I know this may seem like a stretch, especially considering Cousins' maturity, but he is the only big man I have seen that has anywhere close to the ball handling/post game combination that Olajuwon had. He is definitely more of a power player and has less finesse than Hakeem but if you look at some of the highlights from the link below, he has the ability too take his man off the dribble from the 3 pt line and create a shot. Not many other big men can do that AND have a solid low post game. If he reached out to Hakeem for tutelage, the stuff Hakeem could him teach would just turn him into a monster. He has the agility and lateral quickness that is perfect for the dream shake and spin moves. I don't know if similar stuff like this has been posted, but I haven't personally encountered a thread discussing his potential relative to Dream's skills. What d'yall think? Am I on the money or on something? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jw4hbqw3J0g
As good as Hakeem's post game was, he was just as much, if not more vaunted as a defensive player than an offensive player (for example, Shaq and his 2 whole moves was a more effective offensive force), does that strike you as Cousins? The Shaq thing is an important distinction mind you, Hakeem's umpteen moves are more a product of "you let star players do what star players are most comfortable doing", you'd never want to actually train someone to be like that, it needs to be natural for that player.
The only guy who has the potential to come close to the quarter of what Hakeem was offensively is this guy: <iframe width="560" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/cn-dtrmh0nM" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe> I wish he'd stay a couple more years in college though to work on his game and bulk up a little. At least another year.
Disagreed. Embiid is in that mold, but I feel as though Anthony Davis could also benefit from Olajuwon's tutelage.
I don't think Davis has the frame to compete at the C spot, yes he's producing however he's also getting really banged up and injured, which may affect his long term chances. Anyway I don't think Cousins can ever be the successor to Hakeem, simply because he's one dimensional right now and Hakeem was even better on D than he on offense. He's most similar to Shaq IMHO, except Shaq was amazing athletically and Cousins gets by on his post moves, bball IQ and quickness.
I think it is a real stretch. Body-type, footwork, and athleticism all seem completely different between the two of them. And, as others have mentioned, their defensive prowess is far apart right now too.
Davis has had one major injury, in which he fractured part of his hand because of an alley-oop. If Davis bulks up (which he inevitably will), I believe there's no reason to think that Davis can't at least try and play like Hakeem.
Cousins is only 23 years old , 6' 11", is quick, has great footwork and great touch on his jumper at 270 pounds. I love DH12, but I would trade him for Cousins straight up if it were available. Cousins is potentially an all time great if he can channel his emotions into on the court play like we have seen him do only inconsistently so far.
Dream was fantastic in the post, but ball-handling was definitely not one of his many strong suits. He got a ton of steals in the open court, and it was obvious when he had to take more than two dribbles in a single direction, that his ball-handling was very suspect. Not at all a knock on him because who can expect a center to be a great ball-handler? Cousins, on the other hand, is very good in the open court for his size.
