artem-klimenko-hd.jpg

12 - Artem Klimenko

7-0, 245 Center
Russia International
Birthday
01/10/94 (30.2 yrs)
Hometown
Moscow, Russia
International Team
Avtodor
Statistics
Athleticism
7
Size
9
Defense
8
Strength
7
Quickness
6
Leadership
7
Jump Shot
8
NBA Ready
6
Rebounding
7
Potential
8
Post Skills
7
Intangibles
6

NBA Comparison: Uwe Blab

Strengths: As a 7-1 big man, he has perfect size for the center position, combined with great coordination, mobility and good athleticism by European standards …7’4” wingspan and 9’4” standing reach gives him tremendous size, with a frame that could easily allow him to add muscle without losing balance or mobility … He has a good footwork and lateral speed, which makes him really effective in Pick and Roll situations on both ends of the court … Furthermore his mobility makes him really effective in the open court, being an effective offensive weapon both on primary and secondary transition situations … He has soft hands (ambidextrous) and range also with hook shot, and the ability to hit in catch and shoot situations even from a range … Overall he has remarkable shooting skills for a big man, showing the ability even with the jumper and the floater from outside the paint … Good game comprehension for his age, he’s able to use cuts and screens to receive the ball with good timing in the painted area … With his size and instincts, he’s also a good offensive rebounder … Defensively, his lateral mobility allows him to guard wing players after the switch during pick and roll, granting his team defensive flexibility …

Weaknesses: He’s still skinny even if he has worked on his muscular structure, there’s still room for improvement, he’ll definitely struggle against standard NBA big man … He lacks elite explosiveness and this affects his offensive effectiveness, with most of his game is below the rim, despite his elite size and length … Even with soft hands, his shooting mechanics are not too efficient, lacking fluidity and quickness on his release …  He still needs to work on fundamentals in terms of boxing out, rebounding and defending the low-post, where he struggles the most due to his lack of physical strength, being often bounced back by stronger opponents … He lacks balance and solid moves in post position, which leads to frequent turnovers (travelling violations, offensive fouls) during half-court game he’s called to play in sets starting from the painted area … He’s just an average shot-blocker and defensive rebounder … Compared with his height, the intimidation he brings could be much better … The level of competition he’s currently facing (Russian Superleague) is really low, he should be tested at a higher level of competition … The cultural and character features of the prototypical Russian players clash with USA sports environment, and the historical track record is not encouraging from this standpoint (Monia, Khryapa, Korolev) …

Notes: He became known to scouts and insiders during 2012 Adidas Eurocamp, when he was named Most Valuable Defensive Player, despite being one of the youngest players of the event … That was his sole international experience since was never called up with Russian youth national teams … He’s averaging 13.5 points 6.7 rebounds and 0.8 blocked shots thus far in Russian Superleague …

Davide Bortoluzzi 5/14/14
 

Facebooktwitterredditmail