[AdamJCallejaParticipant]

Who was the more promising or better prospect heading into their freshman season? 

Physically the two are very similar, with similar measurements and as explosive as they come off two feet. But their games are much different, Gordon much better defensively and Bridges in just a couple games has shown so much potential on both sides. 

Who would you draft?

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Bankroll PJParticipant]

 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.  

 

[SubZeroParticipant]

Plus, Alex Poythress tore his ACL about 15 times…so *knocks on wood*

[Bankroll PJParticipant]

 His athleticism came back, scouts just figured out that there’s absolutely nothing else that Poythress is good at.

[SubZeroParticipant]

Oh I agree with that because as a Kentucky fan watching him was super frustrating. I’m not saying he would’ve been some great prospect if he stayed healthy, but just from what I watched it seemed like his confidence was wavering everytime he was on the court

[holefillers1Participant]

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

[Robb_CParticipant]

Miles has wide shoulders which is going to allow him to play a lot bigger than he is.. Hes going to be a strong sob the time his body fully matures.. He really reminds me of Charles Barkely

[StephGoneStephParticipant]

 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.

 

[Dazzling Dunks and Basketball BloopersParticipant]

 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.

 

[HitsterParticipant]

 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.

[StephGoneStephParticipant]

 I imagine the lack of success of tweener forwards drafted in the last couple years will hurt Bridges. Michael Beasley, Derrick Williams and Anthony Bennett have all been colossal busts and Gordon is trending in the wrong direction. Obviously some of these types of players turn out to be very good (Draymond Green comes to mind), and Bridges is a different prospect than all these guys, but you have to think that GMs might be a little more hesistant to pull the trigger on Bridges because of these guys.

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