NBA Comparison: Donatas Motiejunas/Nikola Mirotic

Strengths: Versatile combo forward, who can do just about everything on offense … Good basketball I.Q… Acceptable size to play either forward position… Good athlete, light on his feet … Has nice jumping ability off two feet when he has time to gather … He moves smoothly on the court and things look to come natural to him… Nice cordination and body control for his size and age … Mobile, new generation big, who can run the floor with the best of them … Very good on the open floor … Doesn’t have an explosive first step, but it’s quick enough to help him attack his opponent … Can play above the rim… He has a natural thin frame, but his shoulders are wide enough and can fill out his body nicely … Has the talent and skillset to become an In-and-Out threat on offense… Can either Face Up or Post up his opponent … Has the talent and the upside to become a threat on either Pick and Roll or Pick and Pop situation … Nice looking jump shot… Has nice range in his shot, going all the way to the 3-point line … Above average in Spot Up situations and improving… Can put the ball on the floor and attack closeouts … Likes to finish plays strong at the rim with dunks … Doesn’t shy away from contact and isn’t afraid to go against big bodies in the paint … Possesses very good footwork in the post and has a nice post up game, with some spin and up and under moves … Moves well without the ball, finding the open space on the opponent’s defense … He handles the ball like a wing and has a variety of dribble moves (reverse, behind the back dribble) well beyond the level of a typical power forward … Good rebounder, who attacks the offensive boards… Has nice court vision and makes some good passes … Better passer than most people think… His basketball I.Q. helps him on defense, since he knows just where to stand, anticipanting plays … He has the talent
and the instinct to be an acceptable defender when he is motivated and focused … Has a solid standing reach (8-11 feet) despite short wingspan …

Weaknesses: Motor is questionable, can come and go, even during the same game … Has stretches where he just disappears from the game… Can easily lose concentration… He gives the impression that leaves something to be desired because of his incosistency … Good, but not an elite athlete …Needs to continue bulking up his body… Average length and wingspan (measured at just 6-10.5 feet)  … Has a nice bounce, but when he doesn’t have room to gather he looks limited against athletic players … Incosistent shooter… His shooting stroke looks nice, but the truth is that he hasn’t really shot the ball well in his career … He doesn’t shy away from
contact, but his body isn’t really ready to withstand it just yet … Has problems against physical defenders and he even had problems at the junior level against less physical opponents … He settles for bad shoots when he has to go against physical defenders… Occasionally he just stands still on the perimeter waiting, not doing anything … Decision making can be iffy at times … Some of his moves on the post aren’t “clean” enough, since he can rush things … Has the tendency to go in to traffic after attacking a close out defense, giving the impression that he has decided what to do from the beginning … He can turn from either shoulder while posting up, but in reality he prefers to turn on his left shoulder, which can make his game predictable … Turnover prone, he might telegraph passes, or try passes that just aren’t there … For the time being he is not strong enough to guard power forwards and doesn’t have the necessary lateral quickness to guard wings … Bigger opponents can bully him in the post and score on him because of the difference in strength … Doesn’t always have a low stance on defense and depends too much on his athleticism … Perimeter defense is an issue, since he gets beat by quick and explosive players… Has problems guarding the Pick and Roll because of his average lateral quickness and occasionaly lethargic approach on defense…

Overall: Luka Samanic is an extremely talented combo forward … On paper he can do just about everything on the offensive end of the floor and this is the main reason there has been so much buzz around him the last couple of years … At the same time, his questionable motor is probably the biggest concern … If he manages to stay motivated and focused, the future could be bright for him, since he has all the necessary tools to become a very good player …

Notes: Measured 6′ 9.5” barefoot,  6′ 11” in shoes, 227.2 lbs,  6′ 10.5” wingspan, and 8′ 11” standing reach at the 2019 NBA Draft Combine …

Stefanos Makris 5/30/19