Stokely Hathaway came into AEW at the Double or Nothing Pay-Per-View and immediately overthrew Mark Sterling to become Jade Cargill’s new associate. Stokely then was seen with Jade and the baddies, Red Velvet and Kiera Hogan from there on out. In recent weeks, Stokely has been trying to recruit Leila Grey into the baddies, but that’s an internal struggle with Jade. Also, Hathaway tried to recruit Lee Moriarty. After a bit of a struggle, Lee accepted and joined alongside him. Most recently, on this past week’s AEW Dynamite, Stokely Hathaway interrupted a promo by Ethan Page and handed him a business card, which Ethan took and they left the ring together. Following this, Stokely posted a tweet showing that he successfully recruited Moriarty and Page, but had two more blank spots, seemingly hinting that he’ll be recruiting some others. But, who? Well, we’re going to take a look at five possible talent that Stokely Hathaway could recruit.
Samoa Joe:
What would be better than recruiting a champion right off the bat? Not much, I’d assume. Plus, Samoa Joe having the mean steak and size of an absolute monster makes it that much better. And I know, I know, Samoa Joe definitely doesn’t need anyone to talk for him. We all know the skill that Joe possess on the stick. But, it wouldn’t be a bad thing to have a associate like Stokely to get him more opportunities. Though Joe is ROH TV Champion, he’s rarely on regular AEW Television. With Stokely by his side, I think that would change. Plus, this could open the door to Hathaway going over to ROH as well and possibly scouting talent there. Imagine the promo battles and power struggles between Stokely Hathaway and Prince Nana? Sounds like pure gold to me. Samoa Joe being the monster to Stokely’s group would be a phenomenal choice.
Powerhouse Hobbs:
Speaking of monsters by Hathaway’s side, how about Hobbs? Since he’s become a full time star in AEW, he’s been alongside Taz and team Taz. Hobbs has had Taz and Ricky Starks to talk for him and didn’t really need to. But now, as we all know, Team Taz is broken up and Powerhouse Hobbs laid out Ricky Starks. Everyone assumes that Ricky is destined for greatness and a sure-fire main event star waiting to happen. But, what if Powerhouse Hobbs forced his way past Ricky and shot up into the AEW world title scene? Seem’s like something that could happen with the help of Stokely Hathaway. Having him aside Powerhouse Hobbs would bring nothing but positives into the new and improved Hobbs and would certainly be a delight on television. Every manager needs their monster and Hobbs could be just that.
Marina Shafir:
This is an easy layup if there ever was one. Though, there may be some conflict of interest here with Marina and Jade Cargill, this still could be a perfect fit. I mean, we can’t just ignore the obvious here. We all know that Stokely was in NXT as ‘Malcolm Bivens’ and created his own stable ‘Diamond Mine’ with the first recruit being Roderick Strong. It only makes sense that Stokely would come to AEW and keep that tradition alive by recruiting Roderick’s real-life wife, Marina Shafir. And we all know Stokely wouldn’t keep that a secret and would allude to it on TV. They have a history together. Especially with past reports that Marina was set to be in Diamond Mine before leaving NXT. Now, Stokely could boost Marina into stardom just like he did all of his other clients. Stokely could be the perfect mouthpiece to hype up Marina and be her cornerman while she fights. The dynamic would be incredible here and this is the most easy lay-up on this list. That is if Jade and Marina don’t go at it like they have in the past.
Shawn Dean:
The captain? Yes, the captain, Shawn Dean is next on this list. Dean is one of the few men to have a win over MJF and since then, we haven’t really seen him on TV. We may see him on AEW Dark every now and then, but for the most part, where is he? This is a man who has the skill in the ring, has the gimmick, has the size, has the athleticism, but he’s missing just one small thing. Maybe, just maybe, that one thing he’s missing is Stokely Hathaway in his corner. I would love to see more Shawn Dean on my television and Stokely could be the man to boost him up the card. As I mentioned before, Hathaway has the ability to boost clients into stars and that’s exactly what he could do for a guy like Shawn Dean. Plus, who wouldn’t love Stokely at ringside yelling at Dean to “Hit ‘em with the deal!” We really, really need that! Stokely and Shawn is the duo you didn’t know you needed, but you certainly do know now. Every captain needs his major and Stokely is that guy. Lets see this happen!
Top Flight:
Man, oh man, where do I start. Dante Martin has long been touted as one of, if not the, top prospect in AEW. The young kid has all the excitement packed into one human. But, he also has a brother, Darius Martin. Sadly, Darius is currently out of action but did recently tease on twitter that when he comes back he’s gunning for Tag Team gold. Who better to push Top Flight into the championship contender slot than Stokely Hathaway? Currently, Dante is sort of paired with Matt Sydal, but we’ve seen Stokely steal Moriarty from Sydal, what’s one more? Plus, Stokely stealing all of Matt Sydal’s friends/students could be some very hilarious, entertaining television. A tag team under Stokely’s wing is a no-brainer and who better than one of the most promising young tag teams who haven’t got over the top just yet. Stokely Hathaway could be the man to give Top Flight that extra push into the championship status. Stokely could be the ultimate hype man for these two young high-flyers. Hopefully Darius Martin heals as soon as possible so maybe this can come to fruition.
Top Flight, Shawn Dean, Marina Shafir, Powerhouse Hobbs and Samoa Joe are my top five, but there’s so many more talent who could benefit from the genius that is Stokely Hathaway. Do you agree with this list? Who would you change? Who would you like to see Stokely recruit? The potential is endless throughout AEW and if Stokely got his foot into the door of Ring Of Honor, there’s a whole new roster that he could sink his teeth into. Plus, the best thing about Stokely is that he doesn’t need a stable, he could manage everyone separately in the same light as someone like the legendary Bobby Heenan. Recruiting top talent, but keeping them all separate. Or, maybe he could do a stable, he’s done it before. We’ll have to wait and see who Stokely Hathaway recruits next, you never know who it could be!
Be sure to check back with Bodyslam.net for all your wrestling news.
If you enjoy Bodyslam’s content, you can help donate to the site here. You can also visit our PWTees store and buy Bodyslam official merchandise here.
You can listen to all of Bodyslam’s podcasts by following us on Spotify and subscribing to our YouTube Channel, or any of your favorite podcast platforms.
