Chapter 346: Marion and Uncle Mu
TOP9: Marion 1508 times... Marion's number of dunks is really unexpected, thanks to Marion's excellent running and fast-break ability, in the Suns period, basically as soon as his teammates on this side got the rebound, Marion was already in the position near the basket over there, and Nash's cannonballs were delivered to Marion on time.
Marion, perhaps best remembered for his freaky shooting moves! Some people say that Marion is seriously underrated, and his defensive ability and athletic ability are among the top; It is also said that Marion's level is average, mainly relying on Nash's passing. So, what kind of existence was Marion at his peak? Marion, who was drafted to the NBA by the Suns with the ninth overall pick in 1999. In addition to Marion, there were also Brand (first), Francis (second), Byron Davis (third), Odom (fourth), Hamilton (seventh), Andre Miller (eighth), Terry (tenth), Artest (sixteenth), AK47 (twenty-fourth), Ginobili (fifty-seventh), and of course, Chinese player Wang Zhizhi (thirty-sixth)!
Marion has excellent physical fitness and athletic talent, with excellent jumping, explosiveness, speed, and reach, so TNT commentator Kenny Smith nicknamed him "Hacker" in his rookie season, describing him as a man who can go to the sky and be omnipresent.
Marion is in excellent physical condition. In his second season in the NBA, Marion averaged a double-double per game, averaging 17.3 points, 10.7 rebounds, 2.0 assists, 1.7 steals, and 1.4 blocks per game, shooting 48.0% from the field and a low three-point shooting rate of only 25.6%, although he rarely made three-point shots. Since then, Marion has maintained an average of close to 20+10 per game for six consecutive seasons, while owning about 2 steals and 1.5 blocks. In his peak season, he averaged 21.8 points, 11.8 rebounds, 2.0 steals, 1.8 blocks, shooting 52.5% from the field and 33.1% from three-point range.
Marion has been particularly praised for his defensive prowess throughout his career, with his ability to defend the opposition's top perimeter star and his ability to help defend and complement the opposition. He averaged 1.5 steals and 1.1 blocks per game in his career.
At the 2002 All-Star Game, Jordan's last shot, if it weren't for Marion's excellent defense, couldn't have forced the owner to make a wonderful stop-and-back shot.
In 2011, Marion and Tyson Chandler built a defensive line for the Mavericks inside and out, and their excellent defense allowed the Mavericks to win the championship against the Heat.
At the same time, Marion is a strange star. Oddities: (1) Three-point shooting rate: When I first entered the NBA, the three-point shooting rate was only 18.2%, and the second season was only 25.6%, but the three-point shooting rate in the third season suddenly became 39.3%, and the three-point shooting rate in the fourth season was 38.7%, and he averaged 4.5 three-point shots per game, which is already at the level of the league's top shooters. However, in the 09-10 and 10-11 seasons, in the Mavericks, his three-point shooting rate suddenly dropped to 15.8% and 15.2%; But two years later, in '13-14, his three-point shooting percentage rose to 35.8 percent.
(2) All-Star appearances: Marion has averaged a double-double per game since his second season, but has only been selected for the All-Star Game four times in his career. Of course, his style of play determines that he will definitely not be selected by the fans as an All-Star starter, but for a coach, a team-type player like Marion has only been selected as an All-Star four times is indeed a bit less!
(3) There are always the league's top defenders as teammates. Some people say that Marion made a name for himself thanks to Nash, and there may be some truth to it, because for a player with a single offensive ability like Marion, a good playmaker is crucial to his performance. Fortunately, in addition to Nash, Marion has always had top guards as teammates in his career, working with Kidd in the Suns in the early days, then Marbury, then Nash, then Wade in the Heat, and then Kidd in the Mavericks.
TOP8: Mutombo 1533 times... Uncle Mu is praised for his strong defensive and blocking ability, in fact, his offensive ability is not so unbearable, as long as his teammates can feed the ball in the right position, then Uncle Mu is a violent dunk.
Congolese center Mutombo is 2.18 meters tall, weighs 120 kilograms, and has an arm span of 2.31 meters, which shows his terrifying figure. Among the active players, Anthony Brown. With an arm span of 2.33 meters, Davies is now recognized as one of the league's best interior players, and Spanish interior Pau Gasol also has a pair of long arms, and he was still a nightmare for opponents when he was younger, which shows how important height and arm length are to an interior player, and Mutombo has also created his own brilliance with his long arms.
When I think of him, my first reaction is the existence of the "capping" ability. He has the three basic things a blocker should have: anticipation, positional sense on the court, and natural big arms and long legs. Mutombo's blocks are very well timed and turn very quickly, he can quickly adjust his body to stay in front of the ball carrier at all times, and be ready to block once the ball carrier is under the basket. And he will hardly be shaken, you can't afford him, many people will think that "Mutombo won't get up" and rush to shoot, but as a result, a big hand will fan you down immediately after the ball is shot. Sometimes they don't even move, and the offensive players are scared to dunk or go to the basket. That's how much he's a deterrent on the court, and until the end of his career, he's still one of the top guardians under the hoop.
In his 17-year career, he was named NBA Defensive Player of the Year four times, six Defensive Team of the Year, two rebounding titles, and three block champions (three years in a row), with a career total of 3,289 blocks, second in NBA history, behind Rockets passing center Olajuwon's 3,830.
When it comes to Mutombo's NBA career, many people don't know his true age, including Mutombo himself. The reason is that in his birthplace, the Congo, there is no registry system and no birth certificate at all. This has led to the speculation of many fans of the ball, because Mutombo looks much older than the registered age, so it is customary to call him uncle.
However, I'm afraid many fans don't know that in addition to Mutombo's great blocks, his dunks are also excellent! You can directly rank in the top ten in the history of the league!
That's why Mutombo's ratings have always been so high, it's definitely a monument in NBA history, and it's no surprise that he was inducted into the Hall of Fame!