Has Zach Lavine Shed The "Empty Stats" Label?

[FireDavidKahn]

Seeing as he is the best player on one of the best teams in the Eastern Conference?

Or is the empty stats label just a made up label for people who aren't good enough to be stars but are stuck on teams that are trash?

[FireDavidKahn]

And I know people will respond with "lol KAT" but that isn't even what this thread is about.

Brandon Ingram fits into this category.
Jayson Tatum is falling into this category.
Etc, etc

Edit: Another great example is SHAI
GILGEOUS-ALEXANDER

[ELITEpower23]

Ingraham definitely does, Tatum has made a couple playoffs. I need to see Lavine make the playoffs first but the Bulls look good this year.

[expansionera]

Trae Young had this label the year before last, especially juxtaposed to Luka, because the Hawks were trash. People forget basketball is a team sport.

[ELITEpower23]

Trae Young had this label the year before last, especially juxtaposed to Luka, because the Hawks were trash. People forget basketball is a team sport.

+1

High IQ

[FireDavidKahn]

Ingraham definitely does, Tatum has made a couple playoffs. I need to see Lavine make the playoffs first but the Bulls look good this year.

Celtics have had pretty damn talented teams though most of Tatum's career. I don't think he is an "empty stats" player but the Celtics are exactly 42-42 since the beginning of last season. That doesn't exactly scream star player.

Devin Booker was considered an empty stats loser until the rest of his team developed and he got CP3... Yet if you watched his game you'd have realized how good he really was :confusedshrug:

[beasted]

"Empty stats player" is just another label for a guy who doesn't do enough to contribute towards winning other than scoring.

Not as much defense, leadership, passing, etc to be compared to other top 5 players. I still think LaVine and Booker are squarely in this category.

It's not to say these guys are bad players it's just to rate them properly as in the 20s best players in the NBA and nowhere near sniffing top 10 like a lot tend to overrate them.

[PeroAntic]

Zach was never empty stats but its true that his mediocre defense and excessive turnovers lower the impact of his scoring. He basically has to stay above 50% shooting and 40 from three to have a positive impact. He did that in the last few years so he contributes to winning. Also an underrated aspect is defensive attention that a player commands and Zach is among the most feared players in the league.

[2much_knowledge]

Has to be. A lot of his peers as of late are starting to give respect and praise. He arrived. Playoffs should tell us the rest

[ImKobe]

He was always a legitimate star who could be the #1 option on a winning team for me but Derozan has also played on his level so far, so I think that's helped more than anything. He has improved a lot on defense so that's where I'd give him a lot of credit because that doesn't show up on the stat sheet. He has two additional playmakers now so there's less pressure on him offensively and he's always been a great athlete with volume 3PT shooting ability which is ideal for today's league. He's really close to 50/40/90 averages as well.

[FireDavidKahn]

He was always a legitimate star who could be the #1 option on a winning team for me but Derozan has also played on his level so far, so I think that's helped more than anything. He has improved a lot on defense so that's where I'd give him a lot of credit because that doesn't show up on the stat sheet. He has two additional playmakers now so there's less pressure on him offensively and he's always been a great athlete with volume 3PT shooting ability which is ideal for today's league. He's really close to 50/40/90 averages as well.

You definitely do not remember how Lavine was viewed in the past.

[Akeem34TheDream]

I rate Tatum Derozan and Lavine similarly. Top 25 players.

[ImKobe]

You definitely do not remember how Lavine was viewed in the past.

That's not how I viewed him. Sure, he got little respect from the media because he put up these stats on a losing team but his talent was always undeniable.