England are not in the class of France, Argentina or Spain. But they do have some exceptional talent. Jude Bellingham and Harry Kane are world class. So is John Stones - at his best. Trent Alexander-Arnold is world class - in possession. Declan Rice is having the season of his life. There are more reasons to be positive going into this tournament than negative. But England have to be bold and play to their strengths.
Imagine if England were bold and, if all fit, went into the World Cup…
Pickford; Alexander-Arnold, Stones, Guehi, O’Reilly; Anderson, Rice; Saka, Bellingham, Gordon; Kane.
Stones would have some covering to do of Alexander-Arnold when he raced upfield. Bellingham gets heavily scrutinised but he’s a big-game player, a winner and used to pressure at Real Madrid. He has to start. England also have an exceptional head coach in Thomas Tuchel who can make the right changes at the right time. England have a chance of progressing to the quarter-finals of the World Cup and then anything’s possible. But only if they are bold. Not gung-ho. But bold. Risk/reward. #ENG
Ausar Thompson’s defense is unmatched:
🔒 2.0 SPG
🔒 0.9 BPG
🔒 +3.3 Def +/- (3rd in NBA)
🔒 105.8 DRtg (3rd in NBA)
🔒 3.5 Defensive Win Shares (8th in NBA)
🔒 4.4 Deflections per game (1st in NBA)
🔒 1 of 2 players with 100+ STL & 50+ BLK
No one can escape the Ausar Asylum 😤
#Tigers manager A.J. Hinch on top prospect Kevin McGonigle, who had four hits in his MLB debut: "He can hit. He won't be as nervous as that at-bat, and if that's the nervous version of him, we're in for a fun year."
Here's Hinch on McGonigle's demeanor:
Pretty sure this is my first time seeing Zion in person.
This dude is built like a truck, moving at insane speed, and bullies through everyone.
He’s been crazy to see in the first half of this one
One positive aspect of last night was that it’s pretty clear this team belongs to Duren and Ausar until Cade returns. This team will go as they go, and it’s an opportunity for them to grow as leaders with new contracts coming up for both of them this summer.
🚨 Pep Guardiola on Mohamed Salah leaving Liverpool:
🗣️ Pep: “During our battles with Jürgen Klopp and Liverpool, Salah was always the biggest weapon… always. You could prepare for everything, control the game, dominate the ball… and in one second, he destroys you.”
“He is a legend of the Premier League, no doubt. What he has done for Liverpool, for so many years, is something special. Players like this, you don’t replace them, you just try to survive them.”
“If this is the end, then Liverpool must say thank you… because players like Salah define eras. I wish him all the best....𝗦𝗵𝗼𝘄 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲
Bickerstaff on Ausar O: "Its great. It's the growth we talk about in his game... him being confident and attacking offensively."
Says he's a very good passer and playmaker, and the next step of his growth is being consistent in his aggression on offense because "he can do it".
@Charlottean28 Benching him in any scenario is always a negative. There is no situation him being benched is good offense defense anything. It’s idiotic every time We did it against the Knicks in the playoffs. I hated it then I hate it more now. He’s too good to ever sit when it counts
@mjgeorge1234 If he is first team all defense say for a decade
Sprinkle in other accolades
He has no offense really stands. If that changes by any measure. He’s just that
If you just watch Ausar Thompson play and forget that statistics even exist, you would think he is a superstar. And he may very well end up being that.
Yeah, man
Ausar Thompson is unreal. The last three games he was clearly off offensively.
He’s so good at everything else on the court, that as soon as he simply provides any mid-teens scoring he just becomes arguably the best player on the floor.
Just so we are clear. Ausar is the better twin. If it isn’t clear now. It will most certainly be clear
Next year. Keep in mind one plays 25 mins the other 38. One plays with a ball dominant player. The other one is the de facto pg. One is the best defender in the nba (-VW)
CJ McCollum tries to go 1-on-1 with Ausar Thompson with the game on the line and misses. Not sure why Thompson wasn't in the game throughout previous possessions within the final minute.