Actually, Hilario was a lot more polished and a known commodity from international competition. Also, Badiane was in division 2 basketball, hardly Germany's top league. I think the problem was that he was not that well scouted, he may turn out to be a flop, but I know one thing for certain. He is better then Hakeem today. DD
Well, Hakeem has actually published his biography after his second championship. In it, he said that UH recruited him because he could block shots. According to his book, in his first tryout with Guy Lewis, he was blocking shots all over the place against the other recruits that Lewis was looking at. After that came rebounding and then the games at Fonde. Since Hakeem was only a one trick pony when he entered college at 19, I doubt he would have been a very high pick...possibly even a second rounder. In his book, he said that the Rockets drafted him for his rebounding and shot blocking. It was only in his first year as a pro that they (and he) discovered he could really score.
Let's hope this 2nd rounder the Rockets picked up turned out to be as good a B-ball player-wise as Mobley is. Yep, I think Mobley is a very good player and can help the team. He, like all the other youngin', need some REAL coaching that will get them to perform at their best. However, I certaining wouldn't mind trading Mobley if the right deal comes along. For all those who think Mobley is the reason the Rockets are failures, remember he signed for a very reasonable contract (less than elsewhere) to stay with this team. Certainly showing more loyality to a team than most of the NBA players out there. Now, if MB can be the rebounding/blocking/defender PF that the team needs in the future, then this indeed was a steal. Finally, I too believe that MB will at least take some time to get good enough to help the team. If he was anywhere near as accomplished as S. Amare was last year before the draft, do you think there would be any GM in their right mind not picking him in the lottery??? Imagine the disgrace for all the other GMs if MB turns out to be any good at all
That's not the why I remember it at all. He was 19yrs old from Brazilian leagues. Hardly anyone described him as polished beyond what his smooth and fluid athleticism affording him. When you are a better athlete, you have better footwork, naturally...that's my point and why one goes #7 and the other #44 here are Clutch's research notes on him. [blockquote]Clutchcity.net Notes on Maybyner Hilario Hilario is the crown jewel of Brazil's national team, and made a name for himself internationally at last year's South American Championships, where he upped his average to 13.5 points a contest. Nicknamed "Nene" (or "Baby"), Hilario is a physical player <b>with much to learn on the offensive end</b>, but is already a terror defensively as his tremendous wingspan makes him a serious shotblocking threat. <b>Still a very raw prospect.</b> Strengths of Maybyner Hilario Very strong, quick, physical and tough to stop inside. Hilario has long arms that he uses well to reject shots. Considered a terrific rebounder. His moves in the paint have drawn comparisons overseas to Hakeem Olajuwon, which is way overstating it, but shows you how impressive at 19 his skills are. Great feet for a big man. Scouts rave about his potential, and he apparently has a lot of it. Weaknesses of Maybyner Hilario Anything pertaining to shooting from outside 5-10 feet. Must work on his jumper and free throw shooting. Though his physical skills make him a great rebounder, still has more to learn about rebound positioning. Hilario on the Rockets? The Rockets could use a high-energy defensive guy like Hilario, but it's doubtful he would have any kind of immediate impact and <b>a lot will depend on how he does in workouts as he's primarily an unknown right now.</b>[/blockquote] And Hilario couldn't even get to Europe? DaDakota, the top teams have farm systems, and my understanding is the training is run by the top teams. They get practice against the top squad, and with their coaches. I wasn't saying he competed in the top league. My point is training in the German system is superior to Brazil and provides better exposure to training and scouting. no one goes to Brazil for bball training. not true...he had 2 days of workouts in the Chicago workouts in from of several teams. The <b>SportingNews had Dallas picking him at 29.</b> ESPN was saying that they were surprised he was still on the board. Also, surely there are more scouts in Germany than Brazil. CD said they saw him many teams. Fact is: he dropped from the predictions of many mock drafts; Hilario climbed on workouts. One got better training and more scouts around, the other is probably just flat out a better athlete. All I'm saying is raw athleticism in 6'11 players is at a premium, and this guy fell about 10-15 spots in the draft.
Absolutely. And he was (is?) a murderous table tennis player, by all accounts. Like heypartner also mentioned, you could see the diamond behind the raw basketball ability from day one. The kid stunned Guy and the staff with just how good he was and just how good he could obviously be. And Hakeem was lucky to have landed in the perfect program for his development. Let's see how Badiane will pan out. I'm very pleased with the pick, but I've learned from Boki's example not to get too hyped about a low 1st round pick... much less #44. I believe we'll be pleased, but comparing him to Dream before even seeing him in the Summer League is more than a stretch. Gene P., I wouldn't take bets that you're the oldest guy around here.
I could beat Hakeem at Table Tennis....I guarantee it. Bet the house !!! He could not return my serve..... DD
Hot damn! You should call his people and set up a match... the CC.net Classic... and give us a live link on the Net.
This has absolutely no barring whatsoever, but i though this fan draft - done the day before the draft - was interesting, especially pick #14. http://www.ibiblio.org/craig/draft/2003_draft/2003.shtml
The guy could be decent, but he's not gonna be ANYWHERE close to Hakeem. There's a reason he fell to #44 (we don't know what it is yet) but it's gotta be something when you're projected to go as high as 15 but end up going in the second. The guy is from Africa and he's as tall as Hakeem, that's it. I seriously doubt the comparisons will ever get any more meaningful than that.
interesting....heh... did you click on their 2002 draft? they had the Rockets taking freaking Caron Butler first, and Yao going FOURTH!
What made Dream good coming into the NBA were the years he spent at U of H playing for a national championship. Comparing Badiene now to Akeem in his first year in the NBA is stupid. But how can anybody say that comparing Dream in his first year at U of H to Badiene is stupid...without the benefit of hindsight and knowing how great Hakeem was at his peak from 1991-1995. Here's my point: judge Badiene in after he's played in the NBA for 2 years. Then compare Badiene to Hakeem in his rookie year. But that's never going to be fair because we have Ming. Badiene will becomes a power forward or be a bench player. Summer posting on the BBS sucks. We have nothing better to do that say Badiene because he is from Africa.
I very much doubt that. If someone who is as athletic as that guy and as tall only averages about 11 points in Germany's second division, he can hardly be better than Hakeem, even if Hakeem is already 40.
Yeah it sucks when players reach their peak at 20 YEARS OLD!!! Could everyone please jump off of the "Eddie is a bust" bandwagon. Don't get me wrong, I'd trade him right now for an established vet that could give us 13 and 10 every night with badass defense. On the other hand, though, by no means do I think Eddie is going to be a bust, YET! Dude's 20! He'd be starting his senior year of college right now!! Give the kid a break!
Wrong african comparison: Clutchcity.net Notes on Olumide Oyedeji Comparing anyone to the Dream is unfair and that may be the case for Oyedeji as well, but he has shown some raw skills that have led people to believe this might be a fair comparison - at least to the Olajuwon we knew at UH. The comparisons are no doubt a result of the fact that Oyedeji is also from Nigeria, but he does have skills. Playing in Germany on Dirk Nowitzki's former team the past two seasons, he has demonstrated good instincts around the boards (14 per game last season) and a nice scoring touch around the basket (12.5 ppg last season). Oyedeji also won the slam dunk competition in 1998-99 in Germany demonstrating his great leaping ability. His talent is very raw at this point and his height has been listed everywhere from 6'9" to 7'0" which makes calling him a true center a bit dubious, but he has added 30 pounds of bulk over the last two seasons so could he be a diamond in the rough. The only thing curious is that he struggled against top competition at the Nike Invitational. We'll have to reserve judgement until we can see him in person. Strengths of Olumide Oyedeji He has outstanding leaping ability and is a very solid rebounder. He has a few moves in the post with the turn around jumper being his favorite (sound familiar?). His defense is raw but above average. He has the beginnings of a decent NBA body. Weaknesses of Olumide Oyedeji He is extremely raw. His footwork leaves something to be desired and he needs work on his overall offensive game. He will have to add some more weight to his frame and some experience to his game. Oyedeji on the Rockets? He will likely be a middle first rounder so he's not an overwhelming favorite at #9. An interesting side note: Oyedeji pulled out of the 1999 NBA draft and was expected to go in the second round. There was quite a bit of speculation that the Rockets were interested in him at the time. Looks like he made the right decision to wait
All this talk about Badiane resembling a young hakeem is kinda a bit of a stretch for me....one thing hakeem had that the scouts dont mention about Badiane is good footwork-thats what makes u a good big man
thx SamFisher...this thread is ridiculous as your post further points out. It the quote above, Akeem was never so raw as to say his footwork leaves something to be desired. It was the guy couldn't shoot or dribble, yrt. Akeem's card was like Hilario--"very fluid and smooth." The man was all over the court hawking the ball, could dance through people, and could change direction on a dime and had excellent reflexes...very smooth and very fluid day one. As a freshman, that was Akeem's first year playing organized ball...right? I don't know, Is that not right? Badiane has been playing for five years. With five years of organized ball, Akeem was absolutely destroying the defending champion Lakers 4-1, led by Magic and Kareem. big difference....that difference is the fact that guys like Akeem and Hilario are just flat out better 6'10-11 athletes.
Few facts, little logic, good feeling; that is all I have to go on at this time. I just have this intuition that the Rockets may have struck gold with this pick. Hakeem comparisons are incredibly premature, BUT, prophetically, I PREDICT, this is not your typical second round pick. The summer league will give us a glimpse of his potential.
