie Cousins. Both players are really high talents, but both are losers and have issues. I just give the nod to Melo because he has taken his team to the playoffs, whereas Cousins hasn't even sniffed the playoffs, not even sure he has come close to .500. As horrible of a teammate as Melo can be, he is arguably the best pure scorer in the NBA and he does rebound fairly well for a SF.
Klay is probably somewhere between 12-18. He's a damn good player. Looking at his stats, he has improved each year he's been in the league, and improved quite a bit. His shooting percentages are going up, even with increased volume.
I made the post in another thread that this year his 3 point percentage was higher than Reggie Miller's ever was and Klay made more 3's than Reggie ever did. He's also become much more than a shooter and has a good off the dribble game. He's a tall two guard that gives good effort on defense too.
Reggie Miller never played with someone as good as Steph Curry either. Klay and Steph definitely make each other better, but Curry helps Klay more than Klay helps Steph IMO.
He's a good player but I don't think he's top 20. You really think if Klay was the best player on his team he'd be right in the middle of #1's in the league?
Klay is probably somewhere between 12-18. He's a damn good player. Looking at his stats, he has improved each year he's been in the league, and improved quite a bit. His shooting percentages are going up, even with increased volume.
I made the post in another thread that this year his 3 point percentage was higher than Reggie Miller's ever was and Klay made more 3's than Reggie ever did. He's also become much more than a shooter and has a good off the dribble game. He's a tall two guard that gives good effort on defense too.
Reggie Miller never played with someone as good as Steph Curry either. Klay and Steph definitely make each other better, but Curry helps Klay more than Klay helps Steph IMO.
He's a good player but I don't think he's top 20. You really think if Klay was the best player on his team he'd be right in the middle of #1's in the league?
Not sure there really is a good end point to this discussion. Klay is solid, but nobody knows how he'd do being the #1 vs the #2. The defenders and defenses he may face vs what teams have to do right now in order to stop curry. I hope for the sake of GS that we don't have to find out whether klay is great on his own. He doesn't need to prove anything other than to keep winning and playing well.
If I had to put a number, I'd still wager 25-30 or so b/c he isn't some sort of great defender. But obviously still a great player.
I really like Klay as a player, but I don't think his skill set is suited to be a #1 option on a team. He is a great #2 option. He is a very underrated defensive player, he is one of the better perimeter defenders in the NBA. Offensively he is a weaker version of Ray Allen in his prime. He doesn't have the elite penetrating skills that Ray had.
Klay is probably somewhere between 12-18. He's a damn good player. Looking at his stats, he has improved each year he's been in the league, and improved quite a bit. His shooting percentages are going up, even with increased volume.
I made the post in another thread that this year his 3 point percentage was higher than Reggie Miller's ever was and Klay made more 3's than Reggie ever did. He's also become much more than a shooter and has a good off the dribble game. He's a tall two guard that gives good effort on defense too.
Reggie Miller never played with someone as good as Steph Curry either. Klay and Steph definitely make each other better, but Curry helps Klay more than Klay helps Steph IMO.
He's a good player but I don't think he's top 20. You really think if Klay was the best player on his team he'd be right in the middle of #1's in the league?
Curry helps, but he's not the reason Klay puts up numbers. He puts up numbers because he's good. On other teams, he would get more attempts and handle the ball more. He's more than just a shooter. I don't think he's better than Reggie Miller, but I don't think he's far off either. It's a tough argument, but I do think Klay would rank in the middle of #1's.
If Klay's your 2nd best player ... you're winning titles. If he's your best, probably not. There's no shame in that.
Reggie doesn't have a title because he was always the best player on his team.
Pau Gasol has titles because he was the 2nd best player with the Lakers ... couldn't sniff shit when he was the best.
There's absolutely no shame in being the 2nd best player on your team if winning is your end objective.
We can say all that we want about how you need great players to win titles (and you do) ... but you also need to have a bunch of good/great complementary players around you to help out. Nobody wins on their own.
If Klay's your 2nd best player ... you're winning titles. If he's your best, probably not. There's no shame in that.
Reggie doesn't have a title because he was always the best player on his team.
Pau Gasol has titles because he was the 2nd best player with the Lakers ... couldn't sniff shit when he was the best.
There's absolutely no shame in being the 2nd best player on your team if winning is your end objective.
We can say all that we want about how you need great players to win titles (and you do) ... but you also need to have a bunch of good/great complementary players around you to help out. Nobody wins on their own.
There are a few teams that Klay could be the #1 option and compete for a title.
Atlanta, Memphis, San Antonio, maybe Washington. You could sub out those teams' 2 guard for Klay and possibly win a title. He might not be the best player on those teams, but he would likely be all of those teams' leading scorer.
If Klay's your 2nd best player ... you're winning titles. If he's your best, probably not. There's no shame in that.
Reggie doesn't have a title because he was always the best player on his team.
Pau Gasol has titles because he was the 2nd best player with the Lakers ... couldn't sniff shit when he was the best.
There's absolutely no shame in being the 2nd best player on your team if winning is your end objective.
We can say all that we want about how you need great players to win titles (and you do) ... but you also need to have a bunch of good/great complementary players around you to help out. Nobody wins on their own.
All this is true, except Klays not the's not the second best player on the team anymore.
Agree with most of your list, the only real difference is I have Carmelo instead of Boogie Cousins. Both players are really high talents, but both are losers and have issues. I just give the nod to Melo because he has taken his team to the playoffs, whereas Cousins hasn't even sniffed the playoffs, not even sure he has come close to .500. As horrible of a teammate as Melo can be, he is arguably the best pure scorer in the NBA and he does rebound fairly well for a SF.
Carmelo SUCKS.
Hope this helps.
He was second in scoring a couple years ago, and led the NBA in scoring in 2013. He was injured last year, but that doesn't mean we write him off. He doesn't suck, but he isn't a great teammate either. Him and Cousins are very similar, but like I mentioned, he gets the nod above Cousins because he has actually won at the NBA level.
If Klay's your 2nd best player ... you're winning titles. If he's your best, probably not. There's no shame in that.
Reggie doesn't have a title because he was always the best player on his team.
Pau Gasol has titles because he was the 2nd best player with the Lakers ... couldn't sniff shit when he was the best.
There's absolutely no shame in being the 2nd best player on your team if winning is your end objective.
We can say all that we want about how you need great players to win titles (and you do) ... but you also need to have a bunch of good/great complementary players around you to help out. Nobody wins on their own.
All this is true, except Klays not the's not the second best player on the team anymore.
Disagree. If you are starting a team from scratch, Klay is picked before Green. And I've been a huge fan of Green since he was at Michigan State. I remember APAG and me talking about how good of a role player he was two years ago.
If Klay's your 2nd best player ... you're winning titles. If he's your best, probably not. There's no shame in that.
Reggie doesn't have a title because he was always the best player on his team.
Pau Gasol has titles because he was the 2nd best player with the Lakers ... couldn't sniff shit when he was the best.
There's absolutely no shame in being the 2nd best player on your team if winning is your end objective.
We can say all that we want about how you need great players to win titles (and you do) ... but you also need to have a bunch of good/great complementary players around you to help out. Nobody wins on their own.
All this is true, except Klays not the's not the second best player on the team anymore.
Disagree. If you are starting a team from scratch, Klay is picked before Green. And I've been a huge fan of Green since he was at Michigan State. I remember APAG and me talking about how good of a role player he was two years ago.
If I'm starting a team from scratch I'm taking Green before Klay rather easily. But I'm a sucker for defense.
Comments
Explosive is tough to define. Is Anthony Davis not as explosive as the others because he doesn't shoot 3's?
Leonard is too superior at everything other than shooting to be ranked below Klay imo.
Leonard can score and is one of the top defensive guys in the league. Would take him 10 out of 10
He's damn good.
I made the post in another thread that this year his 3 point percentage was higher than Reggie Miller's ever was and Klay made more 3's than Reggie ever did. He's also become much more than a shooter and has a good off the dribble game. He's a tall two guard that gives good effort on defense too.
Hope this helps.
He's a good player but I don't think he's top 20. You really think if Klay was the best player on his team he'd be right in the middle of #1's in the league?
If I had to put a number, I'd still wager 25-30 or so b/c he isn't some sort of great defender. But obviously still a great player.
Reggie doesn't have a title because he was always the best player on his team.
Pau Gasol has titles because he was the 2nd best player with the Lakers ... couldn't sniff shit when he was the best.
There's absolutely no shame in being the 2nd best player on your team if winning is your end objective.
We can say all that we want about how you need great players to win titles (and you do) ... but you also need to have a bunch of good/great complementary players around you to help out. Nobody wins on their own.
Atlanta, Memphis, San Antonio, maybe Washington. You could sub out those teams' 2 guard for Klay and possibly win a title. He might not be the best player on those teams, but he would likely be all of those teams' leading scorer.
Anthony would be great again on a great team. There is no reason not to be a selfish dick on the Knicks