It was well chronicled on this site that Indiana Pacers center Roy Hibbert was in San Antonio this off season
training with several San Antonio Spurs players, most notably greatest power forward of all time Tim Duncan. As it turns out, the mentor-ship between Duncan and Hibbert didn’t stop when the season started. According to our friends at Indy Cornrows, Duncan has been helping Hibbert out all season long.
“I text him and I ask him how to play different bigguys to help me with the little moves to get a little edge on guys,” Hibbert said. “So he’s just like a little voice in my ear and I keep in touch with him regularly.”
Duncan and Hibbert’s skill sets are slightly different, and the Pacers big man says that since Duncan is aware of that, he tailors his scouting reports to Hibbert’s abilities.
“Yeah, he tells me to use this foot or use this hand to shield guys off,” Hibbert said. “So he tells me the small little things I can do for my game to improve.”
It’s early, but so far Hibbert has been having a career year. He’s specifically improved on the glass and playing in the paint. He also bulked up in the offseason and is using some new relaxation techniques to go along with Duncan’s tips.
It’s great that Duncan is giving advise to younger bigs like Hibbert. We also know Tiago was involved in those off season work outs as well. I’m not saying either guy’s improvement is all Duncan by any means, but I don’t imagine his advice has hurt. By the way, Hibbert is a restricted free agent this summer and the Spurs should have a ton of cap space. Just tossing that out there.
