Why?
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I’d take Tatum over Ingram right now. Younger and already has a 10/10 bag of offensive moves. He has every move in the book ala Kyrie. But at 6?8 he has the athletic gifts and focus to be a plus defender.
But Ingram is without a doubt a better playmaker (although Tatum has made progress on that in the bubble).
Why can’t they both be great players? Even if one is ranked slightly above the other in projecting them out to their prime, I’m still glad we got at least one of these 6’8 new age wings that are becoming almost necessary in the 2020’s to win games in the Conference Finals/Finals.
BI is incredibly talented. I think he’s also going into this year the most confident and settled he’s ever been. I’m expecting a big jump that should be fun to watch with Zion.
What will really end up separating BI from Tatum historically will be who can perform like a star in the Conference Finals/Finals and actually be clutch. Neither has shown that yet so I will still wait to make a final verdict.
BI has some dog in him. I’m hopeful that when BI gets a chance to be in the CF/Finals that he will be a clutch player which imo is the most important attribute when evaluating players.
BI ultimately I think will settle into a highly efficient 25 ppg, triple double threat every night. With Zion being a 27+ppg animal that the entire team constantly feeds
That’s why we need a third All-Star level player in the mold of Bradley Beal or Jamal Murray to complement BI/Zion perfectly and would love it if we’re monitoring both of those players closely.
As much as I like Ingram, this is pretty unequivocally Tatum right now. Yeah Ingram's a better passer, and a better finisher, but it's not enough to offset the advantage Tatum has as a pull up shooter and defender, the latter of which is pretty significant. Wouldn't even say Ingram's the better playmaker, because playmaking is a combination of on-ball scoring & creation, and Tatum is a tier up as a scorer.
He has an irrational love boner for Ingram, there's little hope for him.
It's clear to 99% of people that Tatum is pretty superior at this point.
Tatum is destined for All NBA 1st team for a lot of his career
If all goes well, Zion can be there too
2025 1st team
Doncic, That upcoming French 16yo, Tatum, Cunningam, Zion
Tatum has the behind the scenes branding of wannabe Kobe but he has a lot of poor decision making basketball moments like Paul George...right now.
At times I see what people see in Tatum, and then there are equal amount of times I don?t. That?s how I feel about him...right now.
You can't be a "tier up" as a scorer while being a worse finisher at the rim.
You can't be a "tier up" as a scorer while drawing less fouls and being a worse FT shooter.
You can't be a "tier up" as a scorer when your mid range pull up game is no better than the person you're being compared to.
This suddenly paramount pull up game between Ingram and Tatum is not the gap it is made out to be.
There is no difference in their mid range pull up game % wise. Three point pull ups is something Ingram just didn't do in Gentry's system. A system that led the league in passes and player movement miles. As talked about in a film study session on Zion:
Ingram played in an offense where 3 point pull ups were simply not part of the offense. Movement and relocating was. Especially for a player more effective attacking the paint.Quote:
The Pelicans rank first in player movement (12.2 miles traveled per 24 minutes of possession, second in ball movement (383 passes per 24 minutes of possession) and sixth in assist percentage (having recorded assists on 63.3% of their buckets).
Biggest difference between Ingram and Tatum....
Boston vs. New Orleans
Swap teams and BI instantly becomes better than Tatum.
I have no problem with people saying Tatum is better than Ingram right now. Haven't said anything to the contrary. That was never the debate to begin with.
Trying to put them on separate planes of basketball skill I call absolutely ridiculous.
But longer term absolutely. Ingram has the higher upside still and will be the better player.
Ingram will never see the court due to his heart condition....so the whole thread is moot.
That's saying something....since you live in England and I will automatically assume you hang out with Paul McCartney, regularly.