Marc Gasol turned 24 during his first season in the league...was about 16 months older than Willy. They gave him 30MPG his first year- If Willy was getting those kinds of minutes-even 25MPG- from the start of the season, there is a pretty good chance his stats would have been comparable or better, even if early games might have been a little rocky.
You give him at least 20M in a game and his stats are almost always impressive. Of course you see mistakes, but the kid is looking more and more confident with the minutes.
I like the comparison to Gasol. Willy might be a little smaller, but with some physical maturity and experience, I don't see why he won't improve on both ends of the court, especially on offense, where he needs to improve his 8-17ft game. Not sure he has the length of a McHale, or the athletic ability at this point, but who knows.
He has a better frame to put on muscle than KP does, and you can see the beginning of a solid big man, physically. I've also been surprised at his quickness. I really thought that would be his biggest problem as a defender, but I also know from my own experience as a less than quick athlete, that with knowledge, experience, and anticipation, you can play much quicker than you actually are, and I think this is what we will see from him as a defender.
Big off-season for Willy and KP- they both need to work on polishing their offense. Dirk is on record saying that he would like to work with KP. I would love it if Willy could hook up with a McHale or Hakeem, or any known interior scorer who can give him about 3-5 more moves in the paint.
Of course, both of them need to work on their bodies, something best done with a partner who will push you- so I expect they might work together.
Does give you a lot of hope...being set at the 4 & 5 slots for the next 10 or so years is a nice start to a rebuild.
EnySpree: Can we agree to agree not to mention Phil Jackson and triangle for the rest of our lives?