I'm taking Tatum all day. Love Kuz's improvements but his game seems like there is a cap to it. Tatum still has a ton of room to grow and his ability to score and draw doubles is miles ahead of Kuz. I mean, if Lakers had Tatum instead of Kuz, I think the Lakers would sweep the playoffs.
still think tatum's overrated, but he's more valuable than kuz simply because he can be the primary scorer (but note that boston rightfully goes to kemba for important buckets much of the time). aside from iso scoring, i'm not sure tatum does anything much better than kuz, though. people just care a lot about iso scoring. tatum may not be any better than ingram, which is the more apt comparison considering their draft position, salary, and role.
Kuzma and Tatum are just so different in terms of playres. They have the same size and frame but after that where it ends -Tatum is an elite iso scorer with a good handle, consistent step back and other moves -Pretty good iso defender, not that impressed team defender -not a great playmaker -ball stopper (not necessarily a bad thing when you can score like him) -bit of a soft player: doesn't get to the line nearly enough for his scoring prowess Kuzma -not a great iso scorer as his handle isn't great -good off the ball player with cuts and finding catch and shoot opportunities -good rebounder -has really become a good defender both from a team and individual perspective. -rotate the ball well Tatum is a guy who can be one of your top 2 scorers in title contending team while Kuzma is more of an elite roleplayer. The Tatum/Ingram comparison I agree is more interesting as those two play similar roles and have similar expectation
he's grown so much as a playmaker this year. that and his commitment to individual defense and rebounding in general, just really positive developments.
If Kuz plays, we might be able to win with some luck. Otherwise, forget it, but at least Drummond and Ben get some playing time to get back in shape and learn the system.
OK, the Heat have to be really awful for us to win it. Except if they have injuries as well, I don't know what's going on with their team lately.
Feel Kuz is such a tease. Very happy that he has become in my mind an elite roleplayer: will give it his all on defense, the glass, rotating the ball, and he's enough of an offensive threat that teams will still pay attention to him. That being said if he can get his core and lower body just a bit stronger, feel like he could make those mid range jumpers and finish at the rim where he becomes more a true playoff level scorer. He's able to get to his spots often enough even with his not so great ballhandling but unlike a guy like Devin Booker he tends to be way to streaky once the shot goes up. Kuz's has good height and length so the thing that comes back to me is he needs a bit more strength and work on his footwork to get the lift and maintain his balance when getting contact. TL;DR he's failing at finishing not the setup
