The guy I've been benchmarking Shaedon against is Jaylen Brown. He's on track to either meet or exceed that comp. Now he just needs a lanky wing from Duke to put alongside him like Jaylen found.
I think his skill level will be as good as Brown's, but Jalen weighs 20 lbs heavier. SS does not need to be 220 but I would like to see him around 210. He takes a lot of hits attacking the basket. SS needs to stay healthy.
Sharpe's defense isnt close. Durability has been much worse too. There's times his offense looks way better with way more potential than Browns though. Brown had much more college experience and had much more functional NBA teammates.
Breaking down in slow-motion some of Sharpe's possessions in the past few games. The last about a minute slows down some of Sharpe's assists in the Atlanta game. Very nice setup of Rob Williams running down the middle and Murray/Banton, etc. in the corner.
It is not outrageous to think Shaedon's career would be Jaylen Brown plus or minus Bronny James. That ice in my veins celly was a breath of fresh air to see from him. Show passion, back up with game, stay humble. Scoot / Sharpe / Camara / Avdija / Clingan has the potential to contend esp when we add Flagg in June. Hoping Cronin can get decent return for Ant Jerami Ayton
No that group does not. Adding Flag to any lineup is a game changer, but that'll be very unlikely to happen. Even more unlikely if the Blazers continue getting some wins.
Potential is all about projecting. Scoot - Let’s not do any projections. Shae - He’s going to be a go-to guy. He may or may not be a 40% 3pt guy but will always have the Kobe/Harden reputation based on his volume. Jury is still out on if he will ever be a lockdown defender, but his physical gifts will allow him to be whenever he needs to be. Clingan - He’s going to anchor the defense. I don’t really care too much about projecting his shooting potential, but I know he will be a threat to stretch the floor enough to not be a liability on that end. And what’s more impressive than anything to me has been his passing. I do think he is going to be at least a Marc Gasol level passer, and he was a great passer. Then you have Camara, who we might not consider a “core” piece, but who’s to say he won’t eventually be a decent two-way forward that eventually is OG-ish? His defense is already at that level, he is improving as a shooter, and may just eventually become a better offensive player by becoming the 4th-5th option on a championship team. Murray, Rupert, we’re all excited about. Avdija, I don’t really care about the trade package when it’s all said and done, he’s going to be a great fit with these guys. It doesn’t have to be Flagg. There will be more than a few prospects at the top that could put this team in contention imo.
My comp for him was higher that Jaylen honestly. I was shocked Jaylen was drafted #3 in 2016. I really liked him as a prospect because he fit the mold of what I like in my prospects, but no one expected him to be as good shooting 3’s right away as he did. Shae showed me more in his HS tape (on offense) than Jaylen ever did at Cal.
His defense and his ball handling are still terrible as in year 1 Those aspects are really alarming, i thought he could improve on that
I mean of course he looked bad going up against an intense defense that obviously planned for him. Unless this year’s goal is NBA Finals I don’t see this as really alarming. It’s not like he’s Travis Outlaw or something. He’ll do better once we get a coach.
Camara is a "core" piece but moreso as a roleplayer. He's like Ariza. He's a fifth option but whose defense is vital. My own finding of championship squads is they comprise of an MVP contender mixed with 3 guys who are 17+ppg within recent history (their prime). Hence, you put Jokic next to Gordon+MPJ+Murray and that is enough. Likewise, Giannis+Middleton+Jrue+Brook. If Portland cannot acquire that down the line, it's risky to assume Camara is a "True Core" piece. So, I emphasize finding Three 17+ppg scorers next to Sharpe so that Camara can be the elite wing defender in the starting lineup next to Clingan's interior defense. Hence, it truly does hinge on that 2025 Draft. I think if Sharpe continues playing like this and the defense is this good, the Blazers are going to be too good for the 2026 Draft. Ideally, Cooper would be the dream but Ace Bailey and Dylan Harper are also great fits. Here's hoping for a Top 3 pick. Kris Murray....the thing about twins is that they usually match up with their fellow twin at some point. If what we're currently seeing from Keegan is the max limit of his talent, I think Kris can easily reach some version of that within the next year. Now, would that be possible for him to achieve that level if Portland acquires Ace or Cooper, who would take his spot? Probably not but having "Third year Keegan Murray" off the bench isn't a bad thing. Then, if Keegan makes the jump into a Tobias Harris type player? That means Kris could be a "17ppg guy" if Portland, for example, were to acquire Dylan Harper at PG instead. Clingan's offense is limited but I do think it's possible he's 17ppg at his absolute prime. The thing about centers is they're pretty 'bland' until 24-25 years old. You'll notice Jokic and Embiid made the jump around 24 or 25 years of age. Similar with Hakeem, Alonzo, and Demarcus Cousins. Seeing as how Clingan might be more along the tier of a Vucevic, Gobert, Nurkic....it rings true to them, too. He's 3-4 years off, in this department. Avdija did demonstrate 17ppg last season.......but only via Per 36. The way he plays might be a bit too slow and ball dominant. However, his ball handling skills and capability to direct offenses with his leadership could make him an excellent Sixth Man and bench Captain. Sixth men are also essential to championship squads and are the second component. Technically, Grant, Simons, and Ayton have demonstrated 17ppg scoring too. But other than Grant, I don't know how well Ayton and Simons fit into the paradigm. The third component to a championship squad - next to 17ppg scorers and Sixth Men - is that 3/5 starters should be good defenders. That's nonexistent from Simons and Ayton is inconsistent in this department.
You have an interesting way of putting it. I’ve never really thought of it that way or had a particular number ppg in mind. Here are some of my own thoughts. Whether or not 17ppg is the magic number or not, I get your point about having a balanced attack. But it’s also worth noting that although the core is young they are are seemingly ready to contribute at varying levels. You’ve also mentioned DA, Ant, and Grant have shown to do that, I’d argue the style of play also matters a whole lot more than the individual talent itself. As it pertains to Camara, I agree, even if his floor is Ariza and his ceiling is only a better defending/efficient scoring version of that, that is still a very valuable piece to be able to lock up for another 3-4 years after these next 3 if we want. That is essentially his entire physical prime. If he is your fifth option, guarding the best opposing player nightly, AND shooting 40% from 3? Yeah, we’ll be just fine. Then there’s everyone else not Shae. - Scoot we know he will be a 17ppg+ guy, we really want to see him to that on very good efficiency to actually count. We know he will get there though, I care more about the vision he’s shown so far. Really, he may not be this until he is his extension, but that’s fine, seeing as he’s so young. Him not being that guy so soon will make his extension more cap-friendly. - Clingan is early in, but I expect him to be around that 17ppg mark on good efficiency as well. I just have no good idea on when this will happen. - I think we will find another guy who will be able to score at that level in this draft. We could certainly take more stabs at it as well. - Then there’s the rest of the forwards. Between Avdija, Rupert, and Murray, any of those guys have the potential to average 17ppg in any given year. The main thing is going to be shooting because 3 is worth more than 2. As long as there isn’t a worry at big man or PG depth behind Scoot and Clingan, we should be able to continue competing for a decade if we keep hunting switchable defenders that can play within an offense every draft.
Does anyone still believe this? I mean, I guess I could convince myself that there's a star in there being held back by inept coaching and bad teammates, but it's getting pretty hard. His shooting seems worse and he just defers too much, and his defense is still laughable.
I will need to see him for a season or two without Simons and possibly see him under a new coach to know.
