Sonny Weems' is the future in Toronto

[albertan_10]

Teams have been burned many times in the past by not staying the course and Colangelo has an excellent track record in drafting guards and forwards. I think we need to give it time. There are a lot more good players in the league who took time to develop than there are good players in the league who were making a large impact right out of the gate.

Agreed. I think fans get bent out of shape when things are perfect and GM's make moves to just subside our fury for a while. The Thunder didn't just pop up as a good team, they took time. They were able to take time because fans in OKC were happy just to have a team. If they'd stayed in Seattle maybe it wouldn't have worked out as nicely. Who knows.

The point is we need to be patient with these kids. We shouldn't speculate on their future abilities until the end of the season so we can get a good read on growth and consistency.

[mcHAPPY]

@Matt52

I agree with the numbers.

I didnt say that elite players already have the swagger as soon as they enter the league, but it does come out usually during the 2nd or 3rd year. you know these guys are going to come out and make sure theyre the ones hitting the big shots. i remember kobe hit that game winner i think against the mavs during his rookie year.

i dont think demar or sonny has that in them. you know they want to hit the clutch shots, but its actually making plays to hit those big shots is what pushes you to the next level

I agree Sonny does not. That is no disrespect to the guy. I think he is a good player when focused. I think he has a good career ahead of him. He could possibly start on a weak team or be a great first wing off the bench for a good team. Maybe a little bit of success lately made him think his work was done. I don't know just guessing here.

As for DD, I started a thread a while ago questioning him. He then went on to play very well against ORL and MIA (no, I'm not taking credit!). Those two games showed there is great potential there. Will that potential be tapped consistently? I don't know but I hope so. Either way, it is worth seeing what happens. Hopefully early success did not go to his head.

The Raptors have a solid future. My consensus has always been the foundation is laid. They need to acquire some stars to go with what is already here through the draft or trade. A lot can happen between now and the next draft.

For those thinking this is a playoff team, I think they will be disappointed just like those thinking this is the worst team in the league.

[Multipaul]

thats like saying Cat shit stinks worse then Dog shit...LOL

brilliant!

[Apollo]

Teams have been burned many times in the past by not staying the course and Colangelo has an excellent track record in drafting guards and forwards. I think we need to give it time. There are a lot more good players in the league who took time to develop than there are good players in the league who were making a large impact right out of the gate.

[TheGloveinRapsUniform]

@Matt52

I agree with the numbers.

I didnt say that elite players already have the swagger as soon as they enter the league, but it does come out usually during the 2nd or 3rd year. you know these guys are going to come out and make sure theyre the ones hitting the big shots. i remember kobe hit that game winner i think against the mavs during his rookie year.

i dont think demar or sonny has that in them. you know they want to hit the clutch shots, but its actually making plays to hit those big shots is what pushes you to the next level

[matt]

Yeah but he's not more talented and he's two years older.

Well I mean you can argue about that call, it`s not like we see amazing stuff from derozan anyways, talent aint nothing if you dont use it.

[mcHAPPY]

i think both have the potential to be good players, but they can never be elite players.
elite players have that swagger, attitude. they command the ball, make plays and are not afraid to take risks.
if you look at kobe, lebron, wade, they all have this "im the man" attitude, and some might think of it as negative but thats how they became great, you make other people see what you can do and not wait for them to give you a look.
probably the best the these can achieve is a manu ginobli type player. not an elite player but can contribute.
i used to think bargs is the same way, but Bargs seems to be finding his niche. Bad game or not, he knows he needs to get his shots, and i think thats the attitude these guys need to show.

Of those players, only LeBron came in to the league with 'the swagger' and backed it up.

Kobe's 1st two year stats are below - they are hard to decipher but I bolded the points. He was 1 year younger than DeMar as a rookie. Plus Kobe had been around professional basketball his entire life with his Dad being a pro player.

YR TM G GS MIN FG FG% 3P 3P% FT FT% STL BLK TO PF OFF DEF TOT AST PTS
96-97 LAL 71 6 15.5 2.5-5.9 .417 0.7-1.9 .375 1.9-2.3 .819 0.70 0.30 1.6 1.4 0.7 1.2 1.9 1.3 7.6
97-98 LAL 79 1 26.0 4.9-11.6 .428 0.9-2.8 .341 4.6-5.8 .794 0.90 0.50 2.0 2.3 1.0 2.1 3.1 2.5 15.4

Wade had much better stats than DD but he also played 3 years of university ball and played his rookie year as a 22 year old. I'm not sure people realize Wade is turning 29 this year. To be honest I did not realize until this summer.

03-04 MIA 61 56 34.9 6.1-13.1 .465 0.3-0.9 .302 3.8-5.1 .747 1.40 0.60 3.2 2.3 1.4 2.7 4.1 4.5 16.2

The worst part of all this is as soon as DD and Weems put together a run the threads will be "future stars" again.

With regards to expectations on players, the whole marketing scheme this year (and don't forget that is all it is) puts immense pressure on players and a possibility for them to get ahead of themselves with regards to where they are in terms of development.

Two players suffering the same sort of fate, however both have much more talent, is DeMarcus Cousins and Tyreke Evans. Everything in SAC in relation to marketing is about those guys but neither is living up to the hype. Cousins reportedly has attitude/maturity issues and Evans is suffering a sophmore slump/most talented player getting doubled on a weak team.

[mcHAPPY]

i'd rather not tag somebody with being "the future" until well after they earn the tag of "being consistent"

just enjoy the games, and worry about the future in the future, i say..

+1 - although yesterday was tough to enjoy.

[TheGloveinRapsUniform]

i think both have the potential to be good players, but they can never be elite players.
elite players have that swagger, attitude. they command the ball, make plays and are not afraid to take risks.
if you look at kobe, lebron, wade, they all have this "im the man" attitude, and some might think of it as negative but thats how they became great, you make other people see what you can do and not wait for them to give you a look.
probably the best the these can achieve is a manu ginobli type player. not an elite player but can contribute.
i used to think bargs is the same way, but Bargs seems to be finding his niche. Bad game or not, he knows he needs to get his shots, and i think thats the attitude these guys need to show.

[DoNDaDDa]

If Weems was on the Lakers he would be struggling to fight minutes away from Luke Walton and Sasha Vujacic.

if weems was with the lakers hed be sitting in the front row next to Jack

[Young'Un]

But he isn't on the Lakers now, is he?

[Apollo]

If Weems was on the Lakers he would be struggling to fight minutes away from Luke Walton and Sasha Vujacic.

[Young'Un]

The article never stated anything about him being the future, just apart of it, and how he's finally getting some noticed and earning quality minutes. I put the future part on the headline.

[heinz57]

Weems played his first full season of basketball last year. He was bounced around after his stint in Denver, which he only played 12 games and was sent to the D-League. I'd rather have him than DeRozan in my opinion.

i dont disagree with you.. weems is probably my favourite player on the team

but "the future"!?!?

big words for a middle of the pack player on a bottom feeder team... just let him play, and dont have expectations, or else there's a good chance you'll get disappointed.

[DoNDaDDa]

In all fairness, Weems is more consistent than DeRozan.

thats like saying Cat shit stinks worse then Dog shit...LOL