In the world of basketball, there are always players who catch the eye with their natural talent and potential to become stars in the future. One such player is Noa Essengue, a 6-9 forward with a fluid handle, dynamic finishing package, and highly versatile defense. At just 18 years old, he has the potential to be a force in the NBA, but his long-term upside hinges on his ability to develop a reliable jump shot. If he can't make it click, his defense will need to reach a level that prevents coaches from keeping him off the floor.
Strengths:
- Fluid Athleticism: Essengue looks like an NBA player with enormous arms and graceful movements on the floor. Whether he's using an off-ball screen to slingshot toward the basket or sprinting in transition to ready for a lob dunk, he's a natural athlete.
- Drive Game: He's a natural with the ball in his hands, using spin moves, euro-steps, and other fluid maneuvers to get into the paint. There, he can take off-balanced, wrong-footed layups and use either hand, or get flashy with Giannis-style scoop layups to score. And if he has room to leap, he can dunk loudly. All of these skills give him major face-up scoring potential.
- Shooting Progress: Over three consecutive years, he's gone from a hackable nonshooter to a player making 24.4% of his 3s and 70.1% of his free throws. His form looks smooth, and he has good touch on layups and floaters near the basket. Maybe his upward trajectory continues in the years to come.
- Passing: Essengue has a strong feel for the game. He pings the ball around the floor with decisive passes within the flow of the offense. He shows creativity with interior wrap-arounds and over-the-head passes out of the post to shooters across the court.
- Versatile Defense: A multi-positional defender who can switch onto smaller, quicker players or hold his own against larger ones. He can also be plugged into different positions, whether he needs to chase someone off screens and close out on shooters or focus on offering help defense at the rim. He's extremely active off-ball, showing strong focus rotating at the rim or getting his long arms in the passing lanes to rack up deflections.
Concerns:
- Shooting: He has made progress but still hasn't proven he can be an effective floor spacer. Developing into a reliable shooter would unlock so many of his talents and be the key to his future.
- Strength: He needs to fill out his lean frame, which would make him even more of a threat scoring at the rim and further enhance his defensive versatility. As of now, he can get overpowered on defense or get forced to take layups shying away from contact.
- Fundamentals: He drives into traffic too often, which shows how his game still lacks polish. Unsurprising considering his youth, but an area that he needs to address in the years to come.
Overall, Noa Essengue is a player with immense potential who is still developing his skills and improving every year. With continued work on his shooting and strength, he could become a dominant force in the NBA in the years to come. Keep an eye on this young talent as he continues to rise up the ranks and make a name for himself in the world of basketball.
