Welpee wrote:The only thing Mudiay supporters ever said was give the guy a chance. Nobody predicted that he would be all-league, nobody predicted he'd be an all-star, nobody said he'd be a top 15 point guard. The only thing that was said was at 22 years old it was too early to give up on him.The anti-Mudiay people basically trashed him and called him a bum, said he didn't have NBA ability, accused him of not working hard or being in shape, that the only reason he was in the league was due to his size because he hit the genetic lottery, at 22 years old he can't develop beyond what he is, etc., etc., etc.
Now these people can't even concede that they were wrong about the most obvious facts: 1) the guy DID work hard in the off season and DID get in shape. Evidently it took time for him to recover from his pre-season injury; 2) the guy DOES have NBA talent. Whether he can consistently perform this way over the course of a full season remains to be seen but he is showing that he has NBA ability.
The fact that his detractors can't even concede those two points shows that their rants were more about something agenda driven more than anything else and now it's about ego and not having the capacity to admit they were wrong about anything involving Mudiay. Noah Vonleh had an even sketchier path to the Knicks yet nobody went after him with the same vitriol as Mudiay. How many 600 word essays were posted about how bad Hezonja's career has been thus far? Not having the capacity to admit being wrong...on the internet no less...is pretty pathetic.
http://www.ultimateknicks.com/forum/topic.asp?t=58654&page=1
"Young NBA players typically make their largest developmental leaps ( barring massive injury or bizarre restriction of playing time) in the offseason of Year 1 and Year 2, and again in the offseason of Year 2 and Year 3. By the All Star break of Year 3, you tend to see 90 percent of what a player will give you for the rest of his career, without factoring typical age related decline.
The structure of NBA first round picks ( Basically 4 years before the RFA year) is set up around this reality. The previous system was three years guaranteed for rookies when the slotting system was created.
22 is not old or is very old in NBA terms depending on the players tenure. If you spent four years in college ball, you are still in your prime developmental window. But that you stayed so long often is an indicator of your level of talent. If you are 22 but was a one and done and entered the league at 19/20, that's a different story.
Some people will try to cite outliers. Yes, there are outliers, but usually those players showed at least one dominant to very marketable skill from the beginning.
ANYONE in the league could have had Mudiay for pretty much nothing. Was anyone rushing to get him? What does that say?
......
The only reason anyone is having this discussion is the Knicks ****ed up their cap and have ****ty contracts no one wants. This is what happens when you **** up your cap sheet, you end up with journeymen and retreads for cheap because you can't spend on anything else.
That Mudiay doesn't even have an effective league average three point shot, something a player can get with grind/attrition, should tell you something."
"Mudiay is in the conversation because the Knicks totally ****ed up their cap sheet.
Mudiay is in the conversation because the Knicks realized they had no room/future for McBuckets and found a trade that would try to make use of his expiring deal and clean out the logjam then in the front court
Mudiay is in the conversation because the Knicks hired Phil Jackson, who proceeded to entirely **** up the point guard situation ( Rose, Jennings, Calderon ) while also gutting down many of their 2nd round picks while also ****ing up their cap sheet and those legacies are still problems today.
Mudiay is in the conversation because he's better than nothing, but that's sadly not by much.
He's not in elite physical condition and he doesn't have even a true league average three point shot. Things you can simply improve with plain raw hard work/dedication.....
The rest of the league could have gotten Mudiay for pretty free and didn't want him. What does that tell you? That means HUNDREDS of the top and most experienced minds in the sport CORRECTLY assessed that Mudiay was outside his prime developmental window and a waste of resources/roster space/minutes. They didn't have to SETTLE for him because they didn't **** up their cap sheet as bad as the Knicks did"
****
Try again.
Mudiay has had a nice couple of games. He's had them before in his career. Good for him. But he's never shown consistency in his career. He does not have a league average three point shot ( consistent and shown to be sustainable) and he's not even a league average defender. He's putting up counting stats with volume, but if you call your own number enough, that's going to happen sometimes.
A handful of games do not change a career arc. Not like this.
Take a person who is fat as ****. Now have them try hard, change their eating and exercise and all that for a couple of months. Good for them. Guess what? They are still fat as ****. You don't change that overnight. Good for them but you need a pathway of YEARS to undo the damage done by YEARS of abuse. Mudiay has had a few nice games. Good for him. However he's had YEARS of being a liability on the court.
No one said 22 was too old, people did say AGE NEEDS CONTEXT IN THE NBA. A "One And Done" is not the same as a rarer 4 year college player. But typically the 4 year college player doesn't have the talent pedigree of a One And Done. 22 and entering your first year in the league is one thing. 22 and already amassing 3 years in the league, with plenty of minutes, is another.
If you a non pivot, and cannot 3 And D in the NBA, at least one or the other, but ideally both, you are going to have problems.
No one hates Mudiay. But THERE'S A MOTHERFUCKING REASON HE WAS AVAILABLE IN THE FIRST PLACE. THERE'S A MOTHERFUCKING REASON ANY OTHER TEAM COULD HAVE HAD HIM FOR NEARLY FREE AND DID NOT WANT HIM. If you take enough shot and get enough minutes, you'll eventually put up some counting stats.
You could be a 100 yard a game rushing RB in the NFL right now. You could. If you got 65-70 carries a game. Basically if you got the ball and fell down forward over and over again.
The arguments you make is how losing teams think. The **** I say is not always pleasant, but the **** I say is how nearly all functional NBA front offices actually operate. The difference between you and me ( besides my more stunning good looks and huge schlong that is almost tripod like) is that I can separate what works for NBA teams and how I feel about things. You want to believe Mudiay is something he's not because you like how it makes you feel. You defend him because people who tell you that you are wrong ( which is literally every team that could have had him for nearly free and walked past him) puts you in a position where you don't like how it feels. You don't stop being a fat **** after two weeks of salads. You don't change your career narrative after a handful of games.
As a fan of the Knicks, I wish you were right about Mudiay. As someone who actually understands basic resource management in pro sports, no matter what anyone feels, Mudiay is odds on not the answer for this team, not where this team wants to go and where fans want it to go.