East Valley Tribune: Okafor will be in Suns' sights

[George O'Brien]

What kind of Mickey Mouse question is that?

I thought we agreed to stop taunting each other? I've held up my end of the bargain.

Walt as in Disney. No offense meant.

 

[frdbtr]

I am looking forward to the combine when we can this heigth issue settled. The media keeps saying Okafor is 6'10" and all we have to dispute this is that he doesn't look that tall when standing on the foul line. Yet somehow he blocks shots by guys who are very tall (the Vanderbilt center is 7'1") and he completely dominated the 6'11" Rafael Araujo. I am having a hard time buying the idea that he is doing it while being only an inch taller than Diogu.

He did dominate Araujo but remember that was over a year ago. I have a feeling that if they were matched up today that the story would be different. Araujo is bigger and stronger then he was last year and he is just as quick. I am not saying that Araujo is as good as Okafor but I think that he is going to be a very good pro player, kind of like Carlos Boozer.

 

[George O'Brien]

He did dominate Araujo but remember that was over a year ago. I have a feeling that if they were matched up today that the story would be different. Araujo is bigger and stronger then he was last year and he is just as quick. I am not saying that Araujo is as good as Okafor but I think that he is going to be a very good pro player, kind of like Carlos Boozer.

The only way Araujo will be as good as Boozer is if he gets into top shape. In the games I watched him in, he looked really slow especially on defense and he is not a great rebounder. Right now he can overpower smaller centers, but he won't be able to do that in the NBA.

 

[elindholm]

Walt as in Disney. No offense meant.

Whoops, I missed the joke. Sorry about that. Good one!

 

[sunsfn]

Bill Russell was about 6'9"+.

He seemed to know exactly where the ball was going when it left the players hand. He has said many times he had the rebound when it left the players hand. He was always in position to rebound.

He could also jump and had long arms.

Today he would still be an excellent player, but not near as dominent.
He was one of the all time greats without any question.

Bill Russell had a personality somewhat like Joe Dimaggio, he did not sign autographs and because of that was not liked by the public as many other players were. There were articles written about him where he was quoted as saying he did not care what people thought about him, and that caused him more problems. Today that might not hurt him as much as it did back then.

Bill Russell & Joe Dimaggio are two of the hardest autographs to find for a collector, and if one finds it, it will be expensive. They simply would not sign for anyone!

 

[George O'Brien]

Rebounding is mostly about positioning. Rodman at 6'8" was an amazing rebounder (he AVERAGED 16 rpg one year with the Bulls) and was not even much of a leaper. His main attribute was anticipation and a relentless desire to grab every rebound.

BTW, one of the reasons I'm excited about Dice is that he learned to be a very good position rebounder to go with his leaping ability. He could teach Amare and Lampe a lot about anticipation based on where the ball is being shot from.

 

[F-Dog]

Rebounding is mostly about positioning. Rodman at 6'8" was an amazing rebounder (he AVERAGED 16 rpg one year with the Bulls) and was not even much of a leaper. His main attribute was anticipation and a relentless desire to grab every rebound.

BTW, one of the reasons I'm excited about Dice is that he learned to be a very good position rebounder to go with his leaping ability. He could teach Amare and Lampe a lot about anticipation based on where the ball is being shot from.

I have to disagree with this. Rodman didn't have a huge vertical, but he was a very quick jumper, especially on the second jump. That's one reason he was so good at tipping the ball to himself--he could contest the rebound and then be back in the air while his opponent was still struggling to gather himself after the first jump.

Marion actully reminds me of Rodman on the boards, every once in a while.

 

[George O'Brien]

I have to disagree with this. Rodman didn't have a huge vertical, but he was a very quick jumper, especially on the second jump. That's one reason he was so good at tipping the ball to himself--he could contest the rebound and then be back in the air while his opponent was still struggling to gather himself after the first jump.

Marion actully reminds me of Rodman on the boards, every once in a while.

Some of what you call "quick leaping" I call "anticipation".

Marion is a great leaper - verticial and quick. I'm not sure he has Rodman's skill at postioning but he is not bad.