Colin Cowherd is not buying into the Ja Moran hype.
At least not long term. Colin Cowherd spoke about Ja’s incredible 52-point performance against the Spurs Feb. 28.
“This Ja Morant stuff,” Cowherd said curmudgeonly. “I know he’s great. But, I want to remind you: fans and the media have fallen for this five times in the last 12 years. It’s called John Wall, it’s called Westbrook, it’s called Derrick Rose,” he said matter-of-factly.
“Derrick Rose was every bit Ja Morant. He literally took over social media, he took over cable tv. I am very skeptical about the long-term championship odds for springy athletic guards that drive and score,” he said.
He went on the make the case that players who have won multiple MVPs were largely players that passed the ball well, not necessarily slashers.
“The guys that knock your socks off, the little guys that drive the basket because they’re not great shooters do not last,” Cowherd said. “Wall hurt. Westbrook multiple hurt.”
“The highlights last night were incredible. But, I’ve seen us do this over and over and over again. [Morant is] a good distributor. Not great. He’s got to pull up [and shoot the ball], he’s not big.
.@ColinCowherd is skeptical of Ja Morant long-term…
"Fans in the media have fallen for this. It's called John Wall, Russell Westbrook, and Derrick Rose." pic.twitter.com/RtL6qKU6Xf
— Herd w/Colin Cowherd (@TheHerd) March 1, 2022
Cowherd released a new episode of his podcast the very next day and once again spoke about Ja’s long term viability.
“Derrick Rose was the best highlight player in the league. So is Ja Morant,” Cowherd said on the podcast.
“Derrick Rose was not the best player in the league. He faced, that year he won the MVP, LeBron in the Eastern Conference Finals and LeBron totally shut him down in the fourth quarter of every big game.”
Cowherd went even further, pretty much calling Ja Morant eye candy.
“Ja Morant’s not as valuable as Giannis. He’s not as gifted as a healthy KD. He’s not the best player in the league. He’s the best highlight.”
“I’m not saying Ja Morant won’t win an MVP. I’m not saying he won’t be a great player. I’m not saying he won’t be a Hall of Famer. I’m not saying he won’t lead his team to playoff victories and series victories. But titles—they don’t go through point guards.
Cowherd then tried to save face by saying that he likes Morant, but he thinks he has to add to his game in order to have a long NBA career.
“I’m not anti-Ja Morant. But, we’ve seen this before: hyper-athletic guards who are not great shooters. There is no hand-check. Wall can get to the basket. Westbrook gets to the basket. Derrick Rose gets to the basket.
Give it to Cowherd for giving takes that people want to talk about. Ja will be fine, assuming he stays healthy…
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