I watched that game too which stemmed my concerns. Defense looked lazy, and the handle did not look good. Out of control. Bede looked like a much better player.
Bede is a year younger, and rising fast, but right now he's not a better player. If he continues his improvement he may end up being better though. Remember that on the Rivals team, Makai is usually guarding the opponents best player, and being guarded by their best defender on the other end.
Bede is an awesome player and could end up being a 5* if he keeps it up--who knows. But I think a one-shot analysis of Makai were hearing on the board (not just from you, not hate intended) is iffy. He's an excellent athlete, solid finisher, developing leader on the court, and most likely a terrific defender. I trust a real, accomplished basketball coaches analysis far more than an ESPN talking head's opinion from watching him in a game or two.
Keep in mind that shooting is the easiest thing to improve. You cannot improve your speed
that much working out, and a player certainly can't get taller or longer. I'd like to see Kai improve his shooting and his true PG skills (handle, vision) even more to become elite.
I watched a couplefew games and it looks like they run Bede and Kai together UCONN-style, switching duties when needed.
Adidas Stats through 12 games:
Kai:
15.7ppg
.442FG%
.576FT% (that's horrendous for a guard--indicative of his shooting issues?)
.273 3P% (again, shows he's a struggling shooter)
4.3RPG
3.1APG
1.5TOPG
1.7SPG
.9pf/game
Bede:
7.7PPG
.341FG%
.588FT%
.25 3P%
2.6RPG
3.2APG
1.6TOPG
1.0SPG
1.6PF/G