Ace Bailey when asked about his expectations for the Jazz next season: “I don’t know. I’m still trying to finish this one out… Really just dialed in on this [season] … When somebody said we were 70 games in, I was like… what?”
The excitement is refreshing
It’s really nice to see him engaged and positive. This guy has all the tools to be a star.
Danny ainge has a pretty good eye.
Got a periscope on that tank
He’s definitely been a bright spot for us this season
A year late.
Edit: lol what is this response. Is everyone just burying their heads in the sand over how Ace treated teams last summer? Or, apparently the sub has decided that they support everything he did last summer.
I did NOT say I hate the kid. I did NOT say I’m rooting against him. I did NOT say it’s a bad thing that he’s grown. Get a grip and stop coming at me with nonsense I didn’t say.
Literally all I said was he should have been taking this approach last summer.
Yet somehow that’s such a divisive opinion.
What do you think he’s been doing all year? We just haven’t heard from him much with Utah’s news cycle dominated by the tank. Rookie years are about guys learning and growing. Great sign they have the right people around him.
Did you miss last summer?
edit: this shouldn’t be so difficult. Yes, he’s saying/doing great things now. He should have been doing that this summer.
Big Omar Cooper fans on the sub today, I guess.
Rookie years are about guys learning and growing.
You supported his decision to act like he did last summer. Yes or no?
It’s really that simple.
I’m glad you had life all figured out for yourself at 18 and always acted as a paragon of maturity
I’m glad you realized my comment had anything to do with being a perfect 18 year old. Oh, wait…
Should he have acted last summer like he is now? Yes or no. It’s a real simple concept.
people change cunt, get over yourself
No dude I don’t. I was mad at him last summer. I hate his agent. But I also understand that people make mistakes and change and grow. And even him telling teams to fuck off last year is not enough for me to not want to see a 19 year old kid succeed.
The whole reason we are talking about this is because he seems so different from that time period, which is awesome.
You’re acting like the dude ate a baby
How dare that kid grow. That was clearly Socrates baby to eat.
Then WTF are you complaining to me over? All I said is he should have been doing this a year ago.
Do you agree he should’ve had this attitude a year ago? Yes or no?
YOU are the one making this into some complex drama.
But I also understand that people make mistakes and change and grow.
So you do agree that his approach is better and he should have done this last summer. So you AGREE with me. Thanks for saying so.
And even him telling teams to fuck off last year is not enough for me to not want to see a 19 year old kid succeed.
PLEASE TELL ME WHERE I SAID I DIDN’T WANT HIM TO SUCCED.
AGREED!!!!!!!!!!!!
That was literally my original point.
Welcome to the conversation.
You mean when he wasn’t even an NBA player?
Should he have talked openly and publicly about basketball last summer when he was a prospective top-3 draft pick?
Is this a trick question?
I mean, how much of that was Cooper, and how much of that was Ace? Let’s not act like Ace didn’t fire Cooper immediately after the draft, either.
And even if it was Ace, let’s not pretend like he’s the first player in NBA history to ever refuse to work out for teams, or tell teams not to draft him, lmao. Steph Curry, so toxic because he didn’t want to be drafted to the Warriors, am I right?
FFS what is wrong with reddit today.
I did acknowledge he fired Cooper and said I’m glad for the kid.
How is this so hard to understand?
You literally just run with media headlines lol what an existence
You’re making an accusation about someone’s intent with zero knowledge of that person. What an existence.
Sorry, but no. I’m actually remembering how he treated teams for months in the pre-draft process. His attitude is specifically why he fell.
All you’re doing is giving the typical redditor take of burying your head in the sand like nothing existed before this very moment.
Ironic first sentence
I love when redditors try to use the word ironic. It’s very telling.
He followed the direction of his then agent, who he has since fired.
He fired Omar Cooper, who was NOT his agent. There’s a difference.
And please stop pretending that Ace didn’t go along with everything. That he wasn’t actively making this an issue with every new thing.
I’m glad for the kid that dropped Cooper. But he waited too long.
He should’ve done it before last summer.
Brother just eat the downvotes you dont gotta edit every comment because the hivemind doesnt like you
I don’t give a flying frak about being liked.
I edited my comment for clarity because so many people had a problem with reading a simple comment.
If you think Ace should have acted like he acted last summer, go ahead and give me a downvote.
You are so right bro he ruined his reputation he should just give up and quit. Honestly who cares that he didn’t handle the draft process well he’s coping fine with actually being in the league and seems energized for the future.
GENIUS reply. That’s exactly what I said. /s
You win Reddit’s hyperbole of the day award.
he’s coping fine with actually being in the league and seems energized for the future.
GREAT!!
I’m actually glad for the kid.
But he should have been at this point a year ago.
Literally all my original comment was, is that it’s great he’s there now but he shouldn’t have done what he did. This shouldn’t have been so hard to grasp for you.
That was his agent’s fault. He fired him.
This guy got so much hate going into the season but he’s been nothing but a work horse. Good for him
Mostly because of his goofy ass agent
Tbf the Sixers subreddit started trashing his intelligence and many other things about him as a person the closer it got to the draft.
All that bad behavior and rewarded with VJ Edgecombe!
Brother can’t make a layup
Yeah he is just too busy crushing it with his dunks, mid-range and threes.
We’ll give you Bogi and a second for him then
Still the most exciting rookie tho, next to Kon
Uhhhh Coop definitely exists. Love VJ, but holy fuck Coop is different
Flagg has an aura of inevitability that almost detracts from the excitement around him. Don’t get me wrong he’s very exciting to watch but it feels like we’re just getting what was advertised. Kon & VJ have further exceeded their early expectations whereas Flagg has much higher expectations, so he hasn’t exceeded his expectations to the same degree as Kon/VJ. IMO the excitement comes from the degree to which the players are exceeding their expectations, rather than the actual results on the court.
This is such an apt description of Flagg that I’ve never put into words but now that I’ve seen it written out it makes perfect sense lol. He’s averaging 20-6-4 shooting 47% from the field and im like yeah so what thats normal? But it’s not normal at all the kid is a fucking beast. He had 49 points in a game this year and he’s 19 years old. He’s gonna dominate the league. He hasn’t shot well from 3 either he’s gonna get so much better so it’s crazy how this feels normal.
Valid viewpoint honestly
Yeah totally. Flagg is living up to the “next best thing” dialogue that was happening when he came onto the scene. And it’s awesome, like seriously, holy hell, he’s the real deal! Dude might as well have been playing in the NBA. He’s just that good.
Enter Kon, VJ, Ace, et al. By all accounts — and I think we’d all agree — they’ve been fantastically exciting because they’ve exceeded every expectation. I’ve no problem admitting how I didn’t think they’d be at this level; sure as shit not this quickly! It’s thrilling!
I mean Flagg is cool and all, but he’s no Carter Bryant
hugo the goat
Who go?
It’s pretty cool how the top 5 players in the draft last year seemed to be drafted in the correct order. I guess you could argue Kon or VJ over Harper but they’re all incredible talents that will have amazing careers.
I like him
Yeah I do remember that lol dudes did take it personal in there. Shit I probably did too at that moment but it shouldn’t had been directed at him. His agent was just being a dickhead.
There was a satire account that went by MMA literally making shit posts about Ace Bailey but as it got closer to the draft, EVERYONE basically agreed with MMA, that sub is a joke.
Lmao speaking of dickheads, MMAFan is at the top of the list. You’re absolutely right about the sub though, some of the most awful takes you’ll ever see are posted in there
When you say “literally making shit posts” do you mean they were literally shitting in envelopes and posting it to his house?
Would have never suspected that from Philly fans. Literally never.
We’ve been wrong before and we’ll be wrong again.
I’ll bitch until I die regardless of the situation.
Tired of these goofy ass agents making these kids look like divas/bad attitude players. Since the draft I’ve only ever heard about how much the kid works and how much potential he has.
Agents aren’t out there doing things the client doesn’t want.
Also, that guy wasn’t even his agent.
Sometimes they are though. Not saying that’s what happened here but it’s very conceivable that an agent wants his player to go to Philly over Utah because the player will get more endorsements/bigger fanbase which leads to more money for the agent too. And then they convince the player it’s good for them too
Unfortunately he was asked to start alongside 3 other freshman in the Big 10 with a coach that can’t coach an offense.
Yea he’s very likable.
Crazy how much people hated basically a kid because he got bad advice from someone much older and unfortunately listened.
Totally human to be disappointed by an outcome. character is what you decide to do next. Everyone expected him to be a sourpuss about going to Utah, but he’s been a professional about it. I’m cheering for him
Yea it feels like this season has flown by. Like wym we’re about a month out from the playoffs?
I looked up the standings the other day after being surprised wembys buzzer beater locked the spurs into the playoffs and was shocked how many teams are already locked into at least the play in
Not that surprising when the top teams are really freaking good and the bottom 8 are just outright bad.
The suns having already clinched at least a playoff spot is pretty surprising.
Once we get to All Star break basketball just goes into lightspeed
Maybe im biased as a Kings fan but so many games have simply not been competetive, isntant tune out when it feels like a third of the league just wants to lose.
And bless their hearts the Kings are actually trying… they just suck.
Thank you for understanding.
Yeah, I had the same reaction as him: “what the hell? The playoffs are almost here???”
this has definitely been the longest season i’e ever experienced. can’t wait for the playoffs
He’s got that mentality that makes you really believe in him
Such a stark contrast compared to how he was portrayed during the draft
Agreed. As a Jazz fan I kept an open mind of course because we drafted him, but I’d be lying if I said all that noise didn’t make me worry just a little bit. He’s such a positive energy and a sponge most of all, he’ll be fine in the end.
If you really have followed Ace along the way, from high school through college, you would know what kind of person is. He takes tough shoots or might have issues decision making out there but he’s never been a selfish player or arrogant bad person. His coaches and teammates love him and praise him for being a good team player.
His name is so fucking cool that he has to be good eventually
It should worry you. I can’t wait to see the kid in Purple & Gold
Shows you how media manufactured all these player narratives are.
There were also a lot of people around here fanning those flames by posting all that stuff and upvoting it to the top of the sub constantly tbf. Like the media may start it some, but they only stick to it because people start eating it up
It wasn’t the media. If you saw his representation and knew his history, it makes perfect sense. His fault for initially picking him.
Who was it that brought you that particular portrayal of him as a person? lol proving my point exactly.
Not sure what you are exactly trying to frame lol. But no, you still sound just as ridiculous. His rep tried to play hardball for a team who just wanted to draft the best player available and it didn’t work while also trashing his initial image.
re-read your own comment.
His image was trashed because of how *media* portrayed his rep. Not because of his own actions, or because of an honest portrayal of who he is.
You are changing your read of him because the aspects of who he is that you are being exposed to are changed.
This is a classic example of how your opinions about players get manipulated so easily.
You are so off lol. Do you actually know his rep’s history? It isn’t due to how the media portrayed him, it was due to how Omar Cooper portrayed himself on social media and handled Ace Bailey’s business. Doing things like requesting money for simply doing on camera interviews is corny. Omar carries himself like a cornball. And he wasn’t even allowed to be his actual agent, he had no business having so much influence over Bailey’s career.
He got fired for a reason.
>it was due to how Omar Cooper portrayed himself on social media
bro, are you an LLM on slow mode?
He’s been awesome. I expected him to come in and absolutely chuck shots (in a good way! I wanted him to have the green light) but his play has been so extremely mature. He doesn’t force things and plays within the system. I’m excited too see what he can do with an off-season to bulk up and work on his game
Yeah, I really like way the Jazz and Will Hardy are bringing him up. Given his limited role, I for sure thought he was going to get frustrated similar to a potential Kuminga situation but like you said, he’s seemed extremely mature about it all and appears to be very coachable.
And now he’s dropping career highs on zero free throws. Jazz have a bright future.
He’s got a solid IQ for the game, and if this is the progress he’s made in just the first season…oh man I can’t wait!
a lot like Ant tbh
Real hoopers lock in and drown out all the noise
Dude never had character concerns. The media wanted you to think he did and you dumbasses bought it. Smhhh ✌️
Or it’s somewhere in the middle since his agent was clearly being non conventional in some way during the pre draft process
I mean, imagine how many points per game he’d have on the Wizards. It almost worked. He really just wanted a ton of shots per game and flashy numbers. He just got lucky he got sent to a franchise that is going to turn him into a better player in the long term. It’s awesome that they are making him earn every shot he takes.
It was entirely his agent
Exactly. He really said nothing .
Everything was “reports” and people dogpiled on trashing the guy. The things people were saying were absolutely ridiculous
TIL my 8 year old kid drinks bottles of water like a professional athlete
Never heard him talk before somehow. I like his vibe
I can already picture what he’s going to look like when he’s an old man 😂
Dude looks like he’s 15
I think the Jazz make a big leap next season. Kessler, JJJ, Markannen, Bailey, and George is a pretty sick lineup. And they’re guaranteed a damn good player in the draft, even if they don’t get a top 3 pick. Wagler, Flemings, Acuff, or Brown Jr would all be great fits
Ace Bailey is one of my favorite rookies this season… not that he’s had one of the best seasons in this class, but he went from being (perhaps unfairly?) viewed as a diva going into the draft (when in reality was just a good kid getting awful advice) to a young kid with all the tools he needs to be successful working his ass off to contribute, learn the league, and get better daily. I’m really excited to see where he goes from here.
I forgot him and the jazz existed
No you didn’t, Silver made sure to make an example out of our tanking. We were all over espn after that.
Wholesome
His arms look soooo long
He gives off good vibes.
I love his energy
I was really wrong about him. Seemed on draft night that Utah wasn’t where he wanted to be, but happy to see he’s engaged and focused. Hoping for the best for him.
Tbf Jazz have only tried in seventeen games, so easily confused with sevenTY
Kind of a dumbass question lol
I Like this dude. Fun to watch him play. Hope he’s settled in in Utah, or gets to go elsewhere if he wants. He’s displaying way more maturity than media led us to believe he had
He has such a baby face doesn’t he
this clip made me a fan lol
Ace is gonna be nice, Mceachern’s finest.
He can’t wait to come to LA, and he’ll look amazing in purple and gold.
Come. To. Papas.
He is literally a baby at this point. It must be an awful lot of pressure being so young and having so much on your shoulders. No wonder so many come up short.
this guy lowk beautiful
When you suck like they do, the only thing you worry about is if you’re gonna have a job next season. I think Gilbert Arenas even said that’s how they are thinking on losing teams like that
Oh 💅💅