re: Rank the top 5 NBA players right now

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I have a theory that Durant is never really going to get much better than he is right now.

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That is my thought.

He's a nice guy and a hardworker. He's fun to watch when he's dialing it up from Mexico and drilling it.

But he is what he is.

I laughed my arse off last year at Chris Mannix (who I generally like okay) saying "Once Durant gets post moves he'll average 40 a game."

Give me a fricking break. He gets pushed around by bulkier 2s/3s. He's never going to be a player that can go back to the basket and score that way (like LeBron... and Kobe... etc.).

what? He's what 22? Do you think Rose will get any better? cause he's a whole week younger than Durant.


and as much as I like Rose, his personality, his game (wish he would improve his passing/shooting)......I don't see how anyone can put him above guys like Wade, Durant, Dirk, etc.



and while it does seem like many people have moved kobe down/dirk up b/c of this series, I can't blame anybody. Even though these 3 games are a small sample size, it's a "what have you done lately" league/sport/country. Many people casual fans don't watch a lot of regular season bball, so the majority of what they've witnessed this year has come throughout the playoffs, mainly this series. Dirk has outplayed Kobe, and Kobe has disappeared during crunch time. It's not inconceivable to move Kobe out of your top5 list and Dirk into it b/c of what has transpired lately.....that's human nature (and an honest assesment, imo)



eta:

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He's never going to be a player that can go back to the basket and score that way (like LeBron...

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Lebron doesn't really post-up that often. He might be really good at it if he tried more, but he doesn't post-up enough to be considered really good at it. Durant > Lebron at any type of post/turnaround/fadeaway shots, especially b/c of his length. Lebron's post works best when he's a bull and goes straight towards the basket. Kobe has beautiful post moves even till this day....love watching his footwork and turnaround jumpers.

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what? He's what 22? Do you think Rose will get any better? cause he's a whole week younger than Durant.

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Has nothing to do with age. Has to do with style of play, physical build, strengths of his game, etc. I think Durant can improve his game mentally through experience, but I also agree with the previous poster who said "he is what he is." Unless he gets a lot stronger, I just don't see how he can improve that much.

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and while it does seem like many people have moved kobe down/dirk up b/c of this series, I can't blame anybody. Even though these 3 games are a small sample size, it's a "what have you done lately" league/sport/country. Many people casual fans don't watch a lot of regular season bball, so the majority of what they've witnessed this year has come throughout the playoffs, mainly this series.

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Nearly everyone in this thread isn't a casual fan.

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and thats with Westbrook trying to be the hero throwing up 22 shots a game and at the end of games

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I still stand by my theory from what I've seen that Durant simply has trouble getting open late in games.

I know it's happened once or twice int hese playoffs, where the play was obviously drawn up for Durant, Westbrook wanted to give him the ball, but Durant never got open, and Westbrook had to make a move on his own.

Same thing almost happened at the end of regulation, Durant still got the ball, but was completley unable to shake Allen for anything other than that long 2.

guess we'll have to disagree, I think sky is the limit for Durant. With his age, athleticism, length, leaping ability, jumpshot, etc....that dude has crazy talent and a great attitude/work ethic. No doubt in my mind he will improve.


and the saying I meant to say for Kobe was, "you're only as good as your last game"....oh how true it tis.

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Durant simply has trouble getting open late in games

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this I can somewhat agree with. He will improve this as well over time. I think having a more offensive frontcourt that actually threatens to score will help with this in the future.

I think he can improve his game, but much like Lebron, it may not exactly show up in the stats.

Wasn't Lebron like 21, 3rd year in the league, when he averaged 31/7/7? He's never duplicated that, but he's obviously much better now in lots of aspects on the court.

If he doesn't put on weight, his offensive and defensive games simply just can't improve that much, IMO.

I do think Rose will get better. I bet that this won't be Rose's only MVP season.

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I still stand by my theory from what I've seen that Durant simply has trouble getting open late in games.

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Hes averaging 10 pts in the 4th quarter these playoffs, and yea tony allen did a good job of containing him for that last shot, dudes not gonna get wide open shots every time he tries

And Rose struggles with his shot selection, which could potentially be an easy fix considering all of the physical tools that he possesses. His jump shot is already improving and will probably get better. Although he isn't a top 3 player in the game right now, he very well could be in the next couple of years if he can just be a little more efficient.

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I don't worry about his shot too much. I think he'll become a better shooter over the course of his career.

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Yep. If you're missing something early in your career, this is a good choice.