Atlanta Hawks: Ranking the Top 8 Lottery Picks By Best Fit
By Chris Guest
Mohamed Bamba – Texas
Mohamed Bamba’s immense 7’9” wingspan is certainly incredible, and if he develops his basketball IQ, he could be a terrifying defensive anchor at the five, similar to modern terrors such as Anthony Davis, Rudy Gobert or Joel Embiid. The Hawks have not had an extremely athletic, rebound-hound, defensive-minded center since Kevin Willis or Dikembe Mutombo prowled the middle in the 90s.
However, the direction of the modern NBA is not towards the middle but rather to the perimeter, where there will be concerns about Bamba’s ability to defend in space when switched onto smaller guards and wings.
He has also not shown much of a jump shot, which is almost requisite for bigs in today’s league. The fit with Atlanta’s John Collins, who is surely one of the only untouchables on the Hawks roster, is also questionable.
Though tantalizing, the fit might not work as well as other players, so Bamba should be lower on the Hawks’ draft board on June 15.