Built Ford Tough Posted April 2, 2010 Report Share Posted April 2, 2010 Memphis Grizzlies rookie Hasheem Thabeet has someone very big looking out for him. And that person is humanitarian and retired center Dikembe Mutombo, who spent Wednesday hanging out with Thabeet and had dinner with him Tuesday. "He's very interested in Hasheem," Grizzlies general manager Chris Wallace told the paper. "He wanted to come in and get together with Hasheem." The rumor is that the team may hire Mutombo as a consultant this offseason to help coach Thabeet. The Grizzlies tried to hire Kareem Abdul-Jabbar last year but he turned them down. http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/rumors/post/Grizzlies-hiring-Mutombo-for-Thabeet-?urn=nba,231547 Not a bad move at all on the Grizzlies part. Hiring somebody like Mutombo to work with Thabeet can only be a positive for the rookie. I know that a bunch of people are already calling Thabeet a bust (which is absurd by the way) but if Mutombo can harness some of Thabeet's raw defenisve ability and teach him some new things as well, Thabeet could become a very good defensive player, especially when he matures more phyiscally. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YugoRocketsFan Posted April 2, 2010 Report Share Posted April 2, 2010 Thabeet reminds me of Mutombo, minimal offensive game, good shot blocking, etc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kingfish Posted April 2, 2010 Report Share Posted April 2, 2010 Either way I dont think defensive centers are worth being drafted that high, and Marc Gasol is already a terrific defensive center. So Thabeet will be a defensive center off the bench? That doesnt sound too valuable, especially since most 2nd units play up tempo. But still, they can at least get the most out of him. So Mutombo would be a nice fit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YugoRocketsFan Posted April 2, 2010 Report Share Posted April 2, 2010 Either way I dont think defensive centers are worth being drafted that high, and Marc Gasol is already a terrific defensive center. So Thabeet will be a defensive center off the bench? That doesnt sound too valuable, especially since most 2nd units play up tempo. But still, they can at least get the most out of him. So Mutombo would be a nice fit. Centers are valuable just by their position, centers with some talent will always be taken high, why? Cause they play the rarest position, which is center. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Poe Posted April 2, 2010 Report Share Posted April 2, 2010 Solidifying your center position is very important. Elite teams almost always have great centers (or PFs sometimes). The Lakers have Bynum and Pau. The Magic have Howard and Gortat. The Cavs have Shaq and Ilgauskas. IMO, great centers are more important that great PGs. PGs can make people better on offense with their passing, but centers can make people better defensively providing a security with their shot blocking. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sun Tzu Posted April 2, 2010 Report Share Posted April 2, 2010 Thabeet reminds me of Mutombo, minimal offensive game, good shot blocking, etc. I posted the same thing on another forum. I do think this could be really beneficial for Thabeet and hopefully Mutombo can teach him a bunch of things. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
La Bomba Posted April 3, 2010 Report Share Posted April 3, 2010 Well I would of like Abdul-Jabbar after his work on Andrew Bynum, but Mutombo is nice since a lot of Thabeet's comparisons were to Mutombo. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChosenOne Posted April 3, 2010 Report Share Posted April 3, 2010 Good hiring, if they can get him. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Newman Posted April 4, 2010 Report Share Posted April 4, 2010 Well I would of like Abdul-Jabbar after his work on Andrew Bynum, but Mutombo is nice since a lot of Thabeet's comparisons were to Mutombo. +1. Good to hear that Mutombo wants to work with Thabeet as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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