Hasheem Thabeet: Beast of the Big East

Hasheem Thabeet has the potential to be one of the great players to come out of the UConn men's basketball program, following the likes of Emeka Okafor and Ray Allen.

He is the 7' 3'' monster of a man you see stepping onto the court in every Sportscenter highlight reel.

He is from Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania, and is a great option for many teams with a couple more years of programming.

NBA COMPARISON: Dikembe Mutumbo

Strengths:

An above-average shot blocker, Thabeet seems to gravitate to the ball with his hands up, ready to swat, and rarely falls for any pump fakes.

Even with his above-average size, Thabeet runs the court very well. He makes great plays on both the offensive and defensive sides of the ball, and is able to grab rebounds at both ends very well.

He does a great job of getting initial post position by using his body wide and sealing off his defender from the basket.

Head Coach Jim Calhoun even says of the young man that he "Has yet to even scratch the surface of his vast potential." With such raw talent, he is still learning the game, but has not picked up any very bad habits.

He also shows solid outlet passing, which is somewhat rare for a player his size. Overall, Thabeet is a great player with the ability to become even better.

Weaknesses:

Offensively, Thabeet is somewhat raw and undeveloped, which, although it can be fixed over time, right now is the most noticeable hole in his game.

He also struggles to maintain his position in the post, where he tends to get rooted out by smaller players. He needs to also learn to block out more aggressively when going up for offensive rebounds.

His free-throw shooting is below average, though he does show good form, which makes it a possibility for his percentage to shoot up. Offensive court awareness is evolving but still is a few steps behind. This is evident when he is finishing around the basket, as he loses where he is in relation to the basket, which then makes him rush his shot. 

NBA Future 

Hasheem Thabeet opened the eyes of NBA scouts at the Global Games in Dallas, Texas in June of 2006, and has failed to stop impressing NBA scouts with his size and skills.

Said one scout, “He’s getting better every day. If he gets eligible, he’s one year and out at UConn, and I’m calling it right now, he’s a top 10 pick.”

Judgement: With a couple more seasons of work under Jim Calhoun, it is very easy to see Hasheem Thabeet become a first round lottery pick, although it is unsure if he will stay at the end of the season or declare his draft eligibility.