NBA Comparison: Mark West/Olumide Oyedeji

Strengths:  Hulking bigman who has added a great deal of muscle in the past year and a half … Shows nice potential due to his combination of strength and athleticism … Explosive post player with ideal strength and toughness to play inside … Very aggressive around the rim, known for making ferocious dunks … Big, soft hands allow him to grab boards with ease … Strong rebounder with a willingness to bang inside … Huge frame with wide shoulders and thick legs. Not many players with his girth have the type of athleticism he possesses  … Has shown some development in his offensive game adding a turn around hook shot and better feel in the post … Still has a ways to go but his development in the past year gives him some offensive hope … Does a solid job of playing “within” himself. Knows his role as an interior force and doesn’t attempt to face the basket or play outside his comfort zone …

Weaknesses:  While still raw to the game of basketball and showing a lot of promise, potential doesn’t always equate to improvement … Had a late season knee injury which has made it impossible for him to work out for teams leading up to the draft and will keep him out of the Summer League … Lacks offensive polish. Touch on his shot is just average … Averaged 6.1 ppg this season in 15.4 min per, his third playing in Pro A for Cholet  … Offensive repertoire consists of put backs and shots in close to the basket … His ability to develop a legitimate post game and become an offensive weapon is still a question mark … Mobility, while still good, has been decreased to a degree by putting on so much weight – 263 lbs … A 55% free throw shooter … Averaged 52% from the floor, too low for a player taking most of his shots close to the basket … Lacks much versatility:  face the basket, ball handling, vision and passing are all extremely raw/limited …  A decent shot blocker but nothing out of the ordinary … His huge (7-3) wingspan and leaping ability should allow him to produce more blocks but he’s not very quick off his feet and lacks great timing and instincts on blocked shots … Some feel he’s more of an undersized center than a power forward due to his skill level and foot speed …

Aran Smith 6/17/10