RJ Hunter displays his own basketball IQ by praising that of Brad Stevens

This is a short article in which RJ Hunter enthuses about how prescient Brad Stevens can be. RJ's sensitivity to this trait of Brad suggests to me that RJ either shares those qualities or (more likely) will share them down the road.

Sam

The article:

Over the span of a few weeks, Boston Celtics head coach Brad Stevens has impressed rookie R.J. Hunter.

By Jay King | mjking@masslive.com

on July 18, 2015 at 11:00 PM, updated July 18, 2015 at 11:18 PM

RJ Hunter discusses Boston Celtics coach Brad Stevens' 'ridiculous' intelligence and ability to predict an opponent's sets

Already raving about his new coach, Boston Celtics rookie R.J. Hunter sounds stunned by Brad Stevens' basketball knowledge.
Three weeks after getting drafted, Hunter delivered an interesting quote about Stevens' "ridiculous" basketball intelligence to the Boston Herald's Mark Murphy.

"Brad's known for keying guys down to a T. It's kind of crazy how he does it. That's the detail part of it," Hunter told Murphy. "He'll say on the second missed free throw they're going to run this set with two minutes left in the third quarter — and he's saying this before the game. So they'll miss the second free throw and go run the play he said. The detail he uses is insane.

"It's ridiculous how smart and detailed he is."

If Stevens knows other summer league teams that well, he might be an actual basketball wizard during the regular season. He did not coach the Celtics summer league club during games, but spent plenty of time around the team.

Hunter has looked good this summer especially when compared to last year's second pick, James Young.

I am sure that the competition between these two guys this pre-season for playing time is going to be fierce on the court and also fierce here on Sam's Forum.

Looks like a battle between the "athlete" and the "smart kid" so far. Young is more athletic and can actually play the small forward spot since he is bigger and stronger. Hunter is smaller and not as strong (yet), but seems to much better understand the nuances of the game. Of course, he is not a terrible athlete or he would not have been drafted.

Young has a year of NBA practice experience as well as a bunch of games in the D League. Hunter has three years of college experience and also had a dad who coached him in high school.

Each guy could become a part of a trade as well before the regular season starts, but until there is a trade it is going to be very interesting to watch these two guys during the pre-season.

I am sure that we have not read the last of the members' opinions on either guy.