Relative to many of the top projected draft picks this year, Noa Essengue is this year’s “mystery man.” He’s one of a small handful of sure-fire first-round picks who didn’t play at an American college, and apart from Cooper Flagg (born three days earlier), he’s the youngest player in the draft at 18.5 years old.
And while playing in the German Bundesliga league isn’t considered the pinnacle of foreign competitive basketball, it’s worth noting that Essengue’s Ulm team faced off against the Portland Trail Blazers in a preseason game, and the score was much closer than you’d think.
In that game, the Blazers rolled out a starting lineup with Toumani Camara guarding Essengue. Noa was 17 years old when that game was played, and he scored 20 with three triples, eight rebounds, three assists, and a pair of steals.
17-year-old Noa Essengue vs Trail Blazers: 20 points, 8 boards, 3 assists, 2 steals. Momentum from U18s carrying over to Ulm. Definition of toolsy, uses every inch of size/length at both ends. Looked decisive shooting 3s last night. Already productive vs. pros at his floor. pic.twitter.com/uY1V2U0yZg
— Jonathan Wasserman (@NBADraftWass) October 17, 2024
It’s a gaudy stat line to put up at a 17-year-old, but it’s extremely impressive that this line came against Camara immediately before his All-Defense season. Outside of this instance, there’s a lot to like about Essengue’s game, including but not limited to plenty of untapped upside.
Essengue may not get to work out with any NBA teams
As of the time of writing, Ulm is still in the Bundesliga playoffs, with the remaining game lower bound at one and upper bound at six. This has the potential to run into the NBA Draft if the Finals go to a fifth game, and Essengue may very well end up working out with no NBA teams beforehand.
The NBA’s European combine has come and gone, so prospective teams only have Essengue’s Basketball Without Borders measurements on which to make their decisions. At that camp, Essengue measured at 6’9” barefoot with a 6’11” wingspan and a freakish 9’3.25” standing reach, again at 17 years of age and months before the aforementioned preseason match.
Agility and hand measurement tests yielded further reinforcements; Essengue ran the sprint drills faster than many guards and had hands as big as 7’2” center prospect Khaman Maluach. And because there’s such a disparity between the triad of length measurements, it means Essengue has very long legs.
And when you combine that with a shocking agility measurement, it sure sounds a lot like Giannis Antetokounmpo, or at least the idea of him. In Giannis’ league, he averaged fewer points and rebounds than Essengue against worse competition. Food for thought.
Why Essengue is Portland's best option at 11
The comparisons don’t end with the physical tools either: Essengue plays a downhill game, using that speed and length to get to the basket at an above-average rate. FTA% is one of the metrics in which Noa dominates, posting a mark of .800 during his time at Ulm.
In real-world language, this means that for every shot Essengue takes, he shoots 0.8 free throws. Put a different way, Essengue shoots four foul shots for every five shots attempted. For reference, the next highest in the entire projected draft is .692, belonging to Adou Thiero. The majority of the draft selections hover between .300 and .450.
Essengue’s playstyle closely mirrors that of Deni Avdija in his ability to draw contact and get to the line, pinballing down the court in transition. That seems like a fair expectation for Essengue, a malleable prospect whose biggest skill at present is serious rim pressure. Noa’s three-ball isn’t quite there yet, with his current Ulm season’s three-shooting percentage worse than any of Deni’s seasons between his Israeli Maccabi team and the NBA.
Noa’s defense is also a work in progress, but he clearly has the tools to excel in that regard. Who better for Essengue’s development as a toolsy wing than the combination of Avdija and Camara?
This raises another point: Even if the Blazers manage to trade Anfernee Simons, Jerami Grant, and Deandre Ayton in the offseason, the starting lineup projects to be the same with which the Blazers closed the season. Between Scoot Henderson, Shaedon Sharpe, Avdija, Camara, and Donovan Clingan, who sits to accommodate Essengue?
The short answer is “nobody,” signaling the level of developmental patience the Blazers may be willing to show to a new lottery pick.