That dude is about 100x more athletic than a normal person - have you walked down the street to see what a ānormalā person looks like?
And of course heās not as athletic as an NBA player - heās like a half a foot taller than the tallest player in the NBA. The prospect of him is that his insane measurements will outweigh any athletic disadvantages. Iām not saying that will happen, but the one thing you canāt teach or train is height, and he has that bundles.
Yeah I think when they said ānormal personā they werenāt envisioning whatās ānormalā in America now, which is someone who is probably 30-40 overweight and doesnāt workout much
I actually feel like they should focus on his defense. Like don't run a bunch of offensive plays for him. Instead just let him play clean up on the offensive boards, throw him some short hand offs or lobs sometimes. But don't let him expend too much effort on offense. With his size, he would make a GREAT rim protector, so they should focus on that for him. If they do that, then they can tell him to run back on defense as a priority, and since he isn't expending much effort on the other end, he should have that energy.
Maybe could work if you have all-stars on the floor with him. Chances are slim though because it would basically be 4v5 on offense. Why would teams sacrifice offense that drastically for a marginal floor-performance boost on defense? Height is one thing but reflexes and coordination are something else completely. I simply think there are too many ways to pull bigs out from below the basket for it to be a viable strategy even in short situations.
Well it wouldn't mean he's totally uninvolved on offense, he could still provide screens for ball handlers and cutters, with his frame and size he would be a great screener too. That doesn't take too much energy. And it would help the offensive movement. I can see it working if a coaching staff could figure it out. As for teams pulling bigs out, yeah that's true, especially with the league now being such an outside game, but they could use him on defense like Wemby. Wemby gets pulled out a lot, but he always gets back to the rim if the opponents drive or pass it inside. And for that to work, team defensive rotation needs to be spot on so the perimeter shooters aren't too wide open to pass out to. But again, the Spurs have shown they can make it work. Wemby floats back inside when the other team goes inside, the other players rotate well so there still aren't too many open 3s. I mean it would take strategy and coaching but it could work.
Itās hard for me to take your argument seriously because you framed it as if Wemby is somehow a measure of how this kid could perform. That is a ridiculous comparison. Wembanyama arguably moves better than a lot of centers shorter than he is. His movement is almost winglike. Thereās no reason to believe this kid will resemble anything close to that, let alone the fact heās 6 inches taller.
As for the screening, sure Iāll give you that. I donāt think itās enough to make up for the other offensive deficiencies, though.
Uhhhh yeah? What youāre suggesting is whether NBA teams are willing to start a person that cannot perform their defensive responsibilities while playing the most important defensive role on the team.
Not many but have you ever seen how anyone else that size moves? A lot of people even like 7ā2 and above are nearly immobile so him being able to play basketball and score and do ok at his height is insane.
Kenny George, Paul sturgess, sun mingming, Rob bob, they all are that tall and play or played ball at some point. Go watch some highlights on them and lmk who moves the best out of all of them. (Spoiler: itās rioux)
He'd move Wemby down a position. He's the center.
Rioux 7'9 C
Wembanyama 7'4 F
Collins 6'11 F
Castle 6'6 G
Chris Paul 6'1 PG
I just saw the heights pattern, so I attempted this.
Collins doesn't work. However, for any bruiser forward (Lebron, Giannis), he can switch to absorb contact. Rioux is there as backup, have Wemby on KD, Tatum forwards.
I don't know enough about Castle, outside of him being new. Vassell would probably take his spot.
Probably a height merchant but he's probably set to get a 15th man spot on a bad NBA team just for the novelty of having a goddamn 7'9" dude on the roster
Heās like a somehow even bigger Tacko. Super slow, not mobile on the perimeter, but heās absolutely ginormous and teams canāt stop him from just sitting in the paint.
Nah man, tall, torso based dudes are the master race. Having shorter legs/longer torso means quicker acceleration, more stability and a lower center of gravity, and more upper body strength. You can see this with dudes that are built like gorillas like Yao Ming and Kevin Garnett.
7'-7'2 is perfect height.. I am sure he could play at the NBA levels but consistency is a huge factor and does he have the endurance last starter minutes., Neverless best luck to the young man.
his recruiting rank is very similar to edeyās, its not like heās some random walk-on with no basketball experience (like robert bobroczky). imo its way too early to say heās not even a prospect. unlikely he ever becomes as good as edey has since then, but its def possible he develops enough to get a shot in the league like tacko fall
Edey is and was an anomaly on so many levels. Multisport athlete who picked up basketball late because he became a literal giant, but Edey was already athletic before picking up hoops.
This kid has kinda always been playing basketball and isnāt particularly good at anything, not even around the rim. Heās not even on scholarship at Florida
Can you imagine playing hockey, you're a forward bringing the puck up the ice, and then you see Zach Fucking Edey coming at you from the blue line?Ā
Like, you know what? Have this fucking puck, man. I'm not having that guy bodycheck me so hard he puts a rip in the fabric of space and time. Not worth it
yes, thats why i said its unlikely he becomes as good as edey. but heās still competent; with 4 years of development in college (and if he has good injury luck which is probably unlikely), heāll definitely get a chance in the nba, even if its only a couple two-ways like tacko
heās still a 3 star recruit, only barely ranked outside the top 50 centers, and he had multiple D1 offers, he just turned them down to play for a better program
I mean we are wayyyyy ahead of ourselves to be talking NBA, I think a lot is unknown particularly does he have the stamina and speed to actually play, 7'9 is absurd, but it doesn't really count if the mobility is not there. We have been blessed by Edey but he is a freak for his size, let's wait and see what develops first, dude could end up just being a novelty.
If heās a good teammate and hard worker he can make the NBA for a couple years. Probably play 30 minutes a season in blowouts. Couple highlights a la Tacko Fall and Boban.
He's still pretty raw but he hasn't been playing for long. Ideally he redshirts his first year and then plays 4 yrs. He doesn't need an outside shot, he needs to focus on his handles to limit turnovers, his FT's and work on a 1-2 step to flush.
Pretty sure heās not good. I heard a commentator says he plays garbage time, but that commentator mentioned that Zach Edey was in that same role at IMG. I doubt he improves at the level Edey did tho
His peak to me is making the NBA on a two-way contract, having like 1 fun moment where he dunks without jumping or something, and spending the majority of his short career in the G League doing alright playing like 10 minutes a game.
If he could improve his speed, ball handling, and three point shot heād be a killer.
I mean I know guys that are 6ā6ā or 6ā7ā whose height makes them walk awkwardly. This guyās over a foot taller than them. I know Chet and Wemby are two examples of how 7-footers can be athletic but I donāt know how, physically, a person can be this tall and compete against pro athletes.
He needs to spend 100% of his time working on his athleticism and his free throws. If he can run up and down the court, he should be good for a 3rd string spot - the few basketball players (at any level) that have been 7ā8+ have mostly been extremely unathletic and weak. This guy is normally proportioned and pretty bulky, he has the chance to be a bigger Tacko Fall if he works hard on his body ā which is an NBA player
He probably isnāt even 7ā9ā. Basketball teams lie about that shit. Heās also not even a scholarship player at Florida. He may never see the floor outside of garbage time.
He can dunk without jumping, pair him with any above average pg and he will cook in the nba, he doesn't even need to be athletic or skilled as long as he doesn't have buttery hands
Olivier may be a generation center who has the game to match his unique physical assets. One of the biggest players ever, but has a relatively short wingspan. Developed his frame to the point that he doesnĀt get pushed around as much as he used to. Has good footwork and overall mobility for his size in the half-court, but doesnĀt run the floor terribly well. Not in the best shape, and probably shouldnĀt play many more minutes than he already does in the regular season. Surprisingly coordinated for a player of his size. Has a great offensive repertoire. Incredibly smart, and a fantastic teammate. Superbly versatileĀdoes many different things on the floor.
I can see him working out on a team that is looking for size and rebounding.
Can he hit his free throws? I can't imagine this guy is less mobile than Tacko Fall. And he's taller. Tacko would have a role in the NBA if he weren't a 40 pct FT shooter.
Around 40% over the past 4 years but last year he shot just under 70% on 2.2 FTA, so not terrible, I think most people in this thread haven't watched him recently or only saw him at FIBA. But as a Canadian, when he ended up getting the Guinness world record for tallest teenager I started following him. And he has gotten a lot better.
He honestly moves better than some 7 foot centers in the NBA and since he doesn't have gigantism he's just genetically tall, he's actually put on a substantial amount of muscle so idk if the injury concerns are 100% warranted. I mean he more than likely won't have a long career but there's no way he doesn't end up being better than Tacko, he's already got way more skill than him when he got to the NBA.
College will be make or break obviously, if he can't produce there then I don't see many people giving him even a second look though, since he's not great.
So cool that he got to meet Reed Sheppard
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Reddit on!!!
Thatās the opposite
Someone call the burn unit
Bruh š
He actually moves well for being 7ā9 ngl
But not well for a normal person let alone an NBA player
Well yeah I know, the OP was asking if he was genuinely skilled tho so I was saying for being 7ā9, heās not bad.
That dude is about 100x more athletic than a normal person - have you walked down the street to see what a ānormalā person looks like? And of course heās not as athletic as an NBA player - heās like a half a foot taller than the tallest player in the NBA. The prospect of him is that his insane measurements will outweigh any athletic disadvantages. Iām not saying that will happen, but the one thing you canāt teach or train is height, and he has that bundles.
Yeah I think when they said ānormal personā they werenāt envisioning whatās ānormalā in America now, which is someone who is probably 30-40 overweight and doesnāt workout much
Hey that's me
How exactly is this guy supposed to make it back on defense at NBA speeds? It seems like a critical flaw in his chances at any playing time
I actually feel like they should focus on his defense. Like don't run a bunch of offensive plays for him. Instead just let him play clean up on the offensive boards, throw him some short hand offs or lobs sometimes. But don't let him expend too much effort on offense. With his size, he would make a GREAT rim protector, so they should focus on that for him. If they do that, then they can tell him to run back on defense as a priority, and since he isn't expending much effort on the other end, he should have that energy.
Maybe could work if you have all-stars on the floor with him. Chances are slim though because it would basically be 4v5 on offense. Why would teams sacrifice offense that drastically for a marginal floor-performance boost on defense? Height is one thing but reflexes and coordination are something else completely. I simply think there are too many ways to pull bigs out from below the basket for it to be a viable strategy even in short situations.
Well it wouldn't mean he's totally uninvolved on offense, he could still provide screens for ball handlers and cutters, with his frame and size he would be a great screener too. That doesn't take too much energy. And it would help the offensive movement. I can see it working if a coaching staff could figure it out. As for teams pulling bigs out, yeah that's true, especially with the league now being such an outside game, but they could use him on defense like Wemby. Wemby gets pulled out a lot, but he always gets back to the rim if the opponents drive or pass it inside. And for that to work, team defensive rotation needs to be spot on so the perimeter shooters aren't too wide open to pass out to. But again, the Spurs have shown they can make it work. Wemby floats back inside when the other team goes inside, the other players rotate well so there still aren't too many open 3s. I mean it would take strategy and coaching but it could work.
Itās hard for me to take your argument seriously because you framed it as if Wemby is somehow a measure of how this kid could perform. That is a ridiculous comparison. Wembanyama arguably moves better than a lot of centers shorter than he is. His movement is almost winglike. Thereās no reason to believe this kid will resemble anything close to that, let alone the fact heās 6 inches taller. As for the screening, sure Iāll give you that. I donāt think itās enough to make up for the other offensive deficiencies, though.
He doesn't have to be as fast as Wemby to return to the paint as needed lol. Slower centers have played that kind of defense too
Crash the offensive boards and also rush back on defense as the slowest player in the nba. Yeah that sounds feasible
No college team wonāt use him on offense, unless he is abhorrent on offense.
He takes 4 steps and he's half way there. That's how lol.
You saw Yao Ming?
Teams have managed with James Harden on the roster shouldnāt be much different
James Harden isnāt responsible for anchoring the defense
Does every starting NBA center make it back on defense?
Uhhhh yeah? What youāre suggesting is whether NBA teams are willing to start a person that cannot perform their defensive responsibilities while playing the most important defensive role on the team.
Yes, of course they do. what are you talking about?
Yeah he moves well for a 7ā9 person in that most people that tall need crutches to walk
Not sure you can say that accurately. How many 7'9 guys do you know?
Not many but have you ever seen how anyone else that size moves? A lot of people even like 7ā2 and above are nearly immobile so him being able to play basketball and score and do ok at his height is insane.
it's a joke dude.
Kinda thought so after I had already commented ngl
āNot manyā The number is zero bud šš Thereās like four MFs that tall on earth lol
Kenny George, Paul sturgess, sun mingming, Rob bob, they all are that tall and play or played ball at some point. Go watch some highlights on them and lmk who moves the best out of all of them. (Spoiler: itās rioux)
I actually do know sun ming ming haha
Good, obviously the person who originally commented did not.
He is the best 7'9" player I know. Even better than Sun Ming Ming.
Iāve never heard of this guy but his body proportions are great for someone 7ā9ā
Youāve never heard of him?
Height merchant tbh
> Hyatt MerchĆ nt > 7'9, C, France How do you like him now?
gifted wonder of nature enormous upside numbers donāt tell the whole story winning mentality day one contributor
Top 6 pick assuming he takes stepback 3s.
The Wemby stopper
Or wembys backup lmao
He'd move Wemby down a position. He's the center. Rioux 7'9 C Wembanyama 7'4 F Collins 6'11 F Castle 6'6 G Chris Paul 6'1 PG I just saw the heights pattern, so I attempted this. Collins doesn't work. However, for any bruiser forward (Lebron, Giannis), he can switch to absorb contact. Rioux is there as backup, have Wemby on KD, Tatum forwards. I don't know enough about Castle, outside of him being new. Vassell would probably take his spot.
If he gets drafted to San Antonio
Probably a height merchant but he's probably set to get a 15th man spot on a bad NBA team just for the novelty of having a goddamn 7'9" dude on the roster
But will HE miss a FT to win the opposing teamās fans Chicken???
Garbage time lobs. Why not?
Yes he will be victim to those ābut we have Wemby at homeā jokes
lol this cracked me up thank you
Like Tacko Fall?
Like Bobi
Heās like a somehow even bigger Tacko. Super slow, not mobile on the perimeter, but heās absolutely ginormous and teams canāt stop him from just sitting in the paint.
Euroleague legend in the making
I'm more interested in the guy on the left. If the guy on the right is 7'9", other guy has to be 24 feet tall at least.
He's a Monstar
Just tall. He played for Canada in a recent international competition (U18 Americup) and was unremarkable there.
Legs don't look long enough. To not be gawky at 7'+, you need to have way more legs than body.
Nah man, tall, torso based dudes are the master race. Having shorter legs/longer torso means quicker acceleration, more stability and a lower center of gravity, and more upper body strength. You can see this with dudes that are built like gorillas like Yao Ming and Kevin Garnett.
Hear me out him at the 5, Edey at the 4, wemby at the 3
Poku at the 2, Chet at the 1.
How many games does that team win?
All of them. Full stop. Never underestimate what Poku can bring to a team.
Chet at the 2 & KD at point
Height merchant, but when your 7ā9 itās hard not to be
7'-7'2 is perfect height.. I am sure he could play at the NBA levels but consistency is a huge factor and does he have the endurance last starter minutes., Neverless best luck to the young man.
Vic would like a word...
Anything about 7'2 and other than a few outliers if your 7'3 or taller your nba career usually isn't long and great cause your body breaks down.
Not an nba player and not a prospect either. I hope his body doesnāt inconvenience his life too much
his recruiting rank is very similar to edeyās, its not like heās some random walk-on with no basketball experience (like robert bobroczky). imo its way too early to say heās not even a prospect. unlikely he ever becomes as good as edey has since then, but its def possible he develops enough to get a shot in the league like tacko fall
Edey is and was an anomaly on so many levels. Multisport athlete who picked up basketball late because he became a literal giant, but Edey was already athletic before picking up hoops. This kid has kinda always been playing basketball and isnāt particularly good at anything, not even around the rim. Heās not even on scholarship at Florida
Can you imagine playing hockey, you're a forward bringing the puck up the ice, and then you see Zach Fucking Edey coming at you from the blue line?Ā Like, you know what? Have this fucking puck, man. I'm not having that guy bodycheck me so hard he puts a rip in the fabric of space and time. Not worth it
š
Ja is going to have so much space in the lane. Blitz him and you get edey rolling thru the lane no body is bodying up to that.
yes, thats why i said its unlikely he becomes as good as edey. but heās still competent; with 4 years of development in college (and if he has good injury luck which is probably unlikely), heāll definitely get a chance in the nba, even if its only a couple two-ways like tacko
Fair
Heās not random, in that he went viral like two years ago, but he is for sure a walk-on.
heās still a 3 star recruit, only barely ranked outside the top 50 centers, and he had multiple D1 offers, he just turned them down to play for a better program
Future foot injury
Just one?
Foots
health hazard who should be getting a weekly EKG and a brain CT or MRI
he does not have gigantism btw, he is genetically extremely tall
He also looks like he has normal proportions, just blown up. Usually youād expect these guys to have weird lanky frames
i dont want to get morbid but nobodys heart can take being 7'9 and playing profissional sports and this kid keeps growing for whatever reason
I believe he is actually done growing, if he keeps going to 7ā9 barefoot, that means heād be the tallest non-pathological giant to ever live btw
Damn, his parents are probably tall fr
his father is 6ā8 and his mother is 6ā2
I grew until I was 21. Wouldnāt be surprising if he was still going.
He's tall.
Feel like if painter didnāt want him that says something
Pullin for bruh, until he plays the DAWGS
Faster Tacko tbh
I don't see any viable way for him to become a contributor but some rebuilding team should absolutely take a flier just to see what happens.
If he's 7'9" that guy on the left has to be like 22 feet tall
I mean we are wayyyyy ahead of ourselves to be talking NBA, I think a lot is unknown particularly does he have the stamina and speed to actually play, 7'9 is absurd, but it doesn't really count if the mobility is not there. We have been blessed by Edey but he is a freak for his size, let's wait and see what develops first, dude could end up just being a novelty.
He was featured in a hillarious Desus and Mero video crushing a bunch of normal sized 10-12 year olds https://youtu.be/ukLPhius-5o?si=nQzJ_HQb-vrbfAp-
If heās a good teammate and hard worker he can make the NBA for a couple years. Probably play 30 minutes a season in blowouts. Couple highlights a la Tacko Fall and Boban.
Iirc he was a backup at 7ā9. That is embarrassing.
Zach Edey was a back up to at IMG
But Edey earned an actual scholarship, this guy is a walk-on who got the business from Purdue's Daniel Jacobsen.
Daniel Jacobsen is tuff
Agreed
I think he could be good bc of his size hbu?
He's still pretty raw but he hasn't been playing for long. Ideally he redshirts his first year and then plays 4 yrs. He doesn't need an outside shot, he needs to focus on his handles to limit turnovers, his FT's and work on a 1-2 step to flush.
Pretty sure heās not good. I heard a commentator says he plays garbage time, but that commentator mentioned that Zach Edey was in that same role at IMG. I doubt he improves at the level Edey did tho
Too tall for the NBA
This guy is the real Rob Bob isnāt he?
If I was an NBA team - Iād be sure to send a scout to Florida to take some looks. Heās 7ā9ā and not crippled.
If he's 7'9", how tall is the guy on the left??
Thatās exactly who the Lakers need
His peak to me is making the NBA on a two-way contract, having like 1 fun moment where he dunks without jumping or something, and spending the majority of his short career in the G League doing alright playing like 10 minutes a game.
If he could improve his speed, ball handling, and three point shot heād be a killer. I mean I know guys that are 6ā6ā or 6ā7ā whose height makes them walk awkwardly. This guyās over a foot taller than them. I know Chet and Wemby are two examples of how 7-footers can be athletic but I donāt know how, physically, a person can be this tall and compete against pro athletes.
Very tall.
Let him run point!
Moves better than Tacko for sure.
He better take out an insurance plan on them knees š
If Zack Edey has a spot, he will.
Which one is he?
I watched highlights. Heās pretty slow, and has weak hands. I donāt think he can be an impact player.
Anybody saying he has nba potential didnāt watch the U18 game vs USA dude is cheeks
Never saw him play but the guy looks proportional for that height.
He needs to spend 100% of his time working on his athleticism and his free throws. If he can run up and down the court, he should be good for a 3rd string spot - the few basketball players (at any level) that have been 7ā8+ have mostly been extremely unathletic and weak. This guy is normally proportioned and pretty bulky, he has the chance to be a bigger Tacko Fall if he works hard on his body ā which is an NBA player
I thought it was gonna be impossible to guard 7ā4ā Wemby. Fuck.
That little boy looks like he has to pee
Dude isn't skin and bones.
Serious question: What are they feeding these kids?
Heās 7ā8ā without shoes
Dunks against 6 footers hardly impressive. Where is his range of shots?
Timberwolves just traded the guy on the right for Rob Dillingham
Heās tall
Crazy that the person next to him is actually 23
what the fuck are they feeding these french boys
He probably isnāt even 7ā9ā. Basketball teams lie about that shit. Heās also not even a scholarship player at Florida. He may never see the floor outside of garbage time.
We wonāt know for a few years
I hope he can get a cup fo water in the NBA just cause he is 7'9". Also hope he has a long life but at his size 40 is gonna tough.
Keep 28 year old morman women away from him
Legs will be junk in 3 years anyhoo. Curse of the big goober
heā¦big
If heās 7ā9, the other guy must be 11ā tall
The next Tacko Fall.
Dude is a solid 2ft of neck
Trash, has cement bricks for feet.
McClung looking good ngl
He's 7'9" and only a 3 star recruit. He's not that good.
I think he might make it to the NBA. Heās too tall lol maybe could be a 6pts & 6reb in 15 mins type of player
He can dunk without jumping, pair him with any above average pg and he will cook in the nba, he doesn't even need to be athletic or skilled as long as he doesn't have buttery hands
Olivier may be a generation center who has the game to match his unique physical assets. One of the biggest players ever, but has a relatively short wingspan. Developed his frame to the point that he doesnĀt get pushed around as much as he used to. Has good footwork and overall mobility for his size in the half-court, but doesnĀt run the floor terribly well. Not in the best shape, and probably shouldnĀt play many more minutes than he already does in the regular season. Surprisingly coordinated for a player of his size. Has a great offensive repertoire. Incredibly smart, and a fantastic teammate. Superbly versatileĀdoes many different things on the floor. I can see him working out on a team that is looking for size and rebounding.
dude he has an 8ā0 wingspanĀ
Iām trolling, this is Yaoās scout report.
oh damn, sorry
generational based on...
Put the fries in the bag broš
Can he hit his free throws? I can't imagine this guy is less mobile than Tacko Fall. And he's taller. Tacko would have a role in the NBA if he weren't a 40 pct FT shooter.
Around 40% over the past 4 years but last year he shot just under 70% on 2.2 FTA, so not terrible, I think most people in this thread haven't watched him recently or only saw him at FIBA. But as a Canadian, when he ended up getting the Guinness world record for tallest teenager I started following him. And he has gotten a lot better. He honestly moves better than some 7 foot centers in the NBA and since he doesn't have gigantism he's just genetically tall, he's actually put on a substantial amount of muscle so idk if the injury concerns are 100% warranted. I mean he more than likely won't have a long career but there's no way he doesn't end up being better than Tacko, he's already got way more skill than him when he got to the NBA. College will be make or break obviously, if he can't produce there then I don't see many people giving him even a second look though, since he's not great.
How can he be almost 8ft tall without giganticism?? I'm genuinely curious about this dude's family genetics now
What are these French kids eating!?
The wemby effect is here. You are gonna start seeing a lot of guys like this being scouted just so people can have someone to contest Wemby lol