Are you sure you don't mean Mutumbo? Hakeem was listed at 7 feet but it has been reported he may have been as short as 6'9 and a half. He was certainly noticeably shorter than David Robinson, Patrick Ewing, Shaq and Mutumbo. So yeah, how could their body type be ridiculously similar when one of them is about 6'10 and the other is 7'3?
Thabeet would be a POTENTIAL player 100%. Considering how much crap Hill gets, and how fickle people are, people will be all over this Thabeet kid right away. Considering he can't get playing time for Memphis even as a backup center, is a telling story. I know Gasol is a good player, but come on 8 minutes a game for a guy who is 7'3", tells me he is a long way from being anything special (if ever). No thanks, if Rockets don't plan on blowing it up, I'd rather go for players who are ready now, if the Rockets want to blow it up then I'd love Thabeet, he can help us tank a few years and HOPEFULLY be a Thunder #2.
So let me get this right, you guys are all for trading C.Lee for Asik but say no no to Thabeet for just an aspiring contract? That's just idiotic. Rockets need size and should take a risk. I trust that CD can work with him
wtf are talking about man? did you read my post? i never said hakeem! idk if you replied to me by mistake....you need to take focus factor and read my post one more time kinfolk!
Most people don't want Lee for Asik here. Not to mention Asik has actually shown here and there that he can be something. Simmons argued that even with young players with potential, you will have moments where you see "Holy crap, if this kid can put it together, he'll be amazing" if they will ever be anything. It's developing after all, and consistently doing those awesome things is the hardest part in the end. Thabeet has shown NOTHING in his career in the NBA. NOTHING at all to suggest that he can be anything at all. Comparisons to Mutombo are absolutely insulting to him this point. Mutombo was an All-Star his very first year, for Pete's sake. Not to mention, dude's 24. How many "potential" guys are there at 24? By that age, you're pretty much at least 70% of what you're going to be. And 30% better Thabeet is........not a rotation player.
You can't be serious. Go back in that thread and read how many idiots would trade C.Lee for Asik, its more than scary. The difference is Thabeet has SIZE. A 7'3 center who can defend the basket is too good to pass up. Memphis may not be a place Thabeet can grow being Gasol's they're starter. But in Houston his role would be one thing, BLOCK SHOTS. Something he can do very well. We could have the REAL Hakeem work with him. I'm not sure what you guys are seeing
Hakeem won't work with him. I'm not sure why people think he will. He's more interested in developing great players than helping the Rockets, or he would have been working with Jordan Hill by now. And Asik has more value than Thabeet. Asik has actually shown something unlike Thabeet, has shown that he could be a decent player. His rate of shotblocking is actually higher than Thabeet's. ( Thabeet in 8.1 minutes a game, block a grand total of 0.3 a game. PER36, which is useless with Thabeet because he won't even play those minutes because he'll foul out by then, and it's ..... 1.3 blocks a game. To put this in perspective, Shane has 1.23 blocks a game in about 31 minutes. A real game changer, guys.
Remember, our starting PG was a back-up in Memphis. We traded for him and that's worked out pretty well. If you can get a guy like Thabeet for cheap, then you do it. Yes, he's raw and needs time to develop, but I think thsi team can afford to give Thabeet some of Chuck Hayes minutes without changing this year's championship hopes drastically.
Hakeem won't work with Thabeet? Only big name players? Since when was Okafur a "big name" player? Didnt Hakeem work with Yao? He plays on the Rockets in case you havent noticed. Again, that's ridiculous. One thing we have, over most teams, is a great option of bigman coaches that help our young bigmen. Jordan Hill is a PF and undersized center. Not even the same position, no comparison. Asik doesn't have the upside a 7'3 athletic Thabeet has. You guys need to stop watching clips and making premature judgements
There's nothing Hakeem could do with a fumbling goon like Thabeet. If anybody could "work" with him it's Deke since at this point Thabeet's best case scenario looks to be basically a homeless man's version of Deke. And for the record, I'm on board with us giving this dude a chance. I just think this "Hakeem could develop him" talk is borderline nonsense.
Watching Hill play sometimes looks as if he has worked with Hakeem. I mean, he has been doing some of Hakeem's studder step moves like the one he did on Louis Amundson with the studder step power dribble then dunk. That really looked like Hakeem there.
That post was actually for anyone thinking that he was going to be another Hakeem or anywhere close. Mutombo-lite is more like it.
Uh, Okafor and Yao are pretty damn good players, in case you didn't know. I'm not saying he won't work with the Rockets players. But he won't work with scrubs. He's not going to deal with the Swifts and Thabeets of this world, as they don't have the work ethic. And allright, what is Thabeet's upside? What do you think Thabeet is capable of being? If your answer is "Mutombo", go directly to jail, do not pass Go, do not collect $200.
Olajuwon was a starter as a rookie, pushing "Player of the Century" Ralph Sampson out of his position. Thabeet can't crack 10 mpg in his second year on a mediocre team. He is actually doing worse than his rookie year. So much for those who think Thabeet has the potential to improve. If you want potential, I'd take Jordan Hill over Thabeet any day.
