Dallas Mavericks’ Al-Farouq Aminu studying Scottie Pippen, Bruce Bowen
By Bryan Rose
When free agency broke during this past offseason, who was the first player the Dallas Mavericks called? Many would assume it to be Carmelo Anthony or Chandler Parsons but it was neither. In fact, the first person the Mavs called was small forward Al-Farouq Aminu.
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Drafted originally by the Los Angeles Clippers and sent to the New Orleans Pelicans in the Chris Paul trade, Al-Farouq Aminu has never lived up to his lofty billing though has proven himself to be a very good defender at the NBA level. That was something the Dallas Mavericks were seeking in case they lost Shawn Marion (as they did) in free agency which is why Aminu was such an important target.
Now the small forward has seemingly embraced his role as the perceived ‘stopper’ for the Dallas Mavericks and says he’s been studying legendary defenders like Scottie Pippen and Bruce Bowen.
Al-Farouq Aminu says he has studied film of Scottie Pippen and Bruce Bowen, learning how to be an elite defender.
— Earl K. Sneed (@EarlKSneed) October 1, 2014
Studying tape alone obviously isn’t going to make you an All-NBA defender though it’s certainly a nice teaching tool, especially when it’s Bowen and Pippen on the other side.
It’s not known how many minutes Al-Farouq Aminu will get in Big D this season though with Chandler Parsons expected to play power forward at times, it should open up some time for the veteran.
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