Mike Prada of SBNation.com sings the praises of Portland Trail Blazers forward LaMarcus Aldridge, who he argues deserves the title of "superstar."
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For three years, Aldridge put up the same decent, but unremarkable numbers. He hadn't broken out, nor had he become a spectacular draft failure that people would talk about for years. He was essentially Keith Van Horn, who had a very solid 10-year career but still left a lingering feeling of disappointment everywhere he went because he was merely "pretty good" as a No. 2 overall pick.
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Aldridge provides versatility that makes everything easier. On offense, very few players can post-up, run pick and roll and shoot from the perimeter. Aldridge can do all of those things. According to Synergy Sports, Aldridge is the 25th-most efficient post-up player in the league and the fourth-most efficient player in pick and roll situations. Throw in the fact that he shoots 50 percent from 16-23 feet -- traditionally the least efficient area on the floor -- and he's capable of doing pretty much anything offensively. Defensively, Aldridge is capable of locking down the league's best power forwards, can switch to cover centers in small lineups and is one of the few big men that won't make a coach cringe when he's forced to switch and defend a guard.
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-- Ben Golliver | benjamin.golliver@gmail.com | Twitter