In addition to uncanny instincts that are very rare, Rodman was totally dedicated to the art of rebounding to the detriment of his overall game. Yes, he was a very good defender who got in people's heads, but on the offensive end, ALL he cared about were rebounds. Fortunately for the Bulls, they had enough firepower and smarts on offense that Rodman's lack of interest in scoring was not a big detriment. Rodman was almost selfish in that he cared only about his rebounding stats the way some players care only about their scoring. Another thing that made Rodman incredible was his energy level and endurance. The guy was relentless and his superior effort level was a key to his success. He also excelled late in games getting offensive boards. Him getting a key putback or tipout off a missed shot was as predictable as MJ hitting cold blooded jumpers. Like a good number of players today, Swift is much more athletically gifted than Rodman. If he becomes a relentless beast like Rodman who is always more intense than his opponent, we got a steal. Based on his past, that isn't likely.
There is a lot of Rodman that I don't want on the Rocket's team. On some teams he was so disruptive to his own team that they got rid of him (see SA). A little bit of the beast would be okay. It's just that DR did not start really being Rodman until about 5 years into his career. He did it with Detroit not Chicago when he began starting. His stats were better in Detroit than CHI or SA. "It could happen".
Swift would have to make a concious decision to play the way Rodman did. And JVG would have to approve. That still doesn't mean he could. He would have to sacrifice his offense and probably be considered a problem child in the league if he were to do so. I think it's slightly possible he could do so, only from what i saw of Barkley. Does anyone else remeber when Barkley 1st came to the Rockets and didn't care about points? He let Clyde and Dream handle those. Barkely played exactly like Rodman to prove a point going for 15-20 rebounds a night, with a little height disadvantage i might add. Then there was something about Rodman challenging Barkley to a rebounding contest and the loser would have to wear a dress. Barkley balked at it, then went back to his usual bump into the other guy 50 times till he was 2 feet from the basket.
Good post. Nailed Rodman, except for the point where he had a personality quirk which made all this possible. I fear Swift has a personality quirk which will not make all of this possible. Big Ben is an even rarer beast in that he plays the tough D, blocks shots, and rebounds. Is there someone who did all that AND is a #1 option on O? I mean other than The Dream?
I'm most amazed by the fact he shot 32 percent from 3 pt range in 91-92. And that's based on 101 attempts. Seems like he did have some natural talent on the offensive ends and probably could have been a decent scoring threat if he geared his game towards that end more. I don't know if Stromile can ever hit 32 out of 101 3-ptrs in a season.
