scores 29 points on 12-13 shots in three quarters, none of which were from father than one foot from the basket

that is terrible defense, but he does have amazing body control when he makes a kinda 360 dunk in the game multiple times

looks like a better version of Blake Griffin already

https://instagr.am/p/B3btDH1Ht8K

Truly amazing, HD, but you exaggerate his stats a bit. According to the shot chart, he had 1 shot from 5 feet and several from 3 feet. The big question is whether or not he will be able to hit an outside shot to keep defenders more honest.

I thought he was Julius Randle with hops.

My thoughts on Zion are that he is an amazingly gifted basketball player but I fear that the combination of his ability to jump with that size body will expose him to injuries to the ankles, knees, etc....I've never seen a body like his have the vertical that he has.....Awful lot of weight to land from those heights without straining something....Hope I'm wrong because I really enjoy watching him play....He plays with an uncommon joy for players today.....I have had enough of the mad mugging routine....

bearmanpg said:

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My thoughts on Zion are that he is an amazingly gifted basketball player but I fear that the combination of his ability to jump with that size body will expose him to injuries to the ankles, knees, etc....I've never seen a body like his have the vertical that he has.....Awful lot of weight to land from those heights without straining something....Hope I'm wrong because I really enjoy watching him play....He plays with an uncommon joy for players today.....I have had enough of the mad mugging routine....

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Agreed. When I saw him jump and then heard he weighed ~280lbs, I thought about the impact on ankles, knees, and hips because when you jump up 3 ft, you then descend 3ft. I remember Shawn Kemp of the Sonics who had this man's body (although a good 30 lbs lighter than Zion, I'd guess) at 19 years-old and how his body broke down over time. You can build muscle but as far as I know, you can't do much to improve your ligaments and cartilage (for you glucosamine users, I believe studies have indicated no effect on cartilage growth). I think that's one of the surprising things about Lebron - that for such a big man he's been able to avoid joint injuries and continue to have such an athletic game for so many years. For SFCity and others, Wilt would have been another example, but I recall he did have one major knee injury in the latter part of his career.

I have the injury concerns too, but that aside...

He will certainly be a match up problem for many teams -- who guards him, your big 3 or your small 4?

He will get a lot of clean-up points (off rebounds, lobs, dishes in the lane)

Can he defend low post 4s? He can't defend wing players who can shoot/drive. So he has to guard one dimensional low post players. How will that fare? He is not tall (less than 6'6") and wing span is not great IIRC.

He will be a good player, but not a transcendent star in my view. How he fares defensively and whether he develops a perimeter game (ala Blake Griffen) will determine his ceiling. Either way, I don't think he's a superstar.

I watched every game Zion played in last year and think your concerns about defensive flexibility are way off base. He was an absolute nightmare last year for opposing offenses because of his ability to defend every position. For one thing, he led the ACC in steals and also was too 5 in blocks. If you're concerned about his footwork and wingspan (which at 6'10" is above average for his height), you might want to check out the block he had against UVA on De'Andre Hunter. Because of Zion's offensive efficiency (and dunks), his defense got lost in the narrative but he's a star defensively and can matchup with anyone.

TheSouseFamily said:

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I watched every game Zion played in last year and think your concerns about defensive flexibility are way off base. He was an absolute nightmare last year for opposing offenses because of his ability to defend every position. For one thing, he led the ACC in steals and also was too 5 in blocks. If you're concerned about his footwork and wingspan (which at 6'10" is above average for his height), you might want to check out the block he had against UVA on De'Andre Hunter. Because of Zion's offensive efficiency (and dunks), his defense got lost in the narrative but he's a star defensively and can matchup with anyone.

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I agree that in the NCAA, he was a nightmare defensively. I don't believe he will have nearly the same defensive versatility in the NBA. Could be wrong.

Injuries already starting

Maybe I cursed him....hate to see it happening...hope he bounces back and has a long career....

Can Zion get 12-15 shots at the rim during the regular season as a result of his explosiveness and/or penetration from teammates?

He will have to develop a game further away from the rim to be a star. Like be able to face up from 15 ft away and get to a spot on the floor where he can score efficiently.

Torn meniscus.....out 6-8 weeks....

What has this got to do with Cal Basketball?

oskidunker said:

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What has this got to do with Cal Basketball?

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nothing, and sorry, I should have labelled the thread OT

but ever since the Monster Thread ended, the basketball forum as been deader than a doorknob in the offseason

HoopDreams said:

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oskidunker said:

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What has this got to do with Cal Basketball?

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nothing, and sorry, I should have labelled the thread OT

but ever since the Monster Thread ended, the basketball forum as been deader than a doorknob in the offseason

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Zion = Greg Oden 2.0?

GBear4Life said:

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Zion = Greg Oden 2.0?

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no

HoopDreams said:

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GBear4Life said:

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Zion = Greg Oden 2.0?

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no

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Let's hope not. Injuries are hard to forecast though.

Oden lacked good judgement.

Zion has it.

I prefer Devon Harden

HoopDreams said:

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oskidunker said:

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What has this got to do with Cal Basketball?

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nothing, and sorry, I should have labelled the thread OT

but ever since the Monster Thread ended, the basketball forum as been deader than a doorknob in the offseason

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HD
You are a champ!
1) Shocky made things lively but it was all a bunch of BS that agitated me. Not worth reading.
2) the Cal team these past couple years doesn't provide for much to wanna read about, so there's that, too. Even SoCalTownie was majorly absent. It's gonna have to be up to the Cal Hoops Program to generate some noise for themselves.
3) if you want off-season chatter, do come join the Resistance in the OT pages. Now, when Trump is gone, hopefully Cal Hoops is back. Otherwise, BI ad revenue is going to take a hit.

joe amos yaks said:

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Oden lacked good judgement.

Zion has it.

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What does judgment have to do with Greg Oden's knees???

And if you wanna bring up judgment vis-a-vis Greg Oden, we should be discussing the absolute morons who picked Oden ahead of Kevin Durant. Sorry, but I was ALL OVER the Kevin Durant #1 train having watched a number of his college games. I recall hearing an interview with Danny Ainge say that you had to take Oden because centers are the cornerstone of your franchise, and I thought Ainge was an idiot for that, because the games I watched of Oden he was not impressive to me.

As bad as Portland taking Sam Bowie at #2 over Jordan! (Olajuwon at 1 was okay)!