Last Ranking: 7

Trend: DOWN

Projected NBA rookie role:

Projected NBA position:

Projected Rookie Statline (Pts, Reb, Ast, Blk/Stl):

Strengths:

Weakness:

Shades of/comp:

Best outcome:

mid outcome:

worst outcome:

Shifty and quick point guard who can really distribute the ball. Good defender, especially on-ball. His jumper has gotten better but still needs to improve his scoring tendencies if he wants to be a consistent starter in the NBA.

NBA Comp: DeJounte Murray

Projected draft range:

Projected NBA rookie role:

Projected NBA position:

Projected Rookie Statline:

Strengths:

Weakness:

Shades of/comp:

Streaky and he will only be a ball handler so the risk is high. High upside still. Difficult to evaluate completely because he had incredible performances in youth categories and he struggles in a pro-setting in France.

NBA comparaison : Tony Parker/Ramon Sessions

Prospect Tier:

Prospect Tags:

Strengths:

Weaknesses:

Comps:

Best Case:

Worst Case:

Games Scouted:

(pre 1/2) TBC

I get it, he's a strong PG and he's 6'4". He's got some shifty-ness to him. His jumper is even getting better! But...

He's terribly inconsistent. He's had games where he was an absolute net negative. His shot selection has baffled me. If his scoring is really unreliable, then all that's left is passing.

Although, when he passes, this often work out. He finds where the ball needs to go far before he passes it. You can see he knows how to get the ball moving and how to really start plays, he doesn't just ditch it to the first guy who gets some space.

He's played with guys older and bigger than him, and has managed to play up to their level.

System point guard, fundamentally sound. Does everything, most sure role player in the draft, but not an incredible ceiling.

Ceiling: Tony Parker

Floor: Patty Mills

To start the year, Nolan Traore was in top five conversations for this years best prospects, some having him as high as #2. However, since then his draft stock has taken a hit, as a result of his play in the LNB Elite, the French professional basketball league. His standout ability is his speed. He doesn't have the same quickness as a player like Donovan Mitchell, whose stop/start ability and first step immediately gets him a step on defenders. Instead, his quickness resembles that of another French point guard, that being Tony Parker. Traore received many Parker comps early on, partially due to them both being French, but also because of his quickness and speed which they can use to get by defenders, maybe not on the first step, but on each step after. This speed is not limited to the transition game, but he is also able to use it in the half court, especially in pick and roll, where he uses the space that is created as a runway. His speed is can consistently create advantages each game, which is important since his handle isn't quite good enough for him to rely on it for advantage creation.

He uses his quickness ability to put pressure on the rim and create openings for his teammates. While I wouldn't say he is an elite passer, or one of the top few of the class, I think he is a good passer and playmaker overall, and can punish help and the attention he draws from the defense. Good passer in transition, and able to hit pocket passes to the roller in pick and roll. He does have some limitations though. He doesn't always hit open shooters when they're there and his size can limit his vision and some of the passes he is able to make, especially against hedges(although he is able to beat hedges with his speed at times). At this point, he doesn't reliably hit the high level passes, which while not exactly a negative, limits his ceiling as an offensive creator, and keeps him outside of the conversation for the best passers of the draft class.

The biggest area of concern with Traore is his scoring ability and efficiency. In stark contrast with Tony Parker, Traore is a poor rim finisher. He lacks the touch and the craft that Parker possessed, and as a result is shooting 47.5% at the rim(this would put him in the 1.5th percentile in the NBA). He lacks vertical explosiveness on his finishes and struggles to finish through contact. Doesn't get to the free throw line much to make up for his poor percentages at the rim. He hasn't scored well away from the basket either. While free throw shooting is usually a pretty good indicator of NBA outside shooting for prospects(where he is shooting a decent 73.5%), his shooting from the field is a major area of concern, shooting 28.6% from midrange and 26.8% from three. He is comfortable shooting from 3pt, especially when he is open, and some of his best games of the season have been when his shot was falling. Unfortunately, most of the time it isn't falling. When you put this all together, he currently has a 46.4%, which currently puts him in the 5.9th percentile in the LNB, and would put him in the 1.5th percentile in the NBA.

On the defensive side of the ball, I don't see an outcome where he realistically provides any amount of real rim protection value. He doesn't force many turnovers, and I wouldn't say he is great at getting around screens. He can use his quickness to his advantage some defensively. He closes out quickly to shooters, can recover to the ball handler if the big man contains him well, and looks comfortable picking up full court. I don't think defense is his strength, and he will likely be worse than neutral on that side of the ball, but I think it is something you can live with if his offense comes along.

Traore's outcome in the NBA will be largely dependent on how effieciently he will be able to score the ball. Even with realistic improvements to the other aspects of his game, like his defense and playmaking, it will not be enough to turn him into a quality NBA player if he continues to score at the efficiency he is now. I think on the low end of outcomes, despite his great speed, he could be a clear negative on offense and defense, and not stay in the league long. On the high end, he could figure out his shot, finish better at the rim, improve as a scorer, which would in turn improve his playmaking, and maybe even get him to an all-star level player, even with below average defense. Many point guards struggle early in their career, and while he isn't playing NBA level competition, he is playing better competition than many of the college prospects, which will inherently make him look worse. I expect he lands somewhere in between these two extremes, though. I think his efficiency will regress to the mean to some degree, but it is hard to say that he will drastically improve his scoring and efficiency in the NBA, with better athletes and competition. With his speed though, I think he can find a role where he pressures defenses with his quickness and playmaking, and while I believe his defense will be a negative to some degree, I think he can keep from being a liability on that end.

Comparisons Low End: Jonny Flynn

High End: Tony Parker/De'Aaron Fox

Sweet Spot: Ish Smith