NBA Comparison: James Augustine

Strengths: Intriguing size/mobility combination, long arms and legs with remarkable smoothness and quickness in running the floor … He’s really explosive, with a good vertical with solid intimidation and defensive skills, thanks to his timing and instincts … What impresses most about him is his great stamina, and energy showing a blue collar attitude to hustle on both ends of the floor … Most of his points come from second chance opportunities, put backs and offensive rebounds … Furthermore he has shown intriguing potential since he’s also able to hit outside the painted area in spot up situations, with an impressive range (more than 40% from 3 points thus far in the season in ProA) … In a modern basketball era seeking mobility and versatility he could become a valued asset …

Weaknesses: While a good athlete with size, his skill level and feel for the game are very raw … He’s still skinny and could struggle to battle in the paint … His game is mainly based on facing/crashing the basket, lacking any real post moves … His thin frame sometimes leads to loss of balance when the level of physicality increases … Raw potential, his game is really energetic and instinctive, but he has to polish his skillset, work on fundamentals, positioning and decision making skills … He has to work on the controlled phase of the game, learning how to optimize spacing and timing … Furthermore despite showing intriguing potential his shot needs to add consistency, working on mechanics and to improve from the free throw line (less than 70% thus far in French ProA) …

Notes: 8.7 pts 5.5 rbs per game at FIBA U20 last summer. Played also 2013 FIbaU18 and 2012 FibaU17. He averaged 9 points and 5.5 rebounds per game thus far in French ProA with Le Mans.

Davide Bortoluzzi 3/30/16