I think there’s some work he needs defensively and as a playmaker, to really fit and maximize Curry’s prime. Not sure he can contribute significantly this year, but perhaps with a full offseason, he can crack the rotation as a second year player.
Pereise1
God I hope so. From what I’ve seen, his D is about the same level as Beli last year while having a better shot and worse passing (Beli was Jokic lite with Kuminga on the floor).
nghbrhd_slackr87
That ankle… and by extension his lower body still is probably only 90%. He still doesn’t sink his trunk as much as a fully healthy dude would buy he looks better everytime i see him. When this kid gets that injury all the way in the rear view mirror watch out. PBJ and Christian Braun will go down as the steals of this draft. I really think if he didn’t get injured he’d have been a lock for the top ten.
KlaysToaster
Kerr says he sees him as a four which is interesting
Him playing a beli role is interesting, I hadn’t thought of it but I see what they’re leaning towards
What I did notice yesterday was that with Kuminga and JMG back it really let’s Kerr experiment with rotations and mix and match
I think PBJ can be in some mix and match situations for the rest of the year cause I don’t think his defense has been that bad
s_stone634
Can’t teach size. He’s a better defender than Moody at this point just since he’s 6-9 and has a good BBIQ.
Balls_of_Adamanthium
Let’s find out when the plays again 5-6 games from now.
neo9027581673
My 2nd favorite young player (behind Kuminga).
He’s eclipsed Moody and if he can rise to just satisfactory on defense, he will enter the rotation instead of spot minutes. The guy’s jumper is pure and imo he’s already a season ahead of schedule. Give him the off-season to get that foot/ankle lower-body right and he will enter the rotation as a strong contributor.
Carara_Atmos
He should be seated beside klay in the locker room.
toado3
I’ve been pleasantly surprised by his D. Clearly not the swiftest laterally so will get blown by with quicker guards and is thin/can get bullied by the strongest wings.
On the other hand he moves his feet well, stays down/doesn’t bite on fakes, and closes space/uses his length to contest. Seems to have good help instincts as well. It’s honestly exactly what we wish Wiseman did better.
Remarkable-Cup-6029
He looks like he will be special. My only concern with his game is inside scoring. He needs to work on his foot speed and verticality to be able to get to the rim and finish around the rim better. Maybe work with the guy working with Looney will help with most post moves. Everything else though, special. He has such a good feel for the game both sides of the ball and that shot… That shot is so good I have more faith in it than Klay’s parameter shot at the moment. It’s a work of art. I don’t know about him playing as a stretch 5 though, atleast not yet. He will need a lot of reps and time in the league to be our anchor at 5.
Kdog122025
Mentally he’s a pretty good defender. Physically not so much.
spasmystic
He’s had limited time but I think he’s looked really good when paired with Draymond in lineups, which makes a lot of sense. His shooting helps unlock a lot of what Dray does well and PBJ’s defensive mistakes – when not catastrophic – can be cleaned up by Dray most of the time. A lot to like pairing those two.
Nessmuk58
Strength and durability are the only things that will hold him back. Those are significant hurdles, but if he can overcome those, he’s going to be a very good player.
Don’t get me wrong, there are other things he needs to improve on, but those are all things that should come with time, given his BBIQ and fundamental talent. For a guy with part of one third-tier NCAA season coming into the NBA, he’s doing fine.
TimTebrow
PBJ or Jabari Smith?
kpkafle
For his size, he needs to rebound that’s what is going to keep him on the court. As long as he rotates well on defense and doesn’t give up fouls like Lamb he will be fine defensively. Also, he seems to move at 3/4 speed he just needs to get out of his head and just play. He’s a rookie so he’s afraid to make mistakes. But he has shown flashes of being a better player than Wiseman or Moody. I always root for him when he’s on the court.
chris_ngo
For the minimal amount of minutes he plays and aside from the simple rookie learning curve, he’s picking things up very quickly. Promising for sure
16 Comments
This is part of my video on Patrick Baldwin Jr, looking at his current skillset and how he can improve: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=soTa9Qs3MzY
I think there’s some work he needs defensively and as a playmaker, to really fit and maximize Curry’s prime. Not sure he can contribute significantly this year, but perhaps with a full offseason, he can crack the rotation as a second year player.
God I hope so. From what I’ve seen, his D is about the same level as Beli last year while having a better shot and worse passing (Beli was Jokic lite with Kuminga on the floor).
That ankle… and by extension his lower body still is probably only 90%. He still doesn’t sink his trunk as much as a fully healthy dude would buy he looks better everytime i see him. When this kid gets that injury all the way in the rear view mirror watch out. PBJ and Christian Braun will go down as the steals of this draft. I really think if he didn’t get injured he’d have been a lock for the top ten.
Kerr says he sees him as a four which is interesting
Him playing a beli role is interesting, I hadn’t thought of it but I see what they’re leaning towards
What I did notice yesterday was that with Kuminga and JMG back it really let’s Kerr experiment with rotations and mix and match
I think PBJ can be in some mix and match situations for the rest of the year cause I don’t think his defense has been that bad
Can’t teach size. He’s a better defender than Moody at this point just since he’s 6-9 and has a good BBIQ.
Let’s find out when the plays again 5-6 games from now.
My 2nd favorite young player (behind Kuminga).
He’s eclipsed Moody and if he can rise to just satisfactory on defense, he will enter the rotation instead of spot minutes. The guy’s jumper is pure and imo he’s already a season ahead of schedule. Give him the off-season to get that foot/ankle lower-body right and he will enter the rotation as a strong contributor.
He should be seated beside klay in the locker room.
I’ve been pleasantly surprised by his D. Clearly not the swiftest laterally so will get blown by with quicker guards and is thin/can get bullied by the strongest wings.
On the other hand he moves his feet well, stays down/doesn’t bite on fakes, and closes space/uses his length to contest. Seems to have good help instincts as well. It’s honestly exactly what we wish Wiseman did better.
He looks like he will be special. My only concern with his game is inside scoring. He needs to work on his foot speed and verticality to be able to get to the rim and finish around the rim better. Maybe work with the guy working with Looney will help with most post moves. Everything else though, special. He has such a good feel for the game both sides of the ball and that shot… That shot is so good I have more faith in it than Klay’s parameter shot at the moment. It’s a work of art. I don’t know about him playing as a stretch 5 though, atleast not yet. He will need a lot of reps and time in the league to be our anchor at 5.
Mentally he’s a pretty good defender. Physically not so much.
He’s had limited time but I think he’s looked really good when paired with Draymond in lineups, which makes a lot of sense. His shooting helps unlock a lot of what Dray does well and PBJ’s defensive mistakes – when not catastrophic – can be cleaned up by Dray most of the time. A lot to like pairing those two.
Strength and durability are the only things that will hold him back. Those are significant hurdles, but if he can overcome those, he’s going to be a very good player.
Don’t get me wrong, there are other things he needs to improve on, but those are all things that should come with time, given his BBIQ and fundamental talent. For a guy with part of one third-tier NCAA season coming into the NBA, he’s doing fine.
PBJ or Jabari Smith?
For his size, he needs to rebound that’s what is going to keep him on the court. As long as he rotates well on defense and doesn’t give up fouls like Lamb he will be fine defensively. Also, he seems to move at 3/4 speed he just needs to get out of his head and just play. He’s a rookie so he’s afraid to make mistakes. But he has shown flashes of being a better player than Wiseman or Moody. I always root for him when he’s on the court.
For the minimal amount of minutes he plays and aside from the simple rookie learning curve, he’s picking things up very quickly. Promising for sure