Thoughts on Okongwu?

[JayBirdHawk]

Yes Sir!

 

 

[Spud2nique]

3 hours ago, AHF said:

Didn't Wretch raise his hand last year and say he was happy to acknowledge OO's growth and to have underestimated OO on draft night?  Am I thinking of someone else?

No he did. I was just kind of teasing, although Wretch may have also mentioned somewhere in passing before that an “Okongwu” type could have been found later in the draft and it may have been a reach.

But I love Wretch he’s the man, we play a lot. 

[Spud2nique]

21 minutes ago, JayBirdHawk said:

Yes Sir!

 

 

I’ve always though OO was big.. I mean thick.. not girthy so much but strong  

[Atlantaholic]

37 minutes ago, macdaddy said:

Yes agree.  I was just saying (not very well) that i think they see enough that he needs to work on in his play in CP.   I know we aren't seeing him but he's playing lots of minutes in the G league.  If he has some issues with his game there, which i think he's shown, then they are going to get exposed quickly in the NBA.  

Again, his ceiling is high high.  His weaknesses are the things you can learn.  His strengths are the things that are hard to learn at this level. 

Yea reading your other posts I see what you're saying and I agree.

[GameTime]

 

[Carmine]

2 hours ago, GameTime said:

 

This what I saw pre-draft process and didn't understand all the angling for Wiseman. Wiseman movements look mechanical, OO movements are extremely fluid. This is just like Micah Parsons field day, fella was moving like water & still fell to #11. Pundits/scouts overthinking the obvious. I didn't think Wiseman career would be like this but I had OO on a higher trajectory. Great pick.

[hazer]

On 11/18/2020 at 9:05 PM, hazer said:

I was saying Gwu 6 months ago

Hazer, leading the Gwu parade since Summer 2020

[Wretch]

*dupe

[Wretch]

11 hours ago, Spud2nique said:

@Wretch I need your updated thoughts on my boy Okongwu. 

Wretch…. WRETCH!!!! YOU HEAR ME!!! YOU’RE RENTS DUE.. 

I saw him chewing gum while he walked last night...impressive.  lol

It's funny though. I'm still not sold on him as the kind of player you take that high, and not stupidly excited about his ceiling...but he's EXACTLY what we need right now and is the kind of player I ultimately gravitate towards.  Rebounding, defense, toughness... literally everything we are lacking.

Still holding my breath tho...

*edit....and can I say that I love what he does and at the same time say that Im still not super excited? Or do I just sound like a lunatic lol

[Diesel]

3 minutes ago, Wretch said:

 

*edit....and can I say that I love what he does and at the same time say that Im still not super excited? Or do I just sound like a lunatic lol

[JayBirdHawk]

 

 

[JayBirdHawk]

 

 

[Sothron]

He really does know how to guard elite bigs. We have essentially the best center rotation when you throw out offense. OO can defend elite centers in a way Capela can't. Capela can rebound in a way that OO can't. Having both of them is a God send once they are healthy to play at the same time.

[HawkingAwesome]

Big O

[ATLHawks3]

After giving it some thought, I really hope Onyeka can be molded into a modern Serge Ibaka (think of his OKC days). He just needs to add at least a mid-range jump shot. 

[Diesel]

5 hours ago, HawkingAwesome said:

Big O

Double O  17.

[NBASupes]

https://www.si.com/nba/hawks/news/onyeka-okongwu-is-atlanta-hawks-future-center

 

Quote

Opponents shoot a putrid 37.1% at the rim when Okongwu is the defender. Even better, he has a -10.0 DIFF% (percentage points difference) - that is like Shaq in NBA 2K2. For example, Rudy Gobert, 3X NBA Defensive Player of the Year, has a -5.5 DIFF% this season. It goes without saying that Okongwu leads the Hawks in Defensive Box Plus/Minus.

 

[Gray Mule]

Thoughts on 0017?  That old boy is kinda good!  Plays with the big boys and holds his own.  Still gets rookie foul calls but he will overcome this.

Super great soft shooter around the rim.  Great scoring touch!

[Sothron]

If we could move Capela in the off season and start OO I feel comfortable doing it. I would try to keep Dieng as the BU and to have a legit 7 footer for size issues. 

[hawkman]

2 hours ago, Sothron said:

If we could move Capela in the off season and start OO I feel comfortable doing it. I would try to keep Dieng as the BU and to have a legit 7 footer for size issues. 

Still not ready to give up on Capela yet. I feel like he hasn't been healthy this season which has hampered his defensive impact. But if the Hawks decide to move him, I feel more than ok with OO starting at center. OO very well may end up being the Hawks' version of Ben Wallace with more offensive capability. I'd still add another 7 foot stiff that plays defense to keep the center rotation at three since Dieng isn't as defensive minded as I thought he was.