Dream Fit: Magic, Pelicans, Heat

Overall Grade: 59.6

Projected Position: PG

Strengths:

• Good defensive rotation in the paint

• OK physicality with bigs, enough to deny the ball

• Good body control to keep defenders on his back hip when he gains position

• Good pick & roll navigation reading how the center commits & good timing on lobs or dump offs

• Good speed & bend navigating screens

• Good timing on strip attempts and intercepting passes

• Great burst to get open on drives or gain positioning

• Great feel for where teammates are

• Elite lateral mobility, change of direction, hip flipping and change of speed

• Creative handle & great ability to split defenders

• Good accuracy on fullcourt transition passes

• Tight burst & good angles to beat defenders

• Keeps his cool & can maintain his handle through physicality

• Good elevation on drives & maintains position through contact

• Good mirroring when defending drives

• Quick pass outs when doubled or trapped

• Good feel on drives for defenders collapsing

Weaknesses:

• Can be reckless with his handle & suceptible to losing his handle accidentally of his leg or foot

• Can dribble to a fault leading him to be in trap situations he can't pass out of

• Exposes the ball too much on drives & if defenders stay with him he often gets blocked

• Can get caught ball watching

• Watches rebounds near him without going for it

• Low effiency & 3pt%

• Lack of physicality when defending drives

• Doesn't affect shots on contests

• At times rotates to the low man & doesn't adjust to the ball crossing sides of the court leading to long closeouts & open shots

Scouting Report: Nolan Traoré

Position: Point Guard
Height/Weight: 6'3", 175 lbs
Team: Saint-Quentin Basket-Ball (LNB Pro A, France)

Draft Projection: late first round pick in the 2025 NBA Draft

Overview:
Nolan Traoré is a French point guard with exceptional speed and playmaking ability. Known for his explosiveness and creativity, Traoré has the tools to thrive in the NBA. His ability to manipulate defenses with his speed and ball-handling makes him a standout prospect, though he still has areas to refine.

Strengths:

• Elite Speed: Traoré is one of the fastest players in his draft class, capable of going coast-to-coast in a flash.

• Playmaking: His court vision and passing ability allow him to create opportunities for teammates, especially in pick-and-roll situations.

• Ball-Handling: Keeps the ball on a string with crossovers, hesitations, and improvisation, making him tough to defend.

• Scoring at the Rim: Excels at attacking the basket and finishing acrobatically.

• Upside: His athletic gifts and flashes of brilliance suggest significant potential for growth.

Areas for Improvement:

• Shooting Consistency: Traoré struggles with consistency from deep and mid-range, with shooting percentages that need improvement.

• Decision-Making: Prone to turnovers and forcing tough shots, he needs to refine his choices under pressure.

• Defense: Lacks focus and intensity on the defensive end, despite his physical tools.

Player Comparisons:

• Dejounte Murray: For his speed, ball-handling, and playmaking ability.

• Scoot Henderson: For his explosiveness and potential as a dynamic guard.

• Lonzo Ball: For his passing IQ and ability to push the pace.

Summary:
Nolan Traoré is a dynamic point guard with the potential to be a game-changer at the next level. His speed, playmaking, and creativity make him an exciting prospect, though his shooting and decision-making will determine his ceiling in the NBA.

NOLAN TRAORE

Position/Archetype: Old School Speed Demon Point Guard

College: (Pro) Saint Quentin - France

Pros:

• First Step and General Speed: Very speedy and what contributes to is greatest strengths in his point guard ability that we will get to. Not a lot of people have the first step that Traore has and how quickly he can accelerate up the court and bursting round a screen. Speed Demon.

• Transition Decision Making and Production: A 70th Percentile Transition player and it honestly feels quite low, he has the ability to pick up that ball from defence and just outpace everyone in front of him and players struggle to stop him without initiating contact which can lead to some nice and 1 finishes. He also has great passing decision making finding a trailing man for an open three or finding the man running into the lane for open shots.

• Pick And Roll handling: 63rd percentile in pick and roll ball handling, not crazy again but it's the instincts and tools of the guy that stick out to me. Being able to run the pick and roll will be great for him day 1. Do I think he can run a NBA offence day? not at all, but I can see him running a lot as a player in the second rotation who is smart enough and has the vision as a playmaker.

• Length: Quick stop off here, just heard he has a 6'8 wingspan which is great for someone who's 6'4 so maybe we can see more use of those long arms.

• Catch and Shoot 3 ball: 71st percentile which is quite surprising for someone as a low as Nolan Traore in general 3pt shooting but he does average a very good number of the catch and I think in general we can see him use this more to his advantage as someone who isn't a bad off ball mover he can be used alongside someone bigger who can add some extra playmaking to utilise this.

• Pro Experience: sometime this gets overrate but I think in this example it shows off how tough Nolan has had it and what this can do for him. The LNB Pro A is a great league and a very difficult one where he is playing with people with NBA experience to some level as well as some very good young talent within the nation. Traore being a starter at 18 and recently turning 19 having a 30%USG is an extremely daunting task for the teen. No Wonder he had a somewhat disappointing year. I think there's a lot he will have gained being a pro for this last year with these teammates and playing in the system where he is trusted on ball. Not a lot of damage can be done that way.

Cons:

• Shot Selection: One of my things with Traore is he is too willing to just take a tough pull up shot wether thats from three or some crazy stepback mid range or three and I know why because he can make space and thats something he will want to show to be the main guy on a team that eh can be trusted down the stretch to make tough shots but it really hit him and he did it on horror efficiency.

• Shot Map: He shoots really bad percentages all across the court wether at the rim or the three, at certain spots he has done pretty well but usually at lower volume and as I said earlier a lot is him taking bad looks and shots he makes at a low efficiency but if he can't develop and learn from this year its not gonna get easier in the NBA so he needs to work on scoring specifically in the half court but also just being a smarter decision maker as a scorer.

• On Ball Defence: Not great at all on ball, does he have energy? sure and he's trying but he gets shoved he doesn't keep his body in front of his man consistently and playing in the French league its gonna be tougher playing seasoned players with large bags who are stronger physically so we can take it with a pinch of salt but i'm definitely somewhat worried that he is maybe too skinny or cant keep up laterally

• Some turnover notes: nothing that scares me at all, isn't a perfect Ast/To ratio but he doesn't commit a large number of turnovers he does have some issues but mostly just forces some stuff so im feeling fine about it.

NBA Pro Comp: Some type of Tony Parker with worse shooting, Deron Williams?

Projection: I think to raise that floor he haas to become a more reasonable on ball defender so if he puts some wight on he will find long term backup roles in a rotation, but he has a game that can definitely translate into a future starter too.

CHEESE FINAL BOARD RANKING: (coming soon)

https://youtu.be/1aaaDQgeZPw?si=JaOdGmaXydKsSnTO

Draft Range: Mid-Late 1st

Projected NBA rookie role:

Projected NBA position: Lead Guard

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

Strengths:

Weakness:

Shades of/comp:

Best outcome:

mid outcome:

worst outcome:

Traore is a quick, shifty point guard who may have the highest ceiling of any guard in the draft. He’s the fastest player in this class and is able to go coast-to-coast with ease. With NBA spacing he could thrive getting downhill in the pick-and-roll to draw defenses and accentuate his playmaking. He's got the ball on a string with crossovers, hesitations and improvises off the dribble. If he’s able to develop a knockdown jumper, he could be tough to stop because of his ways to create separation. For now, he’s at his best when he’s attacking the basket to score around the rim with his craftiness. He's a great passer, and if he can cut down on his careless turnovers, he has serious playmaking potential. He goes through stretches where he gets hot, then others where he barely hits a jumper. His mechanics don’t seem to be an issue, but he's making only 28.2% of his 3s. However, he’s making 75.6% of his free throws in his professional career overseas. Even though it hasn’t translated to other areas on the floor, it’s at least an indication that there’s something there. He lacks focus, intensity and awareness defensively, which he will have to improve upon if he wants to become an NBA lead guard. Overall, he's a great shot creator and gets downhill with ease, but he has to improve his shot and on defense.

NBA Comps: DeJounte Murray, Scoot Henderson

Comp: Anthony Black/Goran Dragic

• one of the most talented passers and on-ball playmakers in the draft

• lightning quick; likes to drive to the basket and create advantages with his speed

• good height/length and athleticism for a point guard

• good finishing bag and touch; can finish over length and utilizes the floater well

• some turnover issues, doesn’t handle contact particularly well

• a jumper with good form and solid potential, though really struggled with efficiency this year

• active defender with good length and positioning at the point of attack; still susceptible to over-gambling. has really high potential on that end of the floor

Traoré oozes upside with his size, blazing speed, and shiftiness off the bounce. But he’s an inefficient scorer all over the floor who needs to improve his erratic decision-making to prove he’s worth the big swing.

Pros:

Speed

Shot creation

Playmaking

Shooting upside

Cons:

Decision making

Shooting consistency

Defense

Comparisons: Dejounte Murray, Scoot Henderson

(pre 1/2) TBC

Nolan Traore has has some serious ups and downs in his pre draft year, but lucky for him he had an "up" most recently.

I should start by saying I think judging a guard in a pro league by shooting efficiency is misleading.

Traore is 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. Up there as maybe the best playmaker in the draft.

Super fast, even with the ball in his hands. Might be the fastest up and down the court in this draft.

Defensively nothing special, and has gotten steamrolled defending bigger players on drives. Skinny as of right now. Gets some deflections with his pass vision.

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

Draws fouls at a high rate and is a solid finisher.

Somehow led his league in blocks?? This has to be some sort of weird exception thing but according to basketball reference he led the LNB Pro A in both BPG (0.7) and total blocks (20). IDK

Shooting has steadily improved over time, and he shot over 43% from 3 over his last 14 games (18/1 - 9/5).

Comp: Scoot Henderson without the explosion