Kareem Abdul-Jabbar is regarded as one of the greatest centers in NBA history and he helped bring the Los Angeles Lakers five titles. Abdul-Jabbar is also the leading scorer in league history and an iconic figure for centers of all ages. Abdul-Jabbar has helped mentor young centers in the NBA and he can discern a motivated player from a “slacker.”
The Captain worked with Andrew Bynum when he first joined the Lakers and played a major role in developing Bynum into an All-Star. However, Abdul-Jabbar says that Bynum often times lost his drive and told the Los Angeles Times that Dwight Howard has a different motor than Bynum.
“Dwight is very committed to playing and winning,” Abdul-Jabbar said. “Andrew has been up and down on that issue. There are times he wants to play, do a great job and he goes out and does it. Then there are other times where it seems like he’s not focused….
“When I first started working with him, he was eager to learn,” Abdul-Jabbar said. “He appreciated me shortening the learning curve. Once he figured he did everything he wanted to do in terms of learning, he didn’t want me to bother him constantly going over the fundamentals.”
The biggest knock on Bynum has been his immature play and that he often times loses interest in games. There was the three-point shot against the Warriors and the instances where he excluded himself from team huddles. The Philadelphia 76ers are hoping that Bynum will be a new player when he suits up for the team and give it 100 percent for all 82 games.
The work ethic difference between Howard and Bynum is one of the biggest reason why people put the former Magic center over Bynum. Howard may not have the same offensive moves as Bynum, but at least the Lakers are guaranteed full effort from him every time he hits the court.
