NBA Compariosion: Lior Eliyahu

Strengths: A natural small forward, but can also play with his back to the basket, thanks to his physical strength ... He’s an agile player with skills in various parts of the game: he can shoot, dribble and also play off the ball adroitly .... Physically is strong and athletic, so he can be a good rebounder for the position ... He’s very young and lacks experience at a high level, but on the court he shows the composure and confidence of a veteran ...

Weaknesses: His first step is not a strength. On defense he can struggle in the post when he plays power forward, and on the perimeter with the quickness of small forwards ... He has to improve his efficiency on free throws and develop the range and consistency to shoot behind the arc ...

Notes: An underrated player on the European scene: last year at Valencia (Spain), he didn’t get a chance to play and it dropped him off the radar ... This season he’s playing very well in Belgacom Charleroi, a Belgian team that is in Euroleague ... 2011/12 is the first season that he has played important minutes ...

Giovanni Conte 12/15/11