Should Oden emulate Sabonis?

[UKRAINEFAN]

I wonder if Oden should modify his game to be more like Sabonis. It's difficult for me to imagine that he can continue to play a normal athletic style and expect not to get injured again. Could he develop a good ground-bound game like Sabonis? Would this be a good choice for him?

He would have to develop a good outside shooting game, become a great passer, rebound and block shots using his size and strength without leaving the floor.

The shooting I think he could learn. But is he really big enough to rebound and block shots without leaving the floor. He is as heavy as Sabonis but at least three inches shorter, not sure how their wingspans matched up. And I don't think there is any way he could ever be as good a passer. But maybe his athleticism would help him; I think he would be quicker moving his feet even when not jumping.

 

[Rhal]

I wonder if Oden should modify his game to be more like Sabonis. It's difficult for me to imagine that he can continue to play a normal athletic style and expect not to get injured again. Could he develop a good ground-bound game like Sabonis? Would this be a good choice for him?

He would have to develop a good outside shooting game, become a great passer, rebound and block shots using his size and strength without leaving the floor.

The shooting I think he could learn. But is he really big enough to rebound and block shots without leaving the floor. He is as heavy as Sabonis but at least three inches shorter, not sure how their wingspans matched up. And I don't think there is any way he could ever be as good a passer. But maybe his athleticism would help him; I think he would be quicker moving his feet even when not jumping.

there has never been a big man who could pass like sabonis. Oden does have passing skills that remind me of shaq, I think he'll be fine there, I also think its to early to have Oden emulate anyone just because he has had bad luck with injuries.

 

[Mediocre Man]

This thread is an insult to the skills Sabas had. Oden has dominant skills and all, but Sabas was a freak.

Should have said CAN Oden emulate Sabonis. That answer is no

 

[Pinwheel1]

there has never been a big man who could pass like sabonis. Oden does have passing skills that remind me of shaq, I think he'll be fine there, I also think its to early to have Oden emulate anyone just because he has had bad luck with injuries.

"Like Sabonis" maybe not. Bust as good as Sabonis........Bill Walton was certainly as good. Just less flare. (and less turnovers)

But Sabonis with his size and outside shooting skills was special. Oden should not attempt that style. It's just not his game. And never will be.

I would be content with a 35 year old version of Wilt Camberlain. Just a stable presence in the middle.

 

[UKRAINEFAN]

This thread is an insult to the skills Sabas had. Oden has dominant skills and all, but Sabas was a freak.

Should have said CAN Oden emulate Sabonis. That answer is no

I am a great admirer of Sabonis so I was not saying that I thought Oden could become as good a passer or shooter as Sabonis. Basically I am wondering if it wouldn't be a good idea for him to play a ground-bound game, i.e. stop jumping. Is it possible for him to be a decent player with that style of play? Are there some things he could still do better than Sabonis even if he wasn't leaping? That is what i was hoping we could discuss; not whether he can be an identical player to Sabonis.

 

[Draco]

Should Luke Babbit emulate Larry Bird?

 

[Natebishop3]

Greg will never be able to shoot like Sabas did. Greg will most likely never be able to pass like Sabas did. I don't think Greg has the same feel for the game that Sabas did, so I don't think it's even possible for Greg to emulate Sabas.

 

[blazerboy30]

Players, including Greg, don't just learn to pass, play and know the game like Sabonis. Sabonis had a feel for the game that can't be practiced and picked up by somebody just hoping to rely less on athletic ability.

 

[ebott]

He has no hope of every emulating Sabonis' skills. Mostly because they were skills that Sabonis had that really very few players over 7' have. Walton had the passing but not the shooting. Dirk has the shooting but no inside game.

The only thing Oden could try to emulate is Sabonis' lack of athletic ability. If he's ever healthy again he could try just playing a whole game without jumping and see how that goes.

 

[mook]

He may indeed end up emulating Sabonis in terms of on-court impact and games missed to injury. Here they both are in their second year: http://bkref.com/tiny/J3T3v

Oden only played 21 games, but in that brief spurt he was actually superior to Sabas by most statistics. And Sabonis was 10 years older in his second season.

I think he's going to be in that same mix as Mourning, Sabonis, Walton, Yao, Bynum....fantastic centers when they were on the court, but derailed from ever reaching their true potential by injury.

It makes Shaq's achievements that much more amazing. Big 270lb+ centers just don't seem to have long, productive, relatively injury-free NBA careers. So many guys this size either wind up injured or throwaways like Bryant Reeves and Eddie Curry.

 

[JDC]

He may indeed end up emulating Sabonis in terms of on-court impact and games missed to injury. Here they both are in their second year: http://bkref.com/tiny/J3T3v

Oden only played 21 games, but in that brief spurt he was actually superior to Sabas by most statistics. And Sabonis was 10 years older in his second season.

I think he's going to be in that same mix as Mourning, Sabonis, Walton, Yao, Bynum....fantastic centers when they were on the court, but derailed from ever reaching their true potential by injury.

It makes Shaq's achievements that much more amazing. Big 270lb+ centers just don't seem to have long, productive, relatively injury-free NBA careers. So many guys this size either wind up injured or throwaways like Bryant Reeves and Eddie Curry.

Hopefully Greg's team realizes this and he continues to work hard to get to that Ohio State weight that we've heard whispers about.

265ish is were I would like to see him at.

 

[Fez Hammersticks]

Sabonis had a feel for the game that Greg could only dream of having.

I'm thinking more Dale Davis and that's if he can stay healthy.

 

[3RA1N1AC]

no he should not, he should just beast like dho

 

[MickZagger]

I was thinking more along the lines of Priest Lauderdale.

 

[mook]

Sabonis had a feel for the game that Greg could only dream of having.

I'm thinking more Dale Davis and that's if he can stay healthy.

That's not really true. Oden when healthy is a much better defender than Sabonis ever was as a Blazer. People remember all the great things about Sabas without really remembering that he wasn't a dominant or really even terribly good defender. He was so slow that he regularly got killed on pick and rolls. He was the last man back on defense virtually every possession. He was smart, but when you can only physically move at half the speed of those around you there's only so much you can do on defense. He was a good fit for guarding Shaq, but that's because Shaq in the triangle isn't about speed but sheer size and power.

Oden is far, far better than Dale Davis when healthy, on both ends.

 

[MickZagger]

People overlooked Sabonis' horrible D, because every once in awhile he made a heady play with his quick hands and was a good flopper.

 

[Nikolokolus]

At this point I'm thinking Oden should worry more about emulating Jabaar and his 20 year, 95% game appearance rate ... lots of room for improvement!

 

[GriLtCheeZ]

People overlooked Sabonis' horrible D, because every once in awhile he made a heady play with his quick hands and was a good flopper.

What on earth are you talking about?

 

[Natebishop3]

That's not really true. Oden when healthy is a much better defender than Sabonis ever was as a Blazer. People remember all the great things about Sabas without really remembering that he wasn't a dominant or really even terribly good defender. He was so slow that he regularly got killed on pick and rolls. He was the last man back on defense virtually every possession. He was smart, but when you can only physically move at half the speed of those around you there's only so much you can do on defense. He was a good fit for guarding Shaq, but that's because Shaq in the triangle isn't about speed but sheer size and power.

Oden is far, far better than Dale Davis when healthy, on both ends.

I thought we were talking about a Sabonis in his prime.... not a broken down Sabonis that we saw in the NBA. Sabonis in his prime was a very good shot blocker from what I understand.

 

[HailBlazers]

I thought we were talking about a Sabonis in his prime.... not a broken down Sabonis that we saw in the NBA.

I thought OP was talking about a Sabas who was coined as a Blazer. And his question was if Greg should play conservative like the "old" Sabonis. Personally I don't think its a bad idea. Oden doesn't need to go all out, he just needs to be out there.

And to the people who say those kind of skills can't be learned, you fail to acknowledge the many years of experience under the great sabas's belt

Obvisiously i'm the minority here, but I still believe Oden can have a long career. Even if he can just stand there he'll be worth it.

 

[UKRAINEFAN]

I must be a really poor communicator (although Hailblazer seems to have the idea, thank you). I am wondering if Oden could emulate Sabonis' conservative style of playing (to preserve his body) and at the same time work on some of the skills that Sabonis excelled at. Maybe if he did that he could end up playing as long as Sabonis did.

 

[yenniedn]

"Like Sabonis" maybe not. Bust as good as Sabonis........Bill Walton was certainly as good. Just less flare. (and less turnovers)

But Sabonis with his size and outside shooting skills was special. Oden should not attempt that style. It's just not his game. And never will be.

I would be content with a 35 year old version of Wilt Camberlain. Just a stable presence in the middle.

Freudian slip???

 

[handiman]

What sets Oden apart, his size or his strength and athleticism? I say it's the latter. If he plays an unathletic game to emulate Sabonis and try to stay healthier, then he's basically a journeyman center with average size and average skills. I don't see how that does anyone any good.

 

[Fez Hammersticks]

Oden is far, far better than Dale Davis when healthy, on both ends.

Pre-injury, yeah. Before his last injury he clearly wasn't the same player athletically. He lumbered up and down the court and his lateral quickness was similar to Roy Hibbert. His offensive game consisted of a baby-hook and a fade away baby-hook. His offensive repertoire is nearly identical to what Dale Davis showed in Portland.

Two MF surgeries and a fractured patella I'd be happy if he came back as athletic as Dale was in Portland.

 

[HailBlazers]

Typical Portlander ^, Low on Vitamin D

 

[Rastapopoulos]

I say that Oden should try to emulate Moses Malone. One thing that Sabonis retained even after the injuries, and (I hope) Oden should too, is his enormous strength. Even if he loses much of his athleticism, he can still be a force on the boards and score by offensive rebounding. Less Dale Davis, more Charles Oakley, only taller.

 

[Minstrel]

I thought we were talking about a Sabonis in his prime.... not a broken down Sabonis that we saw in the NBA. Sabonis in his prime was a very good shot blocker from what I understand.

That Sabonis wasn't "ground bound" and unathletic. The description of Sabonis presented in the OP seemed to clearly indicate the Blazer version. He was useful on defense due to his powerful base, which made him hard to dislodge in the post...but many big men were quicker could go past him with post moves if he were isolated one-on-one.

The Blazers did defend Shaq as well as any other team when Sabonis bodied him and Pippen and Rasheed doubled down.

As for Oden emulating him, that doesn't really make sense. Oden doesn't have the gifts Sabonis did, he has different ones...a primary one being freakish athleticism for his size. If he can't leverage that, he won't be a terribly valuable center. He and the team have to hope he can stay healthy playing a game with athleticism, because that's where he can really differentiate himself from other big men.

 

[jlprk]

When there's disagreement on the board, I'm always willing to step in decisively and settle the matter with the wisdom of experience to avoid any further disharmony.

And the official answer to the thread title is--

We won't know until we see him play. But of course, I could be wrong.

 

[PapaG]

I think Oden should emulate that best qualities of Wilt, Russell, Kareem, Shaq, Hakeem, and Walton, with a bit of Sabonis thrown in for fun, and perhaps some Nate Thurmond for nastiness.

Is that so wrong to expect of a "once in a generation" center in the modern age of the NBA?

 

[MARIS61]

Arvydas Sabonis in his prime was the most complete basketball player in the history of the game.

Magic Johnson was a distant second.

Oden should just try to emulate an active player for starters.