thedoper wrote:I am going to outright blaspheme here and say it. He reminds me of KG.
Whoa, put down that pipe, doper...too early in the day!
But I know what you mean in terms of foot and hand quickness and defensive focus and intensity...really important qualities. Time will tell if he can get anywhere near KG with his mid-range game. If he can, we have a potential PF.
I remember KGs first year, granted Dieng is probably 10 years older than KG was. But based on that year I am making the comparison. Dieng's shot actually looks good to me. His body control seems to be the only real difference. His foot speed and "moves" can be KG esque, but he plays a bit more out of control than KG did, hence all the fouls right now. KG was and always will be a center in my mind even though he thought he was a small forward. All I can really say about Dieng is that everything so far has exceeded my expectations, granted they were VERY low.
As for whether Dieng and Pek can play together in the frontcourt, it wasn't that long ago that it was perfectly normal for your C and PF to be two guys that both played a lot inside. Pau Gasol and Andrew Bynum won a few titles paired up as the starting 4 and 5 and Gasol's range did not extend much further out than Dieng's.
Even today, there are a number of more traditional 5/4 combos that are in NBA starting lineups. What about West and Hibbert? Neither of them stretch the floor. Or Drummond and Monroe? Or Amir Johnson and Jonas Valanciunas?
And we're not even talking about the two starting together; we're just talking about the idea of short stints where the two play together, in addition to sharing the minutes at Center.
KG was quicker and more explosive than Gorgui. But Gorgui has KG's length and soft touch on his short to mid-range jumper. Gorgui also has nice body control and footwork. Too bad McHale isn't coaching this group. Add some low-post moves to Gorgui's game and he could be Hakeem like. Note I didn't say as good as Hakeem. :) You can see the soccer experience in Gorgui's game. It accounts for his excellent coordination.