I’ll be honest: I was a little nervous putting out a request for mailbag questions. Wasn’t sure if anyone would respond. Thankfully, I was overwhelmed with thoughtful, intriguing questions, and I am grateful to everyone who took the time to ask!
One of my many, many strengths as a person is not brevity, so naturally, I went way too hard on some of these questions. As a result, I’m breaking this up into two posts, for readability’s sake. Part II comes this weekend, so if your question isn’t below, it’s hopefully coming soon.
[I think I answered everyone’s questions either in these mailbags or via email (so check that if you don’t see your question by this weekend!). If you DID ask me a question and don’t see an answer, please let me know at mike@basketballpoetry.com. It’s important to me that everyone who asks gets a response worth their time and money.]
This was a fun exercise! I got to talk about a lot of players and teams I haven’t covered recently, which I always enjoy. Hopefully, you will too.
Let’s go.
Colin E: What are your thoughts on how Amen Thompson has looked for the Rockets, particularly since Fred VanVleet's recent injury?
I love the rookie’s game.
Thompson is a very intelligent player, which shows up most concretely in how he cuts without the ball. He has a great understanding of not just how to cut to get himself open but how to cut in a way that bends defenses for his teammates, too. I love that he goes hard on his cuts even when he knows he won’t get the ball. 90% of NBA players go three-quarters speed on many of their assigned plays when they aren’t the primary target, but Thompson sprints. That has its own gravity.
He might already, right now, be the best non-big-man rebounder in the league. He’s listed at 6’7”, with real bunnies, a lightning-quick second jump, and the ability to grab a ball at its high point like no one’s business. His per-possession rebounding stats are jaw-dropping.
Defensively, he should eventually make an All-Defensive team once he gets used to NBA refereeing. Look at the way he locks up Tyrese Haliburton full court here:
So that’s all great, and he’s a nifty passer, too.
But holy hell, that shot.
Thompson is at 17% from deep on the year. 17%! And his 63% free throw percentage is not particularly encouraging, either. And the misses aren’t just bad; they’re bad-bad.
My buddy Marc Campbell, who writes
, just authored an interesting piece on Ausar Thompson’s jumper. Marc writes that OTE, the high school program (sort of?) the Thompson twins played in, brought in biomechanical experts to help players construct the perfect shot. The result?Ausar’s shooting mechanics reflect the search for biomechanical perfection in a vacuum. There are perfect angles throughout the shot; his hips, knees, elbow, and wrist all scream “textbook.” However, there’s no connective tissue; the ball and the body are disconnected. They are not working as a team. It’s like all the engineers at NASA just laid out the parts of the rocket on the floor and never put them together.
Many of the mechanical issues present in Ausar’s shot are in Amen’s, too. It’s not that teams don’t mind when Amen shoots. They actively want him to shoot. They throw little parties with little paper hats when he shoots!
The defense doesn’t even pretend to close out on him, and he still misses by a mile. And that’s one of his more respectable whiffs.
In some ways, Fred VanVleet’s absence has been good for Amen. He’s getting more on-ball reps, which has resulted in more turnovers but at least somewhat makes him an offensive threat despite his lack of a shot. But higher minutes have also exposed all his warts: the weaker-than-you-think handle, the fouls, the horrid spacing issues he presents. It’s not a shock that the Rockets have crashed without VanVleet around.
That said, Houston needs to have its eyes on the future. I’m a believer in Amen. By all accounts, he has an awe-inspiring work ethic and a great attitude. Shooting can be improved (as can dribbling and defense). These are all normal, if extreme, rookie issues.
But until he develops at least a functional jumper, all his heady cuts and clever passes and tip dunks might never add up to more than a below-average offensive player.
Brendan B: Is it my imagination, or are the Clippers particularly susceptible to teams with a strong/long center or that have a strong inside presence? If so, does that bring into question the likelihood of the deep run into the playoffs now predicted by many?
Interesting question. I looked at this a bunch of different ways, and in short, I think the answer is yes. I am concerned about their efforts against teams with big defensive presences, in particular.
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