Legacy Posted January 18, 2012 Report Share Posted January 18, 2012 http://cdn.bleacherreport.net/images_root/images/photos/001/533/348/110897251_crop_650x440.jpg?1326849498 When you think of the NBA’s most underrated players in the league, quite a few names can cross your mind. The list ranges from big men to sixth men, but there is no player in the league more under-appreciated than Golden State Warriors guard, Monta Ellis. The combo guard has been under the radar ever since he was drafted in the second round back in the 2005 draft class. Being a guard and coming out of the same draft as players such as Chris Paul, Deron Williams and Raymond Felton can be tough when you’re already a lesser known prospect. Starting off his career coming off the bench, Ellis was instantly a crowd favorite. Diving for loose balls, doing all the hustle plays just to get off the bench and show what he can do, Ellis had to play with a chip on his shoulder. It’s not often that combo guard becomes a successful player in the league. Coaches have a tough time placing them in the lineup. Monta would constantly have to either play point guard or the 2-guard, having to adjust to many guards in different sizes, speeds and defensive abilities. Ellis and coaches finally realized it was best for him to play shooting guard. At 6’3", Monta has always had to defend bigger guards. While many critics claim he’s a liability on defense, he has proved that he can hang with some of the best guards in the league in the past two seasons. When Ellis is not gambling for steals, he can be a good perimeter defender. Holding players like Brandon Roy and Kobe Bryant to bad shooting percentages had earned him recognition from Bryant and arguably the greatest coach of all time, Phil Jackson. Defense can be tough for Ellis because he plays a numerous amount of minutes. He has been among the league leaders in minutes for most of his career, and he’s doing it while running in the fast pace tempo of the Warriors offense. Many people do not see that when they claim Ellis can’t defend. With Coach Mark Jackson running the Warriors now with his committed defensive scheme, Ellis has even more of a chance to showcase that he can play well on both sides of the court. Everyone should already know Ellis’ offensive game is nasty. He is arguably the fastest and quickest player in the league, ball in his hands or not. There is a reason he was once nicknamed “the one man fast break.” Not only can Monta score in transition, but he can now score in the low post. Yes, Ellis the undersized shooting guard has developed a post game. He has a few moves and an amazing turnaround jumper that catches defenders off guard. Coach Jackson has utilized Ellis to the best of his abilities and his offensive game is complete. The playmaking abilities of Ellis are now vastly improved. With point guard Stephen Curry out with an ankle injury, Ellis has had to play a lot of point guard in the past couple of weeks. His vision has gotten much better as a result. A surprising stat is that Ellis is one of the only three players in the league that averages 20 points and seven assists per game this season. The other two players? LeBron James and Derrick Rose. Not a bad category of players to be in, and you would think that would get Ellis’ name bigger. While Ellis has not been an All-Star before in his career, the Western Conference guards have got to be one of the tougher spots when it comes to the selection process. Now with players like Deron Williams going to the East, Steve Nash getting older and Manu Ginobili being out with an injury, Ellis has got to be getting big-time consideration for an All-Star nod. The Warriors might not have a great record, but Blake Griffin’s Clippers and Kevin Love’s Timberwolves records were not the best last season either, and both made it. Some people say that Ellis is overrated because of the system he plays in, but the Warriors are not the same fast pace team they once were. Ellis now plays in more of a half-court offense. He is still one of the best scorers in the league and is now even making a case for being one of the best passers. His defense has also vastly improved. It’s time for Monta to stop being underestimated, unrecognized and underrated by the national media. Ellis is a top three shooting guard in the league behind Bryant and Dwyane Wade. It’s time he stops being under the radar and seen as one of the better players in the NBA. http://bleacherreport.com/articles/1028289-the-most-underrated-player-in-the-nba-monta-ellis Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nitro Posted January 18, 2012 Report Share Posted January 18, 2012 He's averaging over 4 TO's and has an awful TS% of .490. In other words, no, he's not the most underrated player in the league. Especially since he's getting paid $11M this season and has been in so many trade rumors as the centerpiece to acquire an all-star caliber player. Bottom line is he is super talented, but his stats are overblown because of volume. He's taking over 21 shot attempts and doing the bulk of the ballhandling/playmaking for the Warriors, so of course he'll get his 20/7. However, the inefficiency he does both at is what makes him impossible to ever build around, and what makes other contending teams hesistant to trade for him. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AboveLegit Posted January 18, 2012 Report Share Posted January 18, 2012 I'm going to side with Nitro here. I acknowledge that Marc Jackson has done a great job maximizing Ellis' talent, and has slowed the pace down quite a bit from last year, but the fact remains that he's in the top 3 in usage rate out of the entire league behind only Kobe and Melo. I'll also contend that this heavier work load with Steph Curry out is hurting his efficiency numbers. Yeah he's averaging more assists (and that will surely go down as the season progresses), but shouldn't that come naturally with him being the only distributor on the team now? Let's not forget the type of teammate he is. Steph Curry is at his best when Monta is out of the lineup. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JYD Posted January 18, 2012 Report Share Posted January 18, 2012 Monta Ellis is not the most underrated player. He sucks on defense, and forces shots at times. No thx Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flash Posted January 18, 2012 Report Share Posted January 18, 2012 Not to be a homer..but I'd say Chris Bosh might be the most underrated player in terms of how fans look at him. Dude is still one of the elite PF's in the game. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JYD Posted January 18, 2012 Report Share Posted January 18, 2012 Where you went wrong: Not to be a homer..but I'd say Chris Bosh might be the most underrated player in terms of how fans look at him. Dude is still one of the elite PF's in the game. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DunkinDerozan Posted January 18, 2012 Report Share Posted January 18, 2012 Like what JYD said, when I've watched him play I seem to notice he forces a lot of shots. His turnover numbers are very high as well. I have no doubt that Monta is an allstar-caliber player and is extremely talented, but I am not convinced he's that much under rated. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DunkinDerozan Posted January 18, 2012 Report Share Posted January 18, 2012 Not to be a homer..but I'd say Chris Bosh might be the most underrated player in terms of how fans look at him. Dude is still one of the elite PF's in the game. He's also a little bitch. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flash Posted January 18, 2012 Report Share Posted January 18, 2012 He's also a little bitch. I see you still aren't over the fact he left as a free agent. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DunkinDerozan Posted January 19, 2012 Report Share Posted January 19, 2012 I see you still aren't over the fact he left as a free agent. You guessed right. He's a good player, but he is also a baby. I think he's going to get tired of not getting the ball in Miami and ask for a trade. It might depend on if they win a championship this year or not. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flash Posted January 19, 2012 Report Share Posted January 19, 2012 (edited) Lmao seriously? He's playing with 2 of his closest friends, going to be a contender for at least 3 more years and he and his wife are having a child here he's not going anywhere. Edited January 19, 2012 by Flash Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DunkinDerozan Posted January 19, 2012 Report Share Posted January 19, 2012 Lmao seriously? He's playing with 2 of his closest friends, going to be a contender for at least 3 more years and he and his wife are having a child here he's not going anywhere. Haha, ok I know he's probably not really going to demand a trade. Buy you never know with Bosh. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Built Ford Tough Posted January 19, 2012 Report Share Posted January 19, 2012 Lmao seriously? He's playing with 2 of his closest friends, going to be a contender for at least 3 more years and he and his wife are having a child here he's not going anywhere. I agree with you that he isn't going to be asking for a trade, but are Wade and James really two of his closest friends? Wade, maybe, but not James. They have a good working relationship with each other but I really don't get the vibe that they are super tight off the court like James/Wade/Paul/Melo all are. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Artesticle Posted January 19, 2012 Report Share Posted January 19, 2012 He's also a little bitch.http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-gecjSYLX6FQ/TskvuDqvXFI/AAAAAAAAAzQ/zTKN3_4NQ84/s1600/chris-bosh-crying.jpg you mean mang Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flash Posted January 19, 2012 Report Share Posted January 19, 2012 I agree with you that he isn't going to be asking for a trade, but are Wade and James really two of his closest friends? Wade, maybe, but not James. They have a good working relationship with each other but I really don't get the vibe that they are super tight off the court like James/Wade/Paul/Melo all are. Obviously Wade and James are best friends but Bosh is extremely close with them both. They all spent New Years together and he was there for LeBron's engagement. He definitely has a strong relationship with them off the court. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Built Ford Tough Posted January 19, 2012 Report Share Posted January 19, 2012 Obviously Wade and James are best friends but Bosh is extremely close with them both. They all spent New Years together and he was there for LeBron's engagement. He definitely has a strong relationship with them off the court. Neither were that at Bosh's bachelor party and neither were in his wedding party (well, the vow renewal since he got married duirng the season, right?), though. That doesn't exactly strike me as them being best friends. I don't really care, though. They could hate each other for all I care or they could be completely inseperable off the court. I don't really care much about basketball players personal lives. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DunkinDerozan Posted January 19, 2012 Report Share Posted January 19, 2012 http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-gecjSYLX6FQ/TskvuDqvXFI/AAAAAAAAAzQ/zTKN3_4NQ84/s1600/chris-bosh-crying.jpg you mean mang I like that hahaha. Chris Boohoo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flash Posted January 19, 2012 Report Share Posted January 19, 2012 (edited) Neither were that at Bosh's bachelor party and neither were in his wedding party (well, the vow renewal since he got married duirng the season, right?), though. That doesn't exactly strike me as them being best friends. I don't really care, though. They could hate each other for all I care or they could be completely inseperable off the court. I don't really care much about basketball players personal lives. They were both there when he got married this offseason. http://worldredeye.c...ng-after-party/ Edited January 19, 2012 by Flash Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Built Ford Tough Posted January 19, 2012 Report Share Posted January 19, 2012 I meant in the wedding party in terms of being a groomsman or best man. I know they were there, but they weren't part of the wedding party, at least as far as I know. Just to clarify, I'm not saying that they aren't friends or anything like that. I just have never got the vibe that they were super tight like Wade, James, Paul and Melo are. They are friends who will hang out and all that stuff, but don't have that "brother" vibe that you see from the other players I mentioned. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Check my Stats Posted January 19, 2012 Report Share Posted January 19, 2012 Not to be a homer..but I'd say Chris Bosh might be the most underrated player in terms of how fans look at him. Dude is still one of the elite PF's in the game. Absolutely agree. Dude was a THE best PF in the game before he went to Miami, and I don't care what any tells me; his numbers were not hollow, we would have been a playoff team if he doesn't injure his ankle and then get his face smashed, and that is with very, very mediocre players on our roster. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flash Posted January 19, 2012 Report Share Posted January 19, 2012 Absolutely agree. Dude was a THE best PF in the game before he went to Miami, and I don't care what any tells me; his numbers were not hollow, we would have been a playoff team if he doesn't injure his ankle and then get his face smashed, and that is with very, very mediocre players on our roster. Exactly, that Atlanta game showed that he's still on that level as well. Shit even last night he looked like his old self. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nitro Posted January 19, 2012 Report Share Posted January 19, 2012 I don't know if I'd really call Bosh underrated, either...I know what Flash is saying, but he's still making max money and making All-Star teams. He gets a LOT of shit from fans, but most everyone knows how talented he is. James Harden, Manu Ginobili, Jrue Holliday, Kyle Lowry, Paul Milsap, Taj Gibson (was gunna say Luol, but he's become nearly overrated for being so underrated), Ty Lawson and similar players are underrated, at least as far as players who make a big impact but don't get the recognition they deserve. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Owner Real Deal Posted January 19, 2012 Owner Report Share Posted January 19, 2012 I'm not so sure Monta is the most underrated player in the game. He's considered a very good scorer, and I think he doesn't get enough credit for the defense he CAN play (when he's determined to play it), but to me, he has always been a bit too inconsistent, and sometimes, he just zones out and goes into Jordan mode at times where he shouldn't. It's tough to really say who is the most underrated player in the league. There are many to choose from. Paul Millsap is doing big things for the Jazz, and Roy Hibbert's Pacers are playing very good basketball due to what he's doing in Indiana. Iguodala does a LOT on the floor, scores when he needs to, facilitates, rebounds well, and plays very good defense...finally, being a team player is paying off, but he's not being recognized for it as much as he should be. Same with Lawson. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Need4Sheed Posted February 2, 2012 Report Share Posted February 2, 2012 Ellis is no where near the most underrated player in the league. Many validate points most of you stated. Dude is a TO machine and plays no defense. Not sure where you got this way of thinking from. I was also scrolling through the thread hoping to would add to the discussion to clarify your thoughts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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