At Age 26 Who Will Be Better

[HawkNJersey]

I think Al has all the room in world for improvement. He has only been in the league one year. Smoove has improved for four years in a row now and is nearing his max. That is what I think.

8 boards a game is almost sad for a PF that averaged 35 minutes a game and is asking for 72 mill or more....

You watch the games, I assume...why is Smoove a bad rebounder?

BTW, Garnett averaged 9 boards a game...and he's making 20 mil. And he's also...his teams primary rebounder, which Smoove is not.

[AmishBoy]

You watch the games, I assume...why is Smoove a bad rebounder?

BTW, Garnett averaged 9 boards a game...and he's making 20 mil. And he's also...his teams primary rebounder, which Smoove is not.

Come on really. KG has averaged over 11 rebounds a game for his CAREER. Boston is a special circumstance.

[DJlaysitup]

HNJ is right...I have watched MANY games in which JS has taken over and got all the rebounds.

[Cwell]

Smith is four years into a NBA career and still can barely dribble a basketball. That astounds me.

more of the same BS about Smoove's handle. where he has to be hotsauce to have a decent handle.

[Iman]

I'm a big Al fan but I still think Smoove has a little higher upside. The key is learning let the game come to him and as stated, figuring out how to control his jumping while jumpshooting. Many of the pure athletes such as Vince Carter and Chris Webber figured out how to do it, many others never did. Smoove's biggest limitation in my mind is his small hands. They slightly limit what he'll ever be able to do in the post.

So I guess I think Al will be better and both will be near all-stars by 26. However, there is more of a chance that Smoove will be a superstar. I don't think it will happen and I also worry about what will happen to Smoove as he loses some athleticism since really that's all his game is based on.

[gmoney1184]

I'm looking for consistency. At times Smoov showed he could be pretty erratic with his handles and decision making. Horford, you know what you're gonna get with the rebounding and hustle. I'm not really looking at who is going to be better, i'm hoping that they can develop together and take this team to multiple playoff runs.

[Swish]

Horford or Smoove? I think most of u know where i am on this issue. smoove can only get better (much better). horford will get better. but based on ceiling its no contest, smith is the only five tool player in the NBA. horford is a rebouder, he may develop into a scorer, but will he ever average 18 points a game? i question that. smoove does that now. it's not just the numbers i'm looking at actual play on the court. the aggressive nature of smith gives the edge over most players in the league. believe me, i love horford, but if i'm starting a team right now, and looking toward the future, i choose smoove over horford. there were times this past year that smoove was unstoppable, will horford ever be unstoppable, i don't think so. choosing horford over smoove is choosing solid over extraordinary

I actually I would say there are two five tool players- LeBron and Josh.

[Theeyo]

I will have to go with Josh on this b/c he has a higher ceiling.

To me Horford is a bit robotic in the same sense like Tim Duncan (without all that offense)...nothing really flashy, just consistent & solid numbers.

Josh on the other hand is an Xfactor for our team because he does have some consistency issues, but what he does for us on the court can make or break us. He is a game changer & teams have to change their game plans because of him. He has like this ability to raise his game up a few notches on demand during games...kinda like how Popeye gets when he eats spinach LOL

[crimedog]

I will have to go with Josh on this b/c he has a higher ceiling.

To me Horford is a bit robotic in the same sense like Tim Duncan (without all that offense)...nothing really flashy, just consistent & solid numbers.

Josh on the other hand is an Xfactor for our team because he does have some consistency issues, but what he does for us on the court can make or break us. He is a game changer & teams have to change their game plans because of him. He has like this ability to raise his game up a few notches on demand during games...kinda like how Popeye gets when he eats spinach LOL

Like that Philly game... that was one of the most remarkable things I've ever seen. He dominated the second quarter on both ends by blocking everything that any Philly player put up, disrupting their offense with steals, playing great unselfish ball and making some great passes, and taking Thad Young out of the game with fouls.

[Traceman]

Horford or Smoove? I think most of u know where i am on this issue. smoove can only get better (much better). horford will get better. but based on ceiling its no contest, smith is the only five tool player in the NBA. horford is a rebouder, he may develop into a scorer, but will he ever average 18 points a game? i question that. smoove does that now. it's not just the numbers i'm looking at actual play on the court. the aggressive nature of smith gives the edge over most players in the league. believe me, i love horford, but if i'm starting a team right now, and looking toward the future, i choose smoove over horford. there were times this past year that smoove was unstoppable, will horford ever be unstoppable, i don't think so. choosing horford over smoove is choosing solid over extraordinary

I think they both are going to be really good but if I had to pick I'd say Al. Smoove could certainly end up being the better player and if he reaches his full potential, he will be. That said, if I had to bet, I'd bet on Al because I have NO DOUBT that he is going to be one of the better big men in the league by age 26.

[BusBoyIsBack]

This Al vs Horford talk is ridiculous.

We are better off with BOTH of them.

Losing one leaves a huge void.

[PlayaPat420]

So if 5 things is better than 1, would you take Smoove over Iverson or Carmelo, players who basically score and do nothing else?

AI is HOF material but yeah, I would take Smoove over Melo

[Joker]

AI is HOF material but yeah, I would take Smoove over Melo

You would take Smoove over Melo, and I would take AK-47 over Amare :sad:

[Swish]

Are you really a scout man???

Smoove over Anthony 7days a week. I've said before JS is one of two or three five tool players in the game today. I would be willing to bet if we had Melo and they had Smoove we don't win any more than 38 games this year if that.

[EazyRoc]

I disagree. For this team, I would have to take Carmelo. He's one of the league's best scorers, and is a solid rebounder. Carmelo is the better player right now, easily.

[Joker]

Are you really a scout man???

Smoove over Anthony 7days a week. I've said before JS is one of two or three five tool players in the game today. I would be willing to bet if we had Melo and they had Smoove we don't win any more than 38 games this year if that.

I was being sarastic, I was basically mocking that post by saying something I felt was that crazy. What is up with this scout thing, I said I worked for a small firm as a local scout for high school talent in around my college and it wasn't even there for more then 2 months and now to some on this board I'm this scout that scouting every great NBA player there is. Quit being crazy and listening to Goofsel. I'm a college student, simple as that. I would guess Dolfan is software designer but just because he (might) be one doesn't mean he worked directly under Bill Gates at Mircosoft or Steve Jobs at Apple. So for any other person who wants to gloat this crap, read this post and don't ask me again.

To the other poster who talked about five tools players.

Wade, Bron, Marion, AK-47, Amare, JS, Gerald Wallace and several others are five tool players.

Melo is elite on offense. He is the 2nd best scorer in the league behind Kobe. I don't think Smith elite at anything other then athletic ability. He can become a elite shot blocker when he learns patience on defense like Ben W. or Deke.

Edited August 5, 2008 by nbasuperstar40

[EazyRoc]

Too bad Smith is already an elite shot blocker. He was the fastest player in NBA history to 600 blocks.

Edited August 5, 2008 by EazyRoc

[Joker]

Too bad Smith is already an elite shot blocker. He was the fastest player in NBA history to 600 blocks.

Elite shot blockers are patience, do not take themselves constantly out of plays and try to block everything. He has improved in the ladder half of the season and the playoffs as I seen him become more patience. He's more Theo Ratliff right now then Hakeem, Deke, and Big Ben. He is getting much better, I can see him becoming elite at blocking in a season or two.

[EazyRoc]

The thing is...he got to 600 blocks faster than ALL of those guys. He's easily a better shotblocker than Ben Wallace. Hell, he's arguably better than all of those guys when it comes to blocking shots. The only thing he doesn't do well is block shots head on. Of course, he isn't 7ft+ like Theo, Hakeem, or Dikembe.

[Joker]

The thing is...he got to 600 blocks faster than ALL of those guys. He's easily a better shotblocker than Ben Wallace. Hell, he's arguably better than all of those guys when it comes to blocking shots. The only thing he doesn't do well is block shots head on. Of course, he isn't 7ft+ like Theo, Hakeem, or Dikembe.

He not even a better shot blocker then Big Ben now, a couple years Ben was 10 times better shot blocker. Shot blocking goes so much further then a stat.