NBA Comparison: Boban Marjanovic

Strengths: His immense height is a great thing in itself … His 8’4 wingspan allows him to alter and block shots at the rim … He’s averaged over two blocks per game during his four years in college … Against Zion Willamson, he demonstrated his potential to be an elite rim protector … He’s a powerful finisher in the paint area … He is an adequate scorer in the post … He has very good hands … He’s a solid rebounder, grabbing almost 8 rebounds per game during his college career … He’s a good defensive player and he’ll improve on that as he gains experience in the NBA … He has pretty good mobility for someone of his size … He has great strength that will allow him to play the center position effectively … Measured at 7’7, (7’5 barefoot) he will be tied for tallest player in NBA history with Gheorghe Muresan … His mobility and strength showed steady progress throughout his college career …

Weaknesses: His size will make him a target to attack on the perimeter … In pick and rolls he will want to drop back into the paint to protect the rim, but with guards ability to shoot nowadays, he can’t do that … He doesn’t have the lateral quickness to defend quicker guards on the perimeter … When teams go small, he won’t be able to stay on the floor … He is a poor free throw shooter, he shot only 43% from the line for his college career … He is a huge liability in close games … For his size he doesn’t dominate on the glass like he should … There are times where he gets muscled out of rebounds by way smaller players … He has almost no range outside of the paint area … In the league today where everyone is expected to be a floor spacer, he needs to work on his shot … He will probably be able to play no more then about 20 minutes a night … There have been concerns about his conditioning … Will turn 24 this year …

Outlook: Tacko Falls size and imprved skillset will likely result in a team taking a chance on him … He’s ahad workouts with a few teams … He is projected to be a second round pick … He probably won’t be much more than a rim protector who can get score occasionally in the post … He will need to improve on his conditioning to handle NBA level speed, quickness and competition …

Notes: He was born and raised in Dakar, Senegal … He moved to the United States when he was 16 … He has a size 22 shoe … Fall trained with Hakeem Olajuwon at the Houston Rockets training camp … His wingspan is a record 8’4, and he can legitimately dunk without leaving his feet from the ground …

Zachary Smith 6/11/19

Strengths: Obvious strength is his unmatchable measurables 7’6” with an 8’2” wingspan … Smart player … Uses an array a post moves, shows clear development of different moves and a level of comfort using them in games … Strong with the ball … Keeps the ball high, rarely swings it down low into the reach of his defender… Fall learns quickly, reads pick and roll well on defense … Good positioning on offense … Has a lot of upside if he can get stronger and continue to develop his post moves …

Weaknesses: Poor free throw shooter at 43.2% for the college career … Lacks mobility … Not a great finisher if he can’t get to the dunk … Is an older player at 23 years old … Lacks strength compared to his height… Had a shoulder injury his junior year … Not used as a screen and roll player as much in college … Could improve his rebounding (7.7 per game in his career) and relies on his height rather than positioning to collect rebounds … Not very athletic … Is not used to being guarded consistently by NBA center body types who are both tall and strong …

Outlook: Tacko Fall is a rare player. While his skills do not impress all that much, his 7’6” frame and 8’2”
wingspan should intrigue any team with a second-round draft pick. He could be a mid to late second rounder, but it is hard to say when, or if, a team will take a chance of the Senegalese center. Whether or not he gets drafted, he wouldn’t be a burden on an NBA roster solely based off his length and the defensive abilities that come with it. However, it could be a few years before he develops his game to the point where he is getting significant minutes in the NBA …

Notes: Graduate of UCF, majored in computer science … Born in Dakar, Senegal … Moved to US at age 16
and finished his high school career at Liberty Christian Prep in Florida … Played 4 years at UCF, but his
junior season was cut short by a shoulder injury … Averaged 10.1 PPG, 7.7 RPG and 2.4 BPG in his college
career … Was invited to the NBA combine after being invited to the NBA G League Elite Camp in May …

Ben Yokoyama 6/12/19