Strengths: Ajinca was an important factor in his team reaching the semifinals of the French Cup (Semaine des As), not solely due to his 7 blocks and several others redirected, but on offense as well, he created his share of mayhem … A very agile and mobile 7 footer with great athleticism and long arms, able to run the floor very well and shows solid passing ability in the process … Even in the open court, he enjoys an accurate awareness … Also a good shot blocker who takes pride on defense, using his available tools (quick feet), although he needs to improve his concentration and toughness in defensive 1 on 1 situations … His rebounding is quite good, often pursuing offensive boards, but needs to box out a bit better on defense. Also decent hands and okay shooting stroke from 15 feet and in.

Weaknesses: Should set better picks to exploit more pick and roll situations. Nonetheless hes a guy who gives a strong effort and plays with intensity … Apart from that, his balance is just okay and he doesnt always enjoy a soft touch near the basket … Draws few fouls in general and still lacking lot of game knowledge (experience)… His strength has shown improvement in the past year but remains a big hurdle for him. He moves very well for a player his size, but there are questions about how additional weight will affect his mobility …

Outlook: With still 2 years left until his final draft year (2010), he still has a big margin to become a sure first rounder. However his situation with his actual team in France and the limited minutes hes getting, might push him to decide to leave his name in the draft earlier. Right now hes surely not ready yet to play with any NBA team, so NBDL or Europe would be his options in that case. But his chances appear pretty good to land in the first round this season should he decide to go for it …

Scouted @: 7-10/02/2008 Semaine des As (French Cup), Toulon, France

Strengths: Extraordinarily long and athletic bigman Incredible basketball body, the kid was born to play the game Has excellent hands catching the ball or grabbing rebounds Good fundamentals and understanding of the game Has a 7-6 wingspan which makes him a very good shot blocker Great shooter, very adept shot and has range out to 3 point Knows when to shoot or pass and even displays a decent crossover Runs the floor very well Excellent body control going up for ally oops and going to the basket Has good strength and balance considering how skinny he is, especially his legs Good free throw shooter Should be able to jump much higher when he puts on more body strength Good basketball disposition, doesn’t get out of control or frustrated easily, makes good decisions passing the ball and has good vision Has decent ball handling ability and even likes to take the ball coast to caost, but his future is as a post man A good kid with a great personality, very smart, but must continue to improve especially his body and stay hungry

Weaknesses: Extremely skinny, must add around 30-40 pounds He is easily outmuscled by players with above average strength Could suffer the same fate as Jonathan Bender if he is not able to add weight and settles for playing outside too much, but he does show a willingness to mix it up inside, and his upper body shows signs that he can put on a good amount of weight Still very young, must stay hungry and not buy into his own hype Must develop better post skills Back to the basket game must be developed

Notes: Pronounced: Al-ex-i A-Jin-Sa Plans on staying in Europe and turning pro before entering the NBA. His father was a wrestler from the French Islands, his mother is from France.