Yeah I've more and more come around to this line of thinking. He's not that great at creating halfcourt offense for himself and others right now. But he can still create transition / early in the shot clock stuff out of the forward positions. Rip and run. In the halfcourt he needs to be cutting and setting picks and practicing that corner three pointer.
The thing to me is that so many people state that Amen is untouchable. He's the team's best asset, has the most upside. At what point does that upside dissipate and his value with it? I think that's poor asset management - I'd rather move him for another bite at the superstar apple while he still has "some upside", rather than riding it out to the bitter end.
I think he has a better shot than Reed but honestly I don't think ball handling is something you just develop. Most point guards have been doing it their whole lives and move as effortlessly with a basketball as they do without one. Amen does seem to have been training for it a long time so maybe there's a chance he can he tighter with it. He needs to work on maintaining control of the ball after crossing the 3pt line and reading the defense. Obviously learning to shoot will make him a superstar but even just becoming a better creator will make him allstar level. If he never gets there though, we have to accept that he will be a wing which honestly isn't worst thing in the world but we'd still have to find a lead guard to create for him.
I can see the argument if you're getting a guy like Cam Boozer or something (who I'm very high on and I think has more chance to become a #1 option than some think). I'm just not convinced that a guy like Kingston Flemings or whatever later draft pick you want to point at and shout about actually has a higher chance than Amen. And I do still personally believe Amen can at least be a #2 option in his prime. A #2 option who is also an all-defensive caliber player is an extremely valuable asset even on a max contract. Obviously that will require some improvement from him to get there, but I'm as high on his intangibles as I've ever been, so I do think he'll manage it.
The thing is those guys likely did not practice 3P shooting at all. League changed, so they added it to their bag later in their career. I am pretty sure Amen's struggles are not because of lack of training. At this point, the most probable outcome is he never gets to passable.
A PG needs three essential offensive skills. 1. Organize a half court offense. 2. Bring the ball up court under pressure. 3. Be an outside shooting threat to keep the interior space open (because a PG always starts the offense from the outside). Does Amen have those skills? I've always believed that in modern basketball, you don't really need a traditional PG (someone who can do all three things). Those three skills can be shared with different players. It'd be good if you have two guys on the floor who have at least two of those skills.
I think Amen would be better served as a wing. Since he’s not a big time scorer, I wouldn’t consider close to the max. He’s got to fix that jumper
To be a point guard / point forward, need to have a handle. I don't mean a Kyrie flashy handle, but ball security when under heavy ball pressure. The decision making is probably fine. Being a threat long or mid range opens up the pick and roll game. Otherwise it's very limiting. Same applies to drive and kick, if he can't shoot, defenders just pack the paint and pick off the passing lanes.
