Back to the basket big men...A rare breed-True Hoop

[Vince]

Quote:

"Name one guy here who can can hit a jump hook over their left shoulder," an NBA assistant general manager asked. "I can't think of one." Whether it's the trickle-down effect of the European game, the rule changes implemented by the league a few years ago, or college teams appropriating Mike D'Antoni-style basketball, the vast majority of the young bigs who were in Las Vegas are face-up players who work either along the perimeter or out of the pinch post: Anthony Randolph, Earl Clark, James Johnson, Taj Gibson, Dante Cunningham, DaJuan Summers, Austin Daye, and even Blake Griffin. Is this a momentary trend, or will the pendulum eventually swing back? "If I were a big man about to enter college, I would develop that back-to-the-basket game," the executive said. The implication: At some point, those skills will be at a premium, and that kid will be impossible to defend. Forward-looking teams are all about buying low and, right now, traditional post players are undervalued because they don't conform to the current climate of the NBA game.

http://myespn.go.com/blogs/truehoop/...er-League.html


Some other cool tidbits in there as well.

[Muzyk23]

nice read

I blame D'Antoni

[yankeesgiants]

I blame the shot clock in college hoops. The last great generation of centers Akeem, Robinson, Ewing, Dougherty, and Smits where pre 1987 shot clock in college. You can thank Villanova for the rules changes that have hurt amateur hoops in this country.

[23]

I'd be calling for Olajuwon to help train me in the summers on a post game... thing is though you get punished way more in the post than on the perimeter.... they beat you up alot and you get no love from the refs.

[ehh]

It's still amazing to me that no one has tried to master the sky hook since Kareem retired. The shot was so unstoppable it was comical and it allowed Kareem to become the league's all time leading scorer. You'd think that maybe, just maybe, that'd be enough to convince someone to take 1,000 skyhooks a day with each hand. Guess not.

[Stumbleweed]

Especially some gigantic person like Yao, Big Z (his 2K9 skyhook rules though), Thabeet, etc... who needs a hook shot over your right shoulder when you can throw it in from 18 feet one-handed with no way for anyone to block it? Even Tim duncan would get a bunch of mileage out of that shot... really anyone near 7' with long arms would be pretty much unstoppable if they mastered that.

Someone Tweet @ Thabeet

[ehh]

Kareem said in an interview that he doesn't recall the on-ball defender ever blocking the skyhook. Ever, for his entire career. Simply amazing.

Hell I'm gonna start practicing that thing and bust it out in the adult leagues.

[Muzyk23]

guys..sky hook isn't COOL nowadays