Bricklayer
Don't Make Me Use The Bat
Um...yes, yes it is.
There are basically two camps of Thabeet detractors.
Camp 1 just doesn't think he's going to be any good at even the things he is supposed to be good at. Not much to say there, except to correct obvious misimpressions. There are no sure things in this draft, Thabeet included. But he is 7'3", moves like no 7'3" player I can remember saving perhaps Ralph Sampson in his youth, and is a really really sophisticated shotblocker. I think people miss just how remarkable he is at that aspect. Its not just because he's 7'3". He has a gift, and insight into how its done. When I say he is a "sophisticated" shotblocker what I mean is that he shows great understanding of how to maximize his gift. Many/most guys who block shots are two parts ferocious to no parts brain, and they go flying around leaving their feet, leaving their man chasing the ball and swatting at anything and everything. And that is still useful -- there is intimidation there. But it has drawbacks. You leave your man open, you lose rebounding position, if you are not getting those blocks you can actually hurt the team. The Kings used to have a player like that called Duane Casewell in the early 90s. One year I think he blocked something like 2.4 or 2.5blks a game, but he was just incredibly dumb and undisciplined about it. But Thabeet...Thabeet is really remarkable, especially for a player who has not played the game that long. He is a huge shotblocker, but he rarely ever fouls anybody. He has great mobility for that size, and he knows how to show and hedge screens and recover back just riding the guy and looming over him. He doesn't waste effort swiping and picking up cheapies, he just understands that the intimidation is the thing. Watch him pick his spots inside -- if you throw up something weak, its out of there. But if you get sneaky, use the rim or whatever, he backs off. And hey, maybe if he is ferocious he goes after all of them and risks those fouls, but he just has a great feel for the percentages. He has to leave his man occasionally -- that is after all the job of the interior intimidator -- but watch how often he mainitains contact, lurks back and does not move until the last second. That is really rare stuff for a young player, or even an old one.
The second groud of detractors typically do not see the value in what Thabeet could potentially bring even if he does work out, usually because of an overconcern about offense. To that group, I do not know what to say. It is an understanding gap. When you pick this high in the draft, ideally you want to nab a superstar. Thabeet will not be one. But when you are in a draft that may not have one at all, the next thing you want to aim for is an impact player. If you can't get a superstar, then get a guy who is unique and will make an impact. A 17ppg shooting guard might be "good", but oyu know how many wins he typically contributes to your total? Roughly zero. You how much tone he sets? None. The same thing can be said of a 13 and 8 big man or whatever. Just there. Solid. "Good". But irrelevant. We have been terrible this year, merely adding a "good" player, an irrelevant player, isn't going to change that in the least. We need a game changer and a tonesetter. Would be great if that were a superstar, but if its not, then we need somebody who is a superstar at something at least. One side of the ball or the other. One aspect fo the game or the other. Somebody who changes the tone for the worst defensive team in basketball.
