That was a very different time. In today's game as soon as someone's elbow gets even near the face you're going to see a flop. Instead you see Paultz just take it.
What's glaring to me is the clinic of entrance passes from Lucas, McCray, and sweet Lou. Geez but we've never really had that for Yao. I know I sound like a geezer, but the fundamentals really are different now.
Man that was a pretty quick punch by Akeem. Both of our twin towers were ridiculously athletic. What could've been...
Damn, you post in GARM? Hakeem was straight up thuggish at times early in his career - he was quick-tempered and didn't like being played tight or having a body put on him. Players like Paultz, Hanzlik, etc. got on his nerves. That, combined with the old school rules of being a man in the paint led to Hakeem being less than a gentleman down low. That was pretty roguish what he did to the Whopper, though. The video doesn't make much mention of it, but it is one of the bigger moments in Rockets history.
with yao out u think we can get olajuwon 2 sign for 1 year nd play him like we did mutombo, maybe a little more
fixed it for ya! Well, the NBA in the 80s was rough in general. This is reminds of how rap music was back in the day, they talked about the streets. Now rappers talk about how rich they are.
couple of other players in that video from the 1983 NCCA championship game, Thurl Bailey, who was always something of a thorn in Akeem's side, and Larry "Mr. Mean "Micheaux.
This is one of those rare instances where Tinman actually posts good stuff, not for the sake of running down other players or garm posters, but because this is just awesome stuff to see. I wish we saw more of this from him instead of the put downs, because I love it.
there are no 'put downs', it's just reality that I post. if someone post that Kobe couldn't guard Tmac, and the truth is that in that game, Kobe shut Tmac down during the critical part of the game. I will post that and the article of that game, and the box score. if someone who never saw a player player starts to claim he knows more about that player based on stats and youtube videos, expect me to drop my thoughts on it. i'm gonna respect people with real credibility here like leebigez or yoyo cause they know what they are talking about based on experience. i know 'running down other players' is codename for Tmac. where's the tinman thread criticizing luis scola?? you guys can figure it all out. it's not too hard.
No, you just broke it again : "I'm not changing the spelling of my name, I'm correcting it." -- Hakeem Olajuwon. Know your Rockets and spell his name correctly, tinman!
basso dropping in the GARM. I bet basso can destroy pretty much 99% of the GARM in Rockets knowledge, he just chooses to dominate and rule the D&D!!
Dude, that play by Sampson at the end of the clip is one of the most impressive moves I've ever seen on a basketball court. I am too young to have followed the NBA during the 80s, but i've always been annoyed with the way Ralph Sampson gets dumped on by the media. Instead of hearing about a great player derailed by injuries, he's portrayed as a soft player who was a huge bust. The dude had skills.
OMG that video made my day....tahnk you tinman... what dominance in the paint.. I've never seen that sampson dunk? It's now one of my favorite all time Rocket dunks Hakeem made put backs look easy. Just amazing.
Man! I was a lil guy back then but I still remember those guys well... Had Sampson stayed healthy, and Louis Lloyd and later Mitch Wiggins kept their noses clean (of the white stuff)... The Rockets would have been THE dynasty of all dynasties... That was like watching the pro version of Phi Slamma Jamma... Fun stuff...
He had skills, but that was part of his problem. He played in an age where PF's were power forwards and centers were "defenders of the paint", but he would rather showcase his skills out on the court. He really didn't want to play like a typical post player. The fact he was soft wasn't casually thrown at him - he actually did play soft at times. This is coming from people who watched him play back then. He could've been greater than he was had it not been for injuries... possibly. There was a reason Ralph was the one playing PF instead of C when Hakeem came - Hakeem was a true center and Ralph wanted to be a more face-up player. Ralph's biggest problem may have been he was born about 15-20 years too early. The game wasn't ready for him and he wasn't made for the NBA game of that day - or at least not made to last. Take it from somebody who used to listen and live on sports radio and run/post on sports BBS's back in the 80's, the guy was the manifestation of "freak of nature" for his skills, but he was often inconsistent and made mistakes in the open court when he wouldn't pass the ball to the PG, and instead tried to bring it up himself. I wouldn't diss the media for knocking him down as much as I'd diss them for building him up to be the evolutionary step beyond Wilt. He never was that. Even his college numbers showed he wouldn't be that. He was a very good player who ran into a lot of injury problems.
At about the 7:15 mark on the video, Sampson made a move and looked like a 6'8" guard! Dude was 7'2" or 7'3"... Gosh... we had some major world class athletes on the floor back then.
He's still a hero! And when that team gelled like they did against the Lakers, it was hard to beat. I agree that if he did play in today's nba, his game would flourish. Can you imagine if he was playing for D'Antoni?
