CrushAlot wrote:Excerpt from a great article on the summer sessions at Georgetown.

Finally, Ewing is the root of the Hoyas' family tree of centers. "This wouldn't have happened without Patrick," Thompson says. "He's the one who would call when he was on the road with the Knicks and ask, 'Coach, how's Zo doing? You want me to give him a call?' One of the things that is sometimes missed about Patrick is his enthusiasm for others' performances." Asked to assess Mourning's and Mutombo's NBA progress, Ewing sounds like a mentor. "They've made me proud," he says.

"You don't usually think of centers this way, but Patrick is really a gym rat," Mourning says. "He's the one that sets the tone for the rest of us, because he's always playing, always working on his game. You know that turnaround jumper he has that's so automatic now? Well, I remember when it wasn't. That shot is the result of who knows how many hours of hard work that Patrick put in after he turned pro, after he had the big contract. That's the kind of thing that makes people around here respect him so much."

Mourning and Mutombo both arrived in the NBA with surprisingly polished offensive games, thanks in part to their summer workouts during their student years against Ewing and against each other. Says Thompson, "I remember Patrick saying to me the summer before Alonzo's rookie season, 'Coach, people are going to be surprised at Zo.' I said, 'Shhh.' " Sure enough, Mourning averaged 21 points in his first pro season. Though he lost to Shaquille O'Neal in Rookie of the Year voting, some felt he was the best newcomer by season's end.

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1137849/2/index.htm

very nice fluff piece. but when i read it i don't see where there is a coach giving instruction. maybe ewing thought he was too good to be taught any further by someone like newell.

anyway, nice to see that he wanted to impart his skills to those two other great postup centers, mourning and mutombo.

Nalod wrote:Im my opinion Ewing evolved from a defensive athletic college player to an explosive offensive player and that he played at a high level into his mid 30's had a lot to do with his fundamentals than raw athletic ability.

Hakeem had and maintained greater athletic prowess. Mourning was limited but had power, Mutumbo had length!

The he never went to a camp and hold that against him is not giving him the credit he deserves.

Ewing got the most of his ability and worked very hard in my opinion.

The era of Ewing, Barkley and Karl Malone was dominated by Jordan and Hakeem but we should not hold it too much against them.

We just can't elevate their status as they lack two things: MVP and A championshop ring.

that ewing worked hard is a given. obviously he worked very hard. my point is that as hard as he worked he did not focus on the elements of the game that would have been smart to do. his footwork was not good in the post and he should have worked on getting better there in addition to or even instead of the fadeaway. people tend to forget that he did not have great hands either. there is an anecdote involving him and jordan where jordan said to him that he would never win a title unless he learned to pass out of a double team.

footwork and passing out of double-teams. becoming a playmaker.

he fell short in these areas as a player and this held his teams back too.

i give him credit for being good enough to get to conference finals and also the finals.

but winning it all may have involved better footwork, passing out of double teams, and becoming a good playmaker. ironically, his defensive presence diminished over his career too.

his assists per game were rather low. the ratio of usage rate to assist rate was also enormous: almost 3 to 1 and even in his most successful seasons was close to 2 to 1.

dk7th wrote:

Nalod wrote:Im my opinion Ewing evolved from a defensive athletic college player to an explosive offensive player and that he played at a high level into his mid 30's had a lot to do with his fundamentals than raw athletic ability.

Hakeem had and maintained greater athletic prowess. Mourning was limited but had power, Mutumbo had length!

The he never went to a camp and hold that against him is not giving him the credit he deserves.

Ewing got the most of his ability and worked very hard in my opinion.

The era of Ewing, Barkley and Karl Malone was dominated by Jordan and Hakeem but we should not hold it too much against them.

We just can't elevate their status as they lack two things: MVP and A championshop ring.

that ewing worked hard is a given. obviously he worked very hard. my point is that as hard as he worked he did not focus on the elements of the game that would have been smart to do. his footwork was not good in the post and he should have worked on getting better there in addition to or even instead of the fadeaway. people tend to forget that he did not have great hands either. there is an anecdote involving him and jordan where jordan said to him that he would never win a title unless he learned to pass out of a double team.

footwork and passing out of double-teams. becoming a playmaker.

he fell short in these areas as a player and this held his teams back too.

i give him credit for being good enough to get to conference finals and also the finals.

but winning it all may have involved better footwork, passing out of double teams, and becoming a good playmaker. ironically, his defensive presence diminished over his career too.

his assists per game were rather low. the ratio of usage rate to assist rate was also enormous: almost 3 to 1 and even in his most successful seasons was close to 2 to 1.

There were three ewings, 22-30, 30-35, 36-old......

His yooth he was explosive, block shots, grab boards as he wanted. As he aged his footspeed declines with explosiveness and the jumper was a great weapon. Nellie wanted him to be a pf. Might have helped his knees some.

Ewing had small hands for a 7 footer and was not strong there in the paint. Passing out of the double was part of his egocentic nature. Maybe he didn't think there was a good reason?

Coach:"patrick, lets work on passing out when your doubled"!
Ewing; "Fuck you"!
Coach: "alrighty then.........".