The WWE signing of Malcolm Bivens added one of the most talented managers in recent memory to the roster. Bivens thrived on the independent circuit under the name of Stokely Hathaway and finally earned a spot in WWE when they were looking for new managers. NXT has slow burned his character with the recent run with The Diamond Mine faction.
The changes to NXT will have everything up in the air, but one would assume a talent like Bivens is going to do well in any environment. Malcolm’s potential is his strongest asset, even with the success already shown in small flashes. WWE could have the next talent ready to join the likes of Paul Heyman and Bobby Heenan if everything goes right for Bivens to get deserved opportunities.
Malcolm Bivens Is The Best Free Agent Manager
WWE signing Malcolm Bivens following his run as Stokely Hathaway on the independent circuit felt like a drastic change compared to how they usually view managers. The ones to get television roles were stumbled upon or signed specifically to work with one wrestler. Bivens thrived by managing multiple talents throughout his time in Ring of Honor and Evolve Wrestling.
Moose became a successful upper card name for ROH with Bivens and Veda Scott at his side. The Evolve run was even more impressive with the likes of TJ Perkins, Timothy Thatcher, and a few others reaching new peaks with Bivens as their representative. Wrestlers who struggled at promos would benefit from having Bivens getting them over the hump to connect with the audience.
WWE reached out to Bivens partially due to their work with the Evolve promotion. Bivens was consistently cutting the best promos and delivering some of the best character work on the show. It was a no-brainer to add Bivens when the company felt that managers were becoming more important to the product.
Malcolm Bivens Got Over Without Television Time
Malcolm Bivens was signed by WWE back in 2019, but he didn’t find a full-time managing role on NXT television until 2021. The creativity of Bivens outside of the NXT program showed just how much he had to offer from a character perspective. Social media was used by Malcolm to provide entertainment and get his identity across by doing his own skits.
The first bit of Bivens losing his CD Player and questioning other talents at the Performance Center created interest for the entertainment value. Legendary NXT names like Adam Cole, Johnny Gargano and Shayna Baszler were questioned by Bivens about their role in his outdated form of a music player disappearing. The social media following of Bivens continued to grow with that running skit, along with the daily fun tweets.
WWE even trusted Malcolm enough to appear on the weekly talk show The Bump in a small storyline-based situation. Bivens was trying hard to get added to the show that often featured the biggest names in WWE discussing their current programs. Kevin Owens going out of his way to put over Bivens on the show added more fuel to the fire with main roster stars now entertained by him.
There Is Untapped Potential For Malcolm Bivens
NXT has utilized Malcolm Bivens for a few months as the manager and speaker of The Diamond Mine faction. Roderick Strong badly needed to be repackaged after the Undisputed Era faction ended their time together. Tyler Rust and Hachiman joined Strong as the NXT trio now represented by Bivens as one of the better acts on the show.
Despite all three wrestlers having various strengths, Bivens is the talent with the biggest ceilings. WWE has quite a few talented names that either struggle on the microphone or lack something extra to place more importance on them. Bivens is the perfect manager in NXT to get called up and have a relevant run with a rising star.
Names like Keith Lee, Cesaro, Ricochet, Sheamus, and plenty others would benefit from a gimmick change or a manager doing their speaking. Even a main event asset like Brock Lesnar or Seth Rollins could do with something extra after their changes in recent years. The only thing certain is that Bivens has the ability to enhance the strengths of his talent.
WWE is often criticized for not having their finger on the pulse or for not knowing what today’s audience wants. Bivens’ social media use shows the connectivity with the current times, and his NXT work is showing his potential as a performer. The time is now to go all the way with Malcolm in a bigger role and let him prove he can be the top manager in the business.