4 of Thabeet's last 8 games

[BRIGGS]

vs.GT points 24 reb 15 6 blocks shooting 9-11 FG 6-9 FT
Depaul 16 13 8 blocks 6-9 4-7
Prov 16 13 6 5-6 6-6
Cincy 15 8 8 5-5 5-5
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total avg 18 points 12 rebounds 7 blocks FG%80 FT% 78%

He had a few stinkers in there--one game he was ill--but the progression of this player is hard to ignore. This guy is just tipping the surface and when he is a finished product and has all of the rust off--there will be a few teams who will realize they missed out. No player in college basketball is like this kid. If he came back next year--the 16/18-12-7 would be the norm and he would be pick 1.

[riehldeal]

I used to be a huge hater of Thabeet but now I would not be shocked if he cracked the top 10 (pick 9 or 10).....he is a flat out game changer

[gswhoops]

I could def. see Indy at #9 taking a shot at him.

[BRIGGS]

I could def. see Indy at #9 taking a shot at him.

If the Knicks dont get into the top 2 Im hoping we take him at 5.

[Cammo101]

Depaul, Providence, and Cincinnati? Unless he plays the Knicks every game he will be playing slightly better players in the NBA than what those 3 bottom feeders have. He is coming along nicely, but those teams also suck.

[BRIGGS]

Depaul, Providence, and Cincinnati? Unless he plays the Knicks every game he will be playing slightly better players in the NBA than what those 3 bottom feeders have. He is coming along nicely, but those teams also suck.

Georgia Tech and 3 BE teams aren't chopped liver . In his last 10 BE games sans the one against WV where he was in FT and didnt play much he has averaged 10.4 rebounds and 6.4 blocks per game. He just broke Alonzo Mourning's Big east single season block record in his *sophomore* year. The games above show the progression of Hasheems offensive game and his overall potential. I don't see where Deandre Jordan is breaking Big east shot blocking records or putting up 20 points against anyone yet he is on mock drafts at 3. I think people will realize that Thabeet is the better prospect. Did you see the array of shots he hit tonight? A nifty left handed shot from the right left block a 14 footer from straight away a nice jump hook from 5 feet a nasty tomahawk coming from the left wing on the fast break. By the way he has hit his last 14 foul shots in a row and 19-21 overall in the streak. Jordan cant hit the darn rim.

[Canomad]

staying has helped him ALOT. with that being said i still think hes one year away. but he seems like a samuel dalambert player except bigger and a better shot blocker.

[BRIGGS]

staying has helped him ALOT. with that being said i still think hes one year away. but he seems like a samuel dalambert player except bigger and a better shot blocker.

If he stays and his offense proresses at the same rate--he will easily be pick 1 in the draft in 2009. Right now you're getting him at a discount. He may have to be Bynumed for a year[although he can certainly help any NBA team now] but if he is brought along like Bynum was with the same training his ceiling his high imho. He's got very good touch--he just needs to work on hand/core strength and continue with skill sets/footwork and advancing them with pro trainers like Kareem.

[Ruzious]

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Georgia Tech and 3 BE teams aren't chopped liver . In his last 10 BE games sans the one against WV where he was in FT and didnt play much he has averaged 10.4 rebounds and 6.4 blocks per game. He just broke Alonzo Mourning's Big east single season block record in his *sophomore* year. The games above show the progression of Hasheems offensive game and his overall potential. I don't see where Deandre Jordan is breaking Big east shot blocking records or putting up 20 points against anyone yet he is on mock drafts at 3. I think people will realize that Thabeet is the better prospect. Did you see the array of shots he hit tonight? A nifty left handed shot from the right left block a 14 footer from straight away a nice jump hook from 5 feet a nasty tomahawk coming from the left wing on the fast break. By the way he has hit his last 14 foul shots in a row and 19-21 overall in the streak. Jordan cant hit the darn rim.

Those games were against mediocre competition, but I concur that he should be rated ahead of Jordan.

[DanTown8587]

In the interest of full disclosure, the other games were god awful, you are cherry picking his best games. Scouts dont care what you do against Cincy or DePaul, they want to see you bring it every night, and bring it against good competition. Well, Thabeet has not done that.

Games without 10 points: 16

Averages against Pitt, ND, GT, Louisville: 5 games and 6.8/6
Not great against good teams. He should do the opposite of Jordan: if Jordan bails he should come back and become a more consistent C because Jordan's upside will get him picked before Thabeet. If Jordan comes back, he should leave and compete against Hibbert to be the first true C against off the board.

[tranjSAIC]

I can't place why but theres something about him that screams bust to me. Maybe it's just me but I don't like those guys that just pick up a basketball recently and are only playing because they are big. I tend to think guys like that don't have the dedication to make it in the league once they get drafted or a big contract.

[Cammo101]

In the interest of full disclosure, the other games were god awful, you are cherry picking his best games. Scouts dont care what you do against Cincy or DePaul, they want to see you bring it every night, and bring it against good competition. Well, Thabeet has not done that.

Games without 10 points: 16

Averages against Pitt, ND, GT, Louisville: 5 games and 6.8/6
Not great against good teams. He should do the opposite of Jordan: if Jordan bails he should come back and become a more consistent C because Jordan's upside will get him picked before Thabeet. If Jordan comes back, he should leave and compete against Hibbert to be the first true C against off the board.

This post pretty much says what I was saying before. Thabeet is a nice talent but he does not show up in big games and beats up on the poor competition.

[riehldeal]

The way in which he affects the game is sometimes not always seen in the stats, you guys should recognize this by now when you watch his game.....when I look at my big board and assess the likelihood of making an impact in the league and skills, I plug him in at #9 (Beasley, Rose, Lopez, Mayo, Gordon, Bayless, Randolph, Arthur, Thabeet)

Scouting is not all 100% about stats and what you do against whom, sometimes you are forced to evaluate what you are given and then project it in the league and also what you think that player "could" become under your coaches and playing/practicing with/against nba talent

[BRIGGS]

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This post pretty much says what I was saying before. Thabeet is a nice talent but he does not show up in big games and beats up on the poor competition.

Thabeet has been an impact player all year. Ther are some games he doesnt get the ball as much as he should but what he has been doing down the stretch here is showing what he CAN do offensively with progression. Deandre Jordan hasnt had any impact compared to thabeet--why the heck would someone rate him higher? And what are the odds of Deandre putting up 24 points 15 rebounds 8 blocks on Georgia Tech?

[riehldeal]

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Thabeet has been an impact player all year. Ther are some games he doesnt get the ball as much as he should but what he has been doing down the stretch here is showing what he CAN do offensively with progression. Deandre Jordan hasnt had any impact compared to thabeet--why the heck would someone rate him higher? And what are the odds of Deandre putting up 24 points 15 rebounds 8 blocks on Georgia Tech?

Good post....and to answer your last question, ZERO CHANCE

[Cammo101]

DeAndre has upside on both ends of the floor in the NBA. Thabeet will always be limited on the offense end.

[MalReyn]

DeAndre has upside on both ends of the floor in the NBA. Thabeet will always be limited on the offense end.

I've heard the Mutombo comparison tossed around, and I agree offensively and defensively. Thabeet will certainly never be a game-changer offensively, but he could average 10-12 points if he puts work in. His mediocore hands will always hold him back a bit.

Where the Mutombo comparison fails and where Thabeet will struggle is his rebounding. He'll often slack off, and not grab rebounds he should be grabbing. He needs to be much more aggressive on the boards. His timing and position is average, and he could be a good rebounder with his massive size if he put in better effort.

[CB4MiamiHeat]

I think hell be like Theo Ratliff was in Philly

[riehldeal]

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I've heard the Mutombo comparison tossed around, and I agree offensively and defensively. Thabeet will certainly never be a game-changer offensively, but he could average 10-12 points if he puts work in. His mediocore hands will always hold him back a bit.

Where the Mutombo comparison fails and where Thabeet will struggle is his rebounding. He'll often slack off, and not grab rebounds he should be grabbing. He needs to be much more aggressive on the boards. His timing and position is average, and he could be a good rebounder with his massive size if he put in better effort.

Very good/valid point on his rebounding, I had noticed as well....not to Mutumbo level as of now....

back to Jordan....while has upside on both ends, I have been repeatedly blown away by his lack of bball IQ in his positioning on the floor

as for the theo ratliff comparison.....while it is a better fit in response to the clear difference between Thabeet & Mutumbo's reb ability, I think Theo misses the level of size and presence that Thabeet provides

[UGA Hayes]

^ to be fair you would have been similarly blown away by Thabeets low IQ and positioning last year as well. With bigs its probably more important to monitor their progress more than their freshman numbers.