<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">The quiet, unsure boy who nervously walked through the Sonics' doors three years ago with his parents by his side is gone. Now look at him. Take it all in. The fiery-red, shoulder-length hair. The goatee. The tattoos. And those muscles. My goodness, what has happened Robert Swift? He is hardly recognizable now. He looks like ... </div> Link
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Rashard Lewis:</div><div class="quote_post">"Just look at him. That's Swift. That's the real Robert Swift. The first couple of years, we've seen Swift, but that wasn't Robert Swift. He was trying to hide the things he liked to do and didn't really express himself."</div> Other then that....growing out your hair, getting tatoos and looking like Bill Walton don't make you any better then you were last year.
Yep, I wish the article would've focused more on whatever improvements he's made in his game. As it is, he'll just look more ridiculous when Jerome James throws one down in his grill.
The kid is trying to find himself and considering that this year will probably determine how lucrative his next contract is I sort of like the fact that he is looking to draw attention to himself. Had Reggie Evans not broken his nose last year Bobby would definitely have come into camp as the starting center and probably would have garnered attention as one of the premier young bigs in this league by numerous publications. That setback really derailed Robert's progress and enabled Petro to play his way into starter's minutes. Up until that point it seemed as if the Sonics were able to count on Robert for close to a double double every night. I am a big fan of Robert Swift. I think the kid has a bit of an identity complex but when he played with confidence last year I looked at him as someone who was more than capable of holding his own against the premier bigs in this league. He actually looked to have All-Star potential considering he has good footwork in the post, a nice shooting touch, a nose for the ball w/ rebounding, can alter/block shots, and is athletic enough to be a factor in transition. I hope that Bobby has improved his game enough to not only silence his critics but also establish himself as a potential cornerstone of our frontline. Chris Wilcox right now is currently viewed as our most valuable player on the frontline (sans Sweet Lew) but I'd like to imagine in 3 years that Robert would have developed fast enough to surpass Chris--considering that he'd be a more viable offensive and defensive presence in the half court. I know that I may be in the minority with this viewpoint but I hope that Swift can continue to develop into one of the top five true centers in this league. He has a way to go but the potential is there.
It's hard to tell if Swifty has that potential because he hasn't really played full speed yet. He's been a half step slower than everybody else on the court so far in his career. It will be interesting to see if he moves around without hesistating this year.
Have a look at the difference in the size of his arms - he's always had the treetrunk legs, but if he can really add that upper body strength he's going to be a lot better equipped to deal with a position where there are a lot of undersized guys who log minutes there due to their bulk and bodystrength.
