Bill Russell, the winningest player in NBA history (11 rings, yo), is considered to be one of, if not the greatest center in basketball's ever had. Celtics legend Bob Cousy, who played with Russell on 6 of those 11 championship teams in the 1950s and 1960s, says that he's now seen the first player to remind him of Russell. It's not Anthony Davis, as one may expect, but Miami Heat center Hassan Whiteside.
Check out what Cousy told the Worcester Telegram:
“I have never said this in the 40 years since I retired, but he is the first big guy, not (Patrick) Ewing, (Hakeem) Olajuwon, Shaq (O’Neal), who reminds me defensively and on the boards of Russell. He runs the floor well, he has excellent timing, he blocks shots and keeps them in play the way Russell did.”
"The way Russell did"—you can almost faint reading those words, because they should be reserved for someone bigger, right? Not a 2010 second round pick who, just now at 25-years-old, is starting to put his talents together and become a real NBA player. Whiteside is averaging 11.1 PPG, 9.8 RPG and 2.5 BPG (second to only Davis) in just 22.6 MPG this season. Let's get to some more Cousy quotes on Whiteside.
“Maybe I’m overreacting," added Cousy.
Hmmmmm, maybe.
"I don’t get excited too often about these guys, but this kid looks to me like a turn-around guy," he said.
Whiteside's had a pretty good 41-game stretch so far, yeah. His career looks like it's on the upswing.
"If I were Danny (Ainge)," continued Cousy.
Here it comes.
"I’d offer Miami three first-round picks for Whiteside," Cousy said, "because in my judgment, and what can you tell watching on television, but boy does that kid have an upside."
1.
But hey, at least the 86-year-old legend is excited about SOMEONE in today's NBA. These old cats tend to hate on the new era.
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[via NESN]
