Best shot blockers of all time | The Boneyard

Best shot blockers of all time

Who is in your opinion the best at blocking shots?

  • Donyell Marshall (3.3 BPG ‘93-‘94) (245 total

    Votes: 2 1.3%

  • Emeka Okafor (4.7 BPG ‘02-‘03) (441 total)

    Votes: 131 84.0%

  • Josh Boone (2.9 BPG ‘04-‘05) (222 total)

    Votes: 1 0.6%

  • Hilton Armstrong (3.1 BPG ‘05-‘06) (191 total)

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • Hasheem Thabeat (4.5 BPG ‘07-‘08) (417 total)

    Votes: 39 25.0%

  • Andre Drummond (2.7 BPG ‘11-‘12) (92 total)

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • Amida Brimah (3.5 BPG ‘14-‘15) (367 total)

    Votes: 5 3.2%

  • Akok Akok (2.6 BPG ‘19-‘20) (67* total)

    Votes: 1 0.6%

  • Isaiah Whaley (2.6 BPG ‘20-‘21) (141* total)

    Votes: 1 0.6%
  • Total voters
    156
J

Jkiller

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I’m curious how the shot blockers today compare to the greats from the past. Please let me know if I missed anyone
 
TheChamps990411 said:
If Mek were as tall as Sheem he wouldve averaged 6 blocks a game.
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He must of had long arms because he probably was closer to 6’9” which ironically is the same height as the great Bill Russell.
Emeka did get 10 blocked shots in a game against the Knicks in MSG.
He missed a rare triple only getting 9 rebounds in that game. Which was unusual as he averaged a double his first 7 years in the NBA. If not for injuries. He had a legitimate shot at the HOF.
I think it’s easier getting 10 assists than 10 blocked shots making that triple special.
I laugh at the people who say he had a better cast actually his presence made that cast look better than they were.
That’s rare for a Big. If you saw that team perform when he was hurt or in foul trouble you understand.
Sorry fans of other UConn basketball Bigs no one is even close to him. Thabeet is second but fairly distant.
 
Emeka; stats and the eyes don't lie.

If we needed just one block shot, I'm picking Emeka. His timing was the best.
 
Hey Adrien! said:
Even though he's an all-time great, I feel like Okafor is almost underrated/under-appreciated.

For the two-year span between his sophomore and junior seasons, he was so dominant:

16.8p, 11.4r, 4.4b, 59 fg% in 32.7 mpg.
Expand ...
Emeka was dominant, I don’t think he is under appreciated by anyone, at least within the UConn community. Emeka is on the unanimous UConn Mount Rushmore along with Ray, Rip, and Kemba.
 
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Emeka was the biggest force on the best UConn team of all time.

That being said, I thought people challenged him more than they challenged Thabeet. People tended to treat Thabeet like he was a total eraser. No one challenged him except for Pitt.
 
I really thought dabeet would make an impact in the nba.
wow. Maybe he should a be sidekick on kwame’s podcast
 
AZHuskiePop said:
He must of had long arms because he probably was closer to 6’9” which ironically is the same height as the great Bill Russell.
Emeka did get 10 blocked shots in a game against the Knicks in MSG.
He missed a rare triple only getting 9 rebounds in that game. Which was unusual as he averaged a double his first 7 years in the NBA. If not for injuries. He had a legitimate shot at the HOF.
I think it’s easier getting 10 assists than 10 blocked shots making that triple special.
I laugh at the people who say he had a better cast actually his presence made that cast look better than they were.
That’s rare for a Big. If you saw that team perform when he was hurt or in foul trouble you understand.
Sorry fans of other UConn basketball Bigs no one is even close to him. Thabeet is second but fairly distant.
Expand ...
Only IW has the same quick bounce that Mek did.
 
too soon. gotta see what donovan has up his sleeve. i figger by spring of 2025 we will have better data.
could be that asking this now, is like asking pats fans after bledsoe retired, 'who was the best patriots qb of all time?' lol.
 
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Eneka had uncanny timing, knowing when the ball was going to leave the shooter’s hand and taking great angles.
 
Giving the edge to Thabeet for being more intimidating with his size and having very close blocks per game as Okafor. You can just imagine how many times a guard just decided not to challenge Thabeet outa pure fear.
 
Emeka hands down. For somebody who was "undersized" for his position he made up for it with impeccable timing and body control.
 
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Huskyforlife said:
Giving the edge to Thabeet for being more intimidating with his size and having very close blocks per game as Okafor. You can just imagine how many times a guard just decided not to challenge Thabeet outa pure fear.
Expand ...
I voted for Emeka, but that's a solid point.
 
Admittedly put in a sympathy vote for Thabeet simply because I was in school with him and met him a handful of times.

That being said, the correct answer is Emeka.
 
upstater said:
Emeka was the biggest force on the best UConn team of all time.

That being said, I thought people challenged him more than they challenged Thabeet. People tended to treat Thabeet like he was a total eraser. No one challenged him except for Pitt.
Expand ...
Co-signed. Okafor was better in every facet of the game except I think Thabeet was a sliiiiiiiiiightly better shot-blocker at his peak. Like you said, by the end of his career opposing players weren't even bothering to try to score inside.
 
a more interesting question might be "who is uconn's all-time shot blocker OUTSIDE of okafor and thabeet?"

might have to go with brimah in that case.
 
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TheChamps990411 said:
If Mek were as tall as Sheem he wouldve averaged 6 blocks a game.
Expand ...

This is it right here. He had preternatural timing and instincts, and was a quick leaper. Thabeet had a massive height/reach advantage on him.
 
elmcityboy said:
a more interesting question might be "who is uconn's all-time shot blocker OUTSIDE of okafor and thabeet?"

might have to go with brimah in that case.
Expand ...
Let’s just pretend I asked that lol! I didn’t think it would be this lopsided

Obviously Brimah is the next best but I think Akok and Whaley are soooo close
 
uconnfan68 said:
Only IW has the same quick bounce that Mek did.
Expand ...
Forgotten Fact
IW playing 12+ minutes a game lead the 2017-18 team in blocked shots as a freshman. With 1 per game
He didn’t have offensive skill but what he had you can’t teach.
 
HuskyHawk said:
This is it right here. He had preternatural timing and instincts, and was a quick leaper. Thabeet had a massive height/reach advantage on him.
Expand ...

Not disagreeing but IMO that shouldn't impact anyone's final answer, except as a tiebreaker.

I don't hold the fact that Aaron Judge is 6'7" against him when I compare him to other hitters.
 
Jkiller said:
Let’s just pretend I asked that lol! I didn’t think it would be this lopsided

Obviously Brimah is the next best but I think Akok and Whaley are soooo close
Expand ...

Boone and (as a senior) Armstrong were very good.

From 2008:

Thanks to Thabeet (as well as Adrien and mercurial 6'9" forward Stanley Robinson), UConn leads the nation in blocks per game (8.8), which the team has now done for seven consecutive seasons. UConn's shot-blocking prowess began with the arrival of Okafor in 2001. In Okafor's three seasons as a Husky, UConn averaged 6.9 blocks in 2001-02, 7.5 in 2002-03, and 8.1 in 2003-04. With an increased emphasis on shot-blocking, the team actually swatted more shots without Okafor, averaging 8.9 blocks in 2004-05 (led by Boone, Gay, Villanueva and Armstrong) and 8.8 in 2005-06 (same crew minus Villanueva). Last season, Thabeet's first as a Husky, UConn averaged 8.6 blocks per game. Due in no small part to its shot-blocking, UConn is holding opponents to 38 percent shooting.
 
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