NBA Draft 2019: 5 targets for the Charlotte Hornets

1. Sekou Doumbouya, Forward, Limoges CSP

Sekou Doumbouya, an incredibly mobile 6-foot-9 forward playing in France’s pro league is one of the bigger unknowns at this point. He’ll be just 18 at the beginning of next season and hasn’t gotten anywhere close to the visibility of many top college prospects. On paper, he’s a hyper athletic combo-forward who can defend every and make an offensive impact with his speed in the open court and his ability to explode to the basket in the halfcourt. The fact that’s he also looks like a comfortable 3-point shooter certainly helps as well.

Of course, all that is on paper. On the court, he struggles mightily with awareness and decision-making and is a long ways away from figuring out how to consistently apply his natural talents to playing impact basketball. Also, as The Stepien’s Mike Gribanov pointed out, there are concerns about his lack of development to this point.

"Yet watching him I still saw him make the same mistakes that he made when he played at ANGT and FIBA U18 as a 15 year-old. His slow rate of improvement has been severely disappointing to those who had hoped he would become the next great young European player after his impressive production in the aforementioned events."

Going with a more established pick like Langford or Reddish might be more appealing to Kemba Walker, but the Hornets have had a consistent pattern of taking lower-upside picks in the draft and haven’t had much to show for it. If they’re ready to take a swing for the fences, an unconventional pick of Doumbouya or Porter could pay big dividends.