Bennett really reminds me of Amare, for both good and bad...
Obviously the physical and frame comparisons aren't valid but the way they play the game is very similar...
Yes, and Amar'e was once thought of as a fringe superstar... before his eyeball fell out, his knees exploded, and his non-winning brand of basketball was exposed for what it is.
This isn't strictly in response to Smooth's post, but my agreement with the Stoudemire comparison may seem at odds with my love for Bennett, especially considering that the "for bad" that's present for both is an occasional lack of interest in defense and a lack of tenacity in going after rebounds. Given Bennett's current lack of Tenacious D, I also have to admit that he's not currently a tremendous fit on a team with such absolutely atrocious perimeter defense. And as exciting as it sounds to picture Bennett and Tristan as a modern day LJ and Zo, niceness isn't really the major thing separating Tristan from Zo. Zo was considered "short" for a center towards the end of a golden age for big, strong, low post, 7' centers, but Zo still had a couple inches of height on Tristan, over a 7'6" wingspan, and was one of the strongest and most explosive bigs in the league in his prime. I wish Tristan was that, but he isn't.
So how the eff could I still be so enamoured with Bennett? Well, first, as I've said before, I'm not all that concerned with fit at this stage of the game; I'm concerned with talent. I think Bennett is the second most talented prospect in this draft, trailing only McLemore in my mind, and only by a sliver. And even though I'm not so worried about fit, I still think he and Tristan could compliment each other well enough to be a starting front court, even if they're not LJ and Zo, and even if it's only until one of them is cashed in as a major asset in a trade for another star.
Tristan appears to be becoming a fairly good post defender in his own right, even without great height. He's got a strong base and he's learning to use it and he's also become so much more disciplined in just holding his ground with his hands up rather than biting on fakes. And this isn't a league filled with Hakeems, Ewings, Admirals, and Shaqs anymore. Guys like Kendrick Perkins and Al Jefferson aren't much taller than Tristan, maybe an inch or so, and didn't start out much heavier and they get along fine at center, let alone the complete non-centers like Joel Anthony and Blair. And, hell, it seems like half the guys starting at center in the league anymore are only actually starting for their teams because, well, somebody has to.
Sort of like Amar'e with Nash, I think Bennett might have the best potential in this draft as a Pick and Roll / Pick and Pop partner with Kyrie and Dion. I also think that a starting front court of Bennett and Tristan wouldn't be worlds different than the Boozer and Noah combo in Chicago, which doesn't sound all that great, but they were legit contenders last year when they had their star PG. He have a star PG. And Bennett and Tristan both still have the P word and upside and all that stuff, unlike the tapped out and lazy ass Boozer. Betting on Bennett becoming a solid defender might be going too far, but he's plenty young yet and has the strength, length, and athleticism for it... though so do so many who never really get it defensively. But our perimeter defense needs to improve too if we're ever going to be good anyways. And none of the top prospects this year are without holes.
