we have Akeem Olajuwon in the D-League and we do not even know it.
Fab Melo like Akeem is tall and athletic, he is actually taller than Akeem.
Fab Melo like Akeem comes from a soccer playing background.
Fab Melo like Akeem played just a couple of years in college and opted early for the draft. I think Akeem may have played one more year in college which means he was more developed than Fab coming out. Akeem also had played some basketball in his native Nigeria before playing NCAA ball. Akeem was definitely more experienced than Fab at this stage.
Fab Melo like Akeem showed little offensive skills in college depending more on height athelticism and superior footwork to be a monster on defense.
I believe that Akeem had a lot more swagger and confidence than Fab Melo coming into the league, and the challenge of the Celtics is to get this kid confidence. I doubt that Doc Rivers is the best coach for that. He simply does not develop players very well.
Anyway, I believe we have an Akeem in our farm system, the question is can we turn him into a HAKEEM?
Hakeem RIGHT NOW is probably still better than Fab Melo
He was great in College. The #1 pick the year JOrdan, Barkley etc came out. And probably would still go #1 if most teams re-did that draft (In a bubble, I'd probably still take him over JOrdan. You don't pass up one of the greatest centers of all time... Jordan needed Pippen and the right set of circumstances to reach the level he did). Akeem was a 20, 12 and 3 player his rookie season. His second season he averaged 24 points, 12 boards, 3.4 blocks, 2 steals ... and made the finals.
Fab Melo is some scrub d-leaguer. Come on now. He's a throw-in for a potential Marcin Gortat trade.
The day I start comparing Fab Melo to Hakeem... is the day ya'll need to start giving me clozapine.