Hasheem Thabeet Is Talking Reckless
On the cover of the latest edition of ESPN The Magazine, which inexplicably features Hasheem Thabeet instead of the World Series Champion Philadelphia Phillies, the 7-3 UConn center is quoted saying something slightly idiotic.
“I played Luke Harangody and he was not tough. Tyler Hansbrough? I don’t see nothing.”
Maybe the traffic in Connecticut has gotten to Hasheem’s head. There are so many problems with what he said. First of all, Thabeet really isn’t good. He’s a good shot blocker, but he was basically useless on offense last year. He can’t reliably catch passes, and doesn’t understand the mechanics of how to get position on the block. If he had a rebounding competition with Charles Barkley right now, I think Chuck would take him 10-0.
Coming off of a 10.5-point, 7.9-rebound season, how do you say that you’re better than a guy who won the Big East Player of the Year at over 20-and-10? Thabeet would have a tough time putting 185 lbs. up on bench. Harangody could rep Hasheem’s 260-pound frame. And worst of all, these two have actually played each other. Last year, at Storrs, Harangody dropped 32 and 16. Thabeet had 4 points. Just because you’re too tall to fit in a doorway doesn’t give you an excuse to talk completely reckless.
Thabeet really needs to surround himself with a better team of advisers. He’s also talking smack about the National Player of the Year, Tyler Hansbrough, whose number will be retired in Chapel Hill. Thabeet is a ways away from that type of honor – dude still hasn’t averaged 11 points on a season. I’d say there’s a 100% chance that Jim Calhoun, who seemed perpetually pissed at Thabeet last season, cursed his center out after seeing the ESPN cover. If the Huskies meet the Tar Heels in the tournament as some predict they will, Hansbrough will hunt Thabeet down. Remember what Psycho T did to that immobile giant Kenny George last season?
Source: ESPN The Magazine
November 6th, 2008 at 5:37 pm
SteveNash says:
lolz… 73 year old SENIOR college basketball player of the year http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QvkmqbgUU_E
November 6th, 2008 at 5:37 pm
Austin Burton says:
Forget Lenny1 and Lenny2 … what does Thabeet have for my man Greg Monroe at G’town? I’ll actually get to see Thabeet in person again this year when UConn plays Gonzaga at KeyArena. I’ll tell him you said hi, Katz.
November 6th, 2008 at 5:50 pm
Michorizo says:
How did he make the cover ESPN MAG
November 6th, 2008 at 5:50 pm
SayItAintSo says:
Atleast something interesting is happening at the Key
November 6th, 2008 at 5:53 pm
Tony says:
Thabeet’s probably hangin with josh howard after class
why isnt psycho T on the front cover? apparently having the national player of the year on the cover just doesnt make sense
November 6th, 2008 at 5:53 pm
sans says:
Haseem Thabeet cannot play. For real, Alexai Ajinca could take him in the post easily. Hargandy will eat his soul this season…someone seriously needs to buy Haseem a helmet and a mouthpiece for the upcoming season.
November 6th, 2008 at 5:54 pm
AP007 says:
def need to relax…..thabeets jus bein confident….no need to attack him nd georgetown iznt even top 5 big east this yr…..uconn is at the least 2 or 3
November 6th, 2008 at 5:54 pm
AP007 says:
def need to relax…..thabeets jus bein confident….no need to attack him nd georgetown iznt even top 5 big east this yr…..uconn is at the least 2 or 3 nd iz not becuz of anybody except thabeet…..
November 6th, 2008 at 5:56 pm
Timmy D says:
I love your review of Thabeet. The dude actually kinda sucks, when your are 7′3″ you should at least average 10 rebounds a game in college. He has no offensive game at all and some team will take him really high in the draft and regret it within two weeks when they see how bad he will be against NBA players. I cant wait for him to get owned this year.
November 6th, 2008 at 6:03 pm
smokez4Dayz says:
i agree with him. psycho t is so over rated. under sized pf that cant shoot, and travels on all his pump fakes, if he wasnt at unc, we’d never care. not an nba player
November 6th, 2008 at 6:05 pm
Andrew Katz says:
God bless you Timmy D.
The worst part is that ESPN cuts off the best part of his quote. They leave his first sentence off before he starts dumping on two guys who are leagues better than him.
“Nobody’s better than me, only more experienced.”
I totally understand being confident and wanting to send a message. But there’s a different between being confident and being delusional.
Do you really think that you’re better than this guy?
November 6th, 2008 at 6:09 pm
Jim says:
All the analysis of these two guys and if they are NBA players is irrelevant, like your article says 32/16 vs. 4. How are you going to talk after that?
November 6th, 2008 at 6:11 pm
Andrew Katz says:
You don’t think he gets a job in the League? If Andris Biedrins is getting paid like $9 million a year, Tyler Hansbrough has a job.
November 6th, 2008 at 6:26 pm
s.bucketz says:
thabeet definately dont look tough on that front cover
November 6th, 2008 at 7:04 pm
jeremy says:
i go to cuse and thabeet is absolutely full of himself. but he absolutely changes the game in ways that harangody and hansbrough don’t that don’t always show up in the box score.
November 6th, 2008 at 7:19 pm
Jah says:
I think that there will be a bit of a “bounty” on Hasheem Thabeet’s head this season…just putting that out there.
November 6th, 2008 at 7:28 pm
Matty D says:
Luke Harangody is an ice cream sandwich in the sun. Melting away until nobody cares.
November 6th, 2008 at 7:47 pm
dagwaller says:
Matty D, so what does that make Thabeet – a popsicle stick in the trashcan?
November 6th, 2008 at 8:02 pm
ab_40 says:
tyler hansbrough is mark madsen LIGHT he’s gonna be a big time bust in the nba if drafted high. Say Humphries of toronto with less explosiveness.
I don’t know if thabeet will be more succesfull. He better watch mutombo a whole lot because that is his ceiling. Maybe a rick smiths type player but he’s even less mobile then him.
November 6th, 2008 at 8:25 pm
Caribballin says:
I guess the air is alot thinner up there when you are 7′3”..
desipte how tyler plays as a pro player, smokez4Dayz,you cannot argue his credentials at UNC…you dont get your # retired for travellin
November 6th, 2008 at 9:06 pm
Dime Magazine says:
Matty D, the only issue with your analysis is facts. Here they are:
Arinze Onuaku = bum hands. Luke Harangody = future NBA player.
November 6th, 2008 at 10:31 pm
jeremy says:
you guys conveniently left out that thabeet held harangody to 5-23 shooting in their first meeting and made luke look like a chubby 8 yr old who couldnt get a shot off without it getting sent back in his face. (thabeet had 10 blocks that game).
November 6th, 2008 at 10:46 pm
Peter Robert Casey says:
Jeremy’s comments dominated this thread.
November 6th, 2008 at 11:52 pm
johnny says:
I’d say Psycho T will be like Maxiell as a pro. But a little better due to extra height.
Heart > Whatever.
November 7th, 2008 at 1:25 am
dagwaller says:
Peter, thanks for letting us know the score…
johnny, I’m inclined to agree with you.
jeremy, please keep in mind a.) that ND won that game by 7 points (10 blocks apparently can’t stop the other team from scoring, or else being 7′3″ doesn’t translate to scoring for sh*t), and that b.) as a 7′3″ CENTER, he should probably get close to 10 blocks a game, especially on the POWER FORWARD Harangody. Enjoy your sophomore year at UConn, I’m sure that the 10 points Thabeet scores will lead them to a Sweet 16 exit if they make it that far.
November 7th, 2008 at 5:18 am
thanatos says:
@ ab_40 Mutombo is his ceiling? in his dreams!!! He’d wish he was like Mutombo! are you an 1diot? go look for Mutombo stats over his career!
November 7th, 2008 at 2:52 pm
doc says:
Well they are calling him a top 10 pick and the other 2 aint in the lottery so what did he say wrong.It aint like its Stuckey saying Chauncey aint shit.
November 10th, 2008 at 6:40 pm
dagwaller says:
Yea well doc, people like you pick Kwame Brown and Michael Olowokandi 1st overall, while guys like Maxiell and Millsap slip past you. People say that Thabeet is a lottery pick because he’s tall – how’s that working out for Kwame? Players like Tyler Hansbrough will always have a place in the League.
November 10th, 2008 at 7:23 pm
jeremy says:
i’m pretty sure kwame is still making millions in the league
November 13th, 2008 at 8:42 pm
Brian says:
I was at the game in Storrs…Luke absolutely torched UConn that night- but UConn won. Thabeet wasn’t covering him, it was mainly Adrien and Robinson.
Calhoun apparently did speak to Thabeet after the mag came out. Thabeet now says that he was joking with the reporter, who was throwing out names, and Hash was giving her one liners. Believable? Probably, he hasn’t been quoted anything like this before. Nonetheless, expect Harangody and Hansbrough to remember.
February 12th, 2009 at 8:40 am
PsycoT50 says:
when you are 7 foot 3 in college basketball you should be able to dunk the ball on every single possession not struggle to score 10 PPG and you should block at least 50% of shot in the paint from guards and smaller PF’s….when this kid gets to the NBA I cant wait to see a Old Shaq but this kid in his place
February 14th, 2009 at 11:58 pm
chris says:
It’s hard to imagine that you have ever played the game of basketball if you tihnk a 7′3″ center should be able to “dunk every possession” and “block 50% of shots in the paint”. How many players of that size are that good? Not many. Thabeet is big, fast for his height, and absolutely menacing on defense in the paint. When he blocks 10 shots in a game officially, he alters another 10 and there are probably another 5-10 shots that were never even attempted because of his presence. There are no stats for that.
Despite the dimestore analysis you and others have offered over his entire career, Thabeet is really stepping up his game now without Dyson and has led UCONN to a number one ranking and has kept them there. The really scary part is that Thabeet hasn’t even begun to show his true potential. It was the same for Okafor. He wasn’t very polished when he came to UCONN and there were some who criticized his ability but look who’s laughing now. Thabeet has been following that model and will continue to do so and will leave you eating your words.