Sullinger playing like a borderline All-Star

[Rondo9]

The East isn't packed with dominant bigs this year.

It isn't?

Let's see, Vucevic, Gasol, Bosh, Love, Al Jefferson, and Tobias Harris are all putting together vastly superior seasons to Sullinger at this point. And then you have guys like Millsap, Hibbert, Horford, and even Gortat that are roughly comparable to Sullinger.

Not only is he not "borderline allstar" this year, I'd hazard a guess that at this point he has about zero chance of making it in.

well, if you continue to use reality as the basis for your posts, there will be no room for you here at cb.

Still Sullinger is getting closer can you at least acknowledge that?

[D.o.s.]

Didn't stop Kevin Love and Anthony Davis (so far for him.)

This is some adorably empty contrarianism on behalf of one of our players, which I understand, but I think I have to respond with some context:

-No one really cared about Kevin Love before his 30-30 game, which came in a year where he averaged 20 points and 15 boards. Those aren't 'borderline All Star' numbers, those are numbers that put him in the 'Elite NBA Player' discussion.

-Anthony Davis, in his sophomore year, averaged 20 and 10 while leading the league in blocks with nearly three a game. Right now, over the same period we're using to evaluate Sully, he's putting up 25 points, nearly 12 rebounds, and is leading the league in blocks (four per game) and steals (2.3).

There's no comparison.

I understand, but I'm just saying that there are players like Love and Davis that get a lot praise despite playing on bad teams most due to the fact that their talent sticks out.

Understood, but I don't think players of Sullinger's caliber (good, not 'great') get much love from the outside world.

[hwangjini_1]

The East isn't packed with dominant bigs this year.

It isn't?

Let's see, Vucevic, Gasol, Bosh, Love, Al Jefferson, and Tobias Harris are all putting together vastly superior seasons to Sullinger at this point. And then you have guys like Millsap, Hibbert, Horford, and even Gortat that are roughly comparable to Sullinger.

Not only is he not "borderline allstar" this year, I'd hazard a guess that at this point he has about zero chance of making it in.

well, if you continue to use reality as the basis for your posts, there will be no room for you here at cb.

Still Sullinger is getting closer can you at least acknowledge that?

of course. i like sully and i am glad he is on the celtics. i thought he was a very good pick. he improved this year over last, and i think will continue to improve over the next few years. at THAT point he may be considered a borderline all star.

[kozlodoev]

Didn't stop Kevin Love and Anthony Davis (so far for him.)

This is some adorably empty contrarianism on behalf of one of our players, which I understand, but I think I have to respond with some context:

-No one really cared about Kevin Love before his 30-30 game, which came in a year where he averaged 20 points and 15 boards. Those aren't 'borderline All Star' numbers, those are numbers that put him in the 'Elite NBA Player' discussion.

-Anthony Davis, in his sophomore year, averaged 20 and 10 while leading the league in blocks with nearly three a game. Right now, over the same period we're using to evaluate Sully, he's putting up 25 points, nearly 12 rebounds, and is leading the league in blocks (four per game) and steals (2.3).

There's no comparison.

I understand, but I'm just saying that there are players like Love and Davis that get a lot praise despite playing on bad teams most due to the fact that their talent sticks out.

I imagine you mean on Love at the Timberwolves in previous years, because he isn't exactly getting heaps of praise this season. Also, the Cavs are not a bad team.

And Davis' talent would be obvious on any team -- not to mention that the Pelicans are at worst average so far (5-4 record).

Sullinger's tallent doesn't exactly "stick out" on a Celtics team that's been pretty bad so far. No chance.

[kozlodoev]

Sully is shooting .500 from 16 feet to the three-point line, which is KG-esque efficiency to put that number in perspective.

On the grand total of 18 shots. 

[Rondo9]

Sully is shooting .500 from 16 feet to the three-point line, which is KG-esque efficiency to put that number in perspective.

On the grand total of 18 shots. 

That's still pretty efficient.

[sofutomygaha]

The East isn't packed with dominant bigs this year.

It isn't?

Let's see, Vucevic, Gasol, Bosh, Love, Al Jefferson, and Tobias Harris are all putting together vastly superior seasons to Sullinger at this point. And then you have guys like Millsap, Hibbert, Horford, and even Gortat that are roughly comparable to Sullinger.

Not only is he not "borderline allstar" this year, I'd hazard a guess that at this point he has about zero chance of making it in.

I think you are in pretty thin company calling Vucevic, Jefferson, and Tobias Harris dominant. I'm surprised that you disagree with my statement. The West is packed with utterly superior bigs in all of the dimensions I would associate with dominance- physicality, skill, stature, athleticism. Sullinger could not get into the conversation with competition like Howard, Davis, Griffin, Nowitzki, Aldridge, Cousins, Chandler, and Gasol. No big in the Eastern Conference could, either, with the possible exceptions of Joakim Noah and good-Hibbert (but not bad-Hibbert).

If you like scoring and rebounding, and if you're paying attention you know that all star voters largely do, Sullinger is the fifth leading scorer and the fifth leading rebounder among bigs in the East. Four bigs make the all-star team. That is literally the border.

I'm not trying to be provocative. It seems pretty clear that, if everybody kept playing like they are now for a half a season, Sullinger would be in the conversation (not actually in the game without lots of opt-outs and injury help, of course).

[kozlodoev]

The East isn't packed with dominant bigs this year.

It isn't?

Let's see, Vucevic, Gasol, Bosh, Love, Al Jefferson, and Tobias Harris are all putting together vastly superior seasons to Sullinger at this point. And then you have guys like Millsap, Hibbert, Horford, and even Gortat that are roughly comparable to Sullinger.

Not only is he not "borderline allstar" this year, I'd hazard a guess that at this point he has about zero chance of making it in.

I think you are in pretty thin company calling Vucevic, Jefferson, and Tobias Harris dominant. I'm surprised that you disagree with my statement. The West is packed with utterly superior bigs in all of the dimensions I would associate with dominance- physicality, skill, stature, athleticism. Sullinger could not get into the conversation with competition like Howard, Davis, Griffin, Nowitzki, Aldridge, Cousins, Chandler, and Gasol. No big in the Eastern Conference could, either, with the possible exceptions of Joakim Noah and good-Hibbert (but not bad-Hibbert).

If you like scoring and rebounding, and if you're paying attention you know that all star voters largely do, Sullinger is the fifth leading scorer and the fifth leading rebounder among bigs in the East. Four bigs make the all-star team. That is literally the border.

I'm not trying to be provocative. It seems pretty clear that, if everybody kept playing like they are now for a half a season, Sullinger would be in the conversation (not actually in the game without lots of opt-outs and injury help, of course).

I had a very long post here challenging your fifth and fifth in pts and rebounds. Sullinger is 6-7th in pts and 6-7th in rebounds at best, unless you're applying some very narrow definition of "big". He'll be even further back when Greg Monroe has enough games to qualify for individual rankings.

[TheFlex]

Should've expected the extremes from both sides to drive each other further apart and ignore the truth that lies somewhere in the middle.

Sully is certainly neither K. Love nor Anthony Davis, but he's no slouch either. He's arguably been our best player this season. 15/9/3 is nothing to ignore. I don't think he's an All-Star, but those are numbers that cannot evade such a discussion, and thus he is a *borderline* All-Star.

As someone said, if Sully can continue molding his body to be able to handle 35-38 minutes a night, he certainly has the skills to become another Zach Randolph, which to me is an All-Star player.

It is valid to suggest that Sully might be a good numbers, bad team sort of player. However, Sully's scoring -- which would seemingly slip if he didn't get as many touches -- is not the most impressive aspect of his season so far. His improved shooting efficiency, continued dominance on the offensive boards and passing statistics are three skills that jump out to me as ways that Sully can impact a game without having to touch the ball often or for extended periods of time. If he continues to work on his pick & roll fade jumper from midrange and sustains his assist averages, he has major potential.

Sully is not there yet, but let's keep in mind that he is still very young. He may reach his potential, he may not, but I think we can all agree on two things: his ceiling is that of an All-Star player, and his season-by-season improvement suggests he's doing the right things to reach that ceiling.

[TheFlex]

Sully is shooting .500 from 16 feet to the three-point line, which is KG-esque efficiency to put that number in perspective.

On the grand total of 18 shots. 

You must have missed the part where I made it very clear that I acknowledged it was only nine games into the season.

[GratefulCs]

Should've expected the extremes from both sides to drive each other further apart and ignore the truth that lies somewhere in the middle.

Sully is certainly neither K. Love nor Anthony Davis, but he's no slouch either. He's arguably been our best player this season. 15/9/3 is nothing to ignore. I don't think he's an All-Star, but those are numbers that cannot evade such a discussion, and thus he is a *borderline* All-Star.

As someone said, if Sully can continue molding his body to be able to handle 35-38 minutes a night, he certainly has the skills to become another Zach Randolph, which to me is an All-Star player.

It is valid to suggest that Sully might be a good numbers, bad team sort of player. However, Sully's scoring -- which would seemingly slip if he didn't get as many touches -- is not the most impressive aspect of his season so far. His improved shooting efficiency, continued dominance on the offensive boards and passing statistics are three skills that jump out to me as ways that Sully can impact a game without having to touch the ball often or for extended periods of time. If he continues to work on his pick & roll fade jumper from midrange and sustains his assist averages, he has major potential.

Sully is not there yet, but let's keep in mind that he is still very young. He may reach his potential, he may not, but I think we can all agree on two things: his ceiling is that of an All-Star player, and his season-by-season improvement suggests he's doing the right things to reach that ceiling.

So on point. Pretty objective. And it makes me a little less nervous about the future of the C's

[TheFlex]

Should've expected the extremes from both sides to drive each other further apart and ignore the truth that lies somewhere in the middle.

Sully is certainly neither K. Love nor Anthony Davis, but he's no slouch either. He's arguably been our best player this season. 15/9/3 is nothing to ignore. I don't think he's an All-Star, but those are numbers that cannot evade such a discussion, and thus he is a *borderline* All-Star.

As someone said, if Sully can continue molding his body to be able to handle 35-38 minutes a night, he certainly has the skills to become another Zach Randolph, which to me is an All-Star player.

It is valid to suggest that Sully might be a good numbers, bad team sort of player. However, Sully's scoring -- which would seemingly slip if he didn't get as many touches -- is not the most impressive aspect of his season so far. His improved shooting efficiency, continued dominance on the offensive boards and passing statistics are three skills that jump out to me as ways that Sully can impact a game without having to touch the ball often or for extended periods of time. If he continues to work on his pick & roll fade jumper from midrange and sustains his assist averages, he has major potential.

Sully is not there yet, but let's keep in mind that he is still very young. He may reach his potential, he may not, but I think we can all agree on two things: his ceiling is that of an All-Star player, and his season-by-season improvement suggests he's doing the right things to reach that ceiling.

So on point. Pretty objective. And it makes me a little less nervous about the future of the C's

Thanks! I think the Cs have a great future. They have a couple of interesting assets in Rondo and Green, good young players in Sully, Olynyk, Bradley, Smart and Young and a boatload of draft picks between 2015-18. Most importantly, they have a coach players seem to love and a front office that the league respects.

[Banner18now!]

No, he's not.

Sully is playing like a starting caliber big man but nowhere near All-Star level.

Exactly, Sully is a very good NBA player but if he is your first or second best player on the team then that means that team is not that good. He is not an all-star.

[BballTim]

No, he's not.

Sully is playing like a starting caliber big man but nowhere near All-Star level.

  He's playing decently but I think he's capable of better.

[TheFlex]

No, he's not.

Sully is playing like a starting caliber big man but nowhere near All-Star level.

Exactly, Sully is a very good NBA player but if he is your first or second best player on the team then that means that team is not that good. He is not an all-star.

He's 22 years old...

There may be a valid argument that Sullinger does not have All-Star potential but I have yet to hear it. Young forwards playing at the level he is now that still have skills in the process of development (in his case, a mid-range jumper) are not typically brushed off as Sully is by some members of this board. Again, he's not Kevin Love. But saying he could become a Zach Randolph-type isn't exactly unrealistic from my point of view.