Brand J

Bring back hatred and rivalries. Keep talking, Reek.

If he retired tomorrow to pursue another career, I don’t think he gets in. At least, not first ballot. Thankfully he’s got quite a few years left and by that time should have a slam dunk case for first ballot.

Actually, this took me by surprise when I went to my first NBA game decades ago. I was used to watching (and playing) college ball where the effort was 100% all the time, sprint here, sprint there, it’s a pretty frenetic, grueling, non-stop pace. The first NBA game I went to in person was Rockets v Knicks back when Allen Houston, Latrell Sprewell and Stevie “Franchise” Francis were on the court. The amount of jogging the players do... I guess it doesn’t really show up on the television, but watching it live? Yeah, the guys definitely coast for most of the game. I haven’t seen a playoff game live, but noticed they still do a fair amount of jogging (especially after made baskets). When a college athlete can hit a high percentage of his jump shots pushing his body on both ends of the court, that’s beyond impressive to me. On the same token, as an NBA player it’s easier to hit a higher percentage of shots conserving that much energy, so the fact you’re already taking the best shooters from college and allowing them to coast/conserve energy, all they’ve gotta do is knock down the shot. If they’re extraordinarily skilled like Curry, they will feast all game. If you want consistent effort, tune in to the G League. It’s closer to college ball than NBA. Those guys hustle like they’re trying to get an NBA contract 😂

I think Anthony Edwards would have a better chance at being an NFL TE than Randy Moss would at being an NBA 2 guard, but there’s that NBA vs NFL debate again. All these athletes believe they can do anything, to the point of delusion. Jason Williams in an interview once said he was a star QB for Dupont HS, but then I read the comments and people were saying he didn’t even play football 😂 I think Josh Allen even said he could come off the bench in the NBA and get buckets. There’s nothing a professional athlete doesn’t believe he can do… until they legitimately try to cross over into that other sport and see how difficult it is to compete with men who have made it their singular focus. Could Moss have played in the NBA if basketball was his singular focus and where he dedicated all his time? I don’t know, but he would’ve had a legitimate shot. If he didn’t pan out, he’d be one in a long line of “all world” high school AND collegiate stars who couldn’t make the leap.

You’re not giving NBA bench players the respect they deserve, I’ve said this a few times. And by “not good” you mean relative to their NBA peers, of course, not the basketball playing population at large. At least that’s what I hope you mean but maybe I’m giving you too much credit. To even make the G League you’d have to be in the 90th something percentile as a basketball player. “If you can play, they will find you.” Famous words of a hall of fame coach who’s name escapes me. And Cotton is a perfect example of someone who was blessed with the gift of basketball, but still couldn’t put it together at the NBA level. This is a guy who received the resources you wanted to afford Moss. Springer may not have been a better 1 v 1 player than Cotton if the two went head up, but the NBA doesn’t play 1 v 1 basketball. Springer was a superior team player than Cotton, with a better defined role. His understanding of the game and the position he plays means more. And EJ Manuel was better than any QB - high school, college, or semi pro - that never got an NFL opportunity, yes.

Clearly NBA bench players are better than you’re giving them credit for. Good thing guys get to prove themselves in leagues like the G League and overseas. Look at all the success stories we’ve had! Oh wait, no, we don’t have many. If you’re deep on an NBA bench, you’re there for a reason. You bring something to practice that coaches believe is better than any other player available at your position. If they spot someone potentially better, that player is given an opportunity. I’m not going to get into the EJ Manuel experiment, that’s another discussion entirely and not in the same sport. But consider this… besides Geno Smith, how many draft eligible QBs in his class went on to be better than Manuel? Manuel was, by definition, better than his peers, he just wasn’t good enough for the NFL. All conjecture. As I stated earlier, the list of high school All Americans and collegiate All Americans that didn’t have an NBA career that panned out, even as a bench player, is longer than the list that did.

He chose the sport he had a brighter future in, no doubt. Moss like Coleman, have more guys at their size and athleticism in basketball than they do in football. He was an all world receiver, arguably the best of all time if he had Jerry’s work ethic, but he wasn’t an all world basketball prospect. And he knew it. Would he have been if he focused on the sport like Mercer, Cotton, Garnett, and the many others at that all star game? It’s tough to say, all conjecture at this point. Players I would’ve told you should’ve made it, didn’t. The list of high school AND college All Americans who didn’t pan out with an NBA career is far longer than the ones who did.

He didn’t have a basketball skillset that translated to the pro level in 1997. We’re hypothesizing that he could’ve grown his game to a professional level in college, but there were countless McDonald’s All American and other players who were far better regarded than Randy Moss going into their freshman season that didn’t pan out. One of the players that Randy referenced in that YouTube video - Schea Cotton - who convinced him to leave basketball, was a far better prospect. The NBA is about much more than athleticism. There are guys then and now who had Randy’s size and athleticism that didn’t make it. By Randy’s own admission he didn’t think he had what it took.

And this Jaden Springer kid he’s poo poo’ing was also an “all everything” high school player who had been playing varsity since 8th grade. And then was a standout in the SEC and in the G League. He was also a finals MVP and won a title in that league. Terrible NBA player? Sure, I can grant you that, but as terrible as he is - relative to his NBA peers - he’s still clearly a more skilled basketball prospect than Randy Moss ever was. I thought Moss could play D1 somewhere, but I stand by the belief he wouldn’t have been a starter on a high end basketball team. Didn’t have the skills and leadership to run the point, wasn’t a good enough perimeter player to play the two.

There’s a league full of NBA hopefuls called the G League, maybe you’ve heard of it. It’s a step up from division 1 basketball. The players in the G League, maybe with one or two exceptions, aren’t better or can’t do what is asked of them consistently than the 12th man on an NBA bench. You can argue with yourself about how Moss is, or could’ve been an NBA prospect - despite no evidence to the contrary and after Moss himself thanked legit basketball players for pushing him to football - but it’s an exercise in stupidity. Sorry, but it is. One of the players Moss mentioned that was at that high school basketball all star game - Schea Cotton - was a high school legend. If anyone was destined to play in the NBA it’d be him, right? Nope, he didn’t make it. And neither did the multitudes of other McDonald’s High School All Americans. If it was enough to be a supremely athletic 6’4” guard with minimal basketball skill, then yes, Moss could have made it and rode a bench. But it’s not enough. NBA players are far more skilled than you give them credit for. Randy Moss was not skilled enough for the NBA. Period.

I read that the two mutually agreed he should choose football. There are a lot more Keon Colemans from a size and athletic standpoint in division 1 basketball than there are in division 1 football. Football was definitely a brighter future for him.

Yeah you still don’t get it. Those guys who are riding the bench aren’t good enough relative to their NBA peers, but they’re much more skilled basketball players than Moss ever was. Could Moss have focused on basketball and reinvented his game to be a perimeter player? There’s nothing that suggests he couldn’t have - other than his admission to being discouraged playing amongst legit high school basketball players - but Moss at his skill level coming out of high school wasn’t a future NBA prospect. You know this.

You said that Moss “could’ve made a career as a starter on an NBA team,” a statement you’ve wisely walked back from. Your assertion that Moss was good enough to ride the bench on an early 2000s Knicks team (or any other team for that matter) is still fallacy. Did you listen to Moss in that YouTube video? Where he admitted to being discouraged and realizing he didn’t have a basketball future when he participated at a high school all star competition? It’s okay to take the L here. Moss wasn’t running a team at point, breaking guys down off the dribble, or splashing threes, all prerequisites for the 1 and 2 positions where he would’ve had to play. Ask yourself honestly: could Moss run a team at point? No? Okay, was he skilled enough to play the two guard? No? He wasn’t good enough, skill wise, to even start on a high level division 1 collegiate basketball team, yet you’re trying to put him on an NBA roster. Sure.

Moss wasn’t a perimeter player. At his size and skill level he wouldn’t even see the bench on an NBA team. Take his own word for it. EDIT: and those “terrible” pros would school him and 99% of other basketball players.

No chance. Some of you really undervalue what it takes to be an NBA player. Randy Moss was a great athlete, no doubt, but he wasn’t NBA material. He likely could’ve played division 1 somewhere, but not as a starter on an ACC team. To put it into context, Moss is barely bigger than Steph Curry. Barely. He’s a little guy on the hardwood. At his size he’d have to play the 1 or the 2 but he doesn’t have skills for either of those positions. He dominated high school basketball because of his athletic ability, dunking over smaller kids, but division 1 is a whole ‘nother animal, and the NBA is an entirely different one on top of that… Why Randy Moss chose football