NBA Mock Draft 2019: The Pelicans are in the driver’s seat
. F. Limoges. Sekou Doumbouya. 9. player. 142
We finally tracked down YouTube footage of Doumbouya’s monster 34-point performance in the French Jeep Elite League against Levallois back on May 18.
Some of Doumbouya’s scoring output can be chalked up to a lucky shooting night, as pull-up 3s and other tough shots went in that typically didn’t for Doumbouya during his age-18 season overseas. However, there were some larger positives to take from the game:
- Doumbouya is a terrifying grab-and-go threat. He fights on the glass more than most lean athletes at his age against older veterans, and is deadly fast in the open court.
- Defensive reads come fairly naturally to Doumbouya, and while he can get screened out of plays because of his lack of control over his body at a young age and occasionally loses track of a play off-ball, Doumbouya rotates intelligently and made an impact in Limoges’ switch-heavy scheme with his length and physicality.
- The youngster loses his handle just about every time he drives into traffic, which leads to turnovers and broken plays. Doumbouya has the strength and dribble moves to make plays in the open court and attack closeouts but is nowhere near a reliable shot creator at this point.
- People already are comparing Doumbouya to Pascal Siakam because of their similar length, height and weight as well as their versatile games crafted overseas. However, one area where Doumbouya projects better than the presumptive 2019 NBA Most Improved Player is as a shooter. Doumbouya can make contested 3s off the bounce or the catch and shot 33 percent from deep in league play for Limoges this season.
By drafting Doumbouya, the Wizards would form the faint outline of an imposing team with size and playmaking at multiple positions. They already have Troy Brown Jr., their first-round pick last year, as well as Bradley Beal. While Washington is praying Masai Ujiri accepts the franchise’s offer to become part owner as well as oversee basketball operations, they can begin to create an identity on Thursday night by drafting Doumbouya.