Thunder C Hasheem Thabeet suspended for regular season opener
By Brad Rowland
The NBA career for former #2 overall pick Hasheem Thabeet hasn’t exactly been a remarkable success (to put it mildly), but this is a new one, even for him.
Thunder center Hasheem Thabeet has been suspended one regular season game without pay for head butting Pelicans center Greg Stiemsma.
— Marc J. Spears (@MarcJSpears) October 21, 2013
The 7-foot-3 Thabeet delivered a headbutt to Pelicans center Greg Stiemsma during an October 17th game in Oklahoma City, and that move will cost him a regular season game for his trouble. In the grand scheme, this is a minor blip as far as basketball is concerned, but the rise in Thabeet’s profile brings attention to the interesting depth issues in the OKC frontcourt.
Right now, Thabeet is considered to be the backup for starter Kendrick Perkins, who has famously battled his own on-court issues in recent seasons. In 2012-2013, Thabeet appeared in 66 games, and he did post 36-minute average of 9.1 rebounds and 2.8 blocks. However, only rookie Steven Adams is behind Thabeet, and Perkins is currently sidelined with a dislocated finger.
It remains to be seen whether the highly pedigreed Thabeet can raise his game with more playing time, but that question will have to be placed on hold until he is allowed to return to the court in the regular season.