Miles Bridges/Aaron Gordon

 While Bridges has looked amazing in his first couple of games, I still think Gordon was the better prospect.  Going to the Orlando Magic hurt Gordon more than anything as that organization has not been able to develop anyone recently (Payton, Hezonja, Oladipo, etc). Gordon is longer and a better defender, but Bridges seems as if he’s much closer to being able to play the 3 in the NBA than Gordon is at this point.  Should be fun to see how Bridges progresses this season, because right now he looks like a surefire lottery pick.

P.S. Talking about Bridges just made me think of Alex Poythress.  I remember him wowing with his athleticism during the champions classic as a freshman and immediately there was talk about him being a potential top 10 pick.  I don’ see this happening to Bridges at all though, as his game is much more rounded.  

 Bridges reminds me of Richard Jefferson.  Tons of raw ability. Tighten up that handle and GET DIALED IN on the defensive end.

 I think they differ quite a bit in their playing styles. Bridges looks much more comfortable playing on the perimeter than Gordon did at Arizona; he looks more fluid when moving in space and his jumper is much more natural. I could see Bridges playing SF most of the time at the next level, whereas I think Gordon will be best if he plays PF. Gordon probably has two inches on Bridges though.

How Bridges does at the next level will really depend on how consistently he can hit the 3. If he’s a threat from the perimeter I could see him end up being a Shawn Marion type and a guy who can contribute in transition and in the half court. If not, I don’t think he’s quite big enough to play inside full time.

 Similar athletic ability. Bridges is definitely stronger than Gordon was though at Arizona. Bridges is also clearly more comfortable playing on the perimeter, both handling and shooting the ball (although he could still use considerable improvement in both those areas). Overall, I just think bridges is a much better and more versatile offensive player than gordon was at the same age. The one clear advantage that Gordon had was that his overall effort seemed to be much better and his energy more consistent, which is definitely something bridges needs to work on. 

I wasn’t particularly high on Gordon coming out of college. I thought he’d be a good energy guy, but would likely be a tweener who could be an offensive liability. I thought the magic reached taking him at 4th, and so far I don’t believe he has proven me wrong. Bridges more advanced offensive game makes him the better prospect imo, but I do admit he has the potential to be a more risky selection than Gordon.

 Bridges is a much more solid build than Gordon was at a similar stage, I agree with the comment about him having wide shoulders – so he’ll have a very solid base and can use any his bulk to make up for any height disadvantage especially at PF. I haven’t seen that much of him yet so I cannot comment too much on his upside, Gordon seemed to be higher rated at a similar stage of his career.