In the family of prospects who only started playing basketball a few years before joining the NBA, we ask Yves Missi. The Cameroonian, born in Belgium, came seriously to the orange ball late, in 2021 upon his arrival in the United States, after having played football for a long time.
This big fan of Paris Saint-Germain and Kylian Mbappé climbed from the steps four to four, until his season at Baylor, where he was not expected as a “one-and-done”. But Yves Missi offers certain potential for franchises looking for a modern pivot to shape.
Profile
Position: pivot
Size: 2m10
Weight: 104 kg
Team: Baylor Bears
Stats 2023/24: 10.7 points at 61.4%, 5.6 rebounds, 1.5 blocks in 23 minutes
Strong points
– The look. A pivot mounted on springs, Yves Missi is already physically ready for the NBA. Very aerial, strong and at the same time mobile, he is a constant threat in alley-oop, as if to protect his circle. The Cameroonian has made real progress throughout the season in defending smaller players thanks to his leg speed. He must now combine his game all the time on the accelerator with more significant playing time.
– Room for progress. Still raw, Tves Missi seems to be a quick learner. Over the course of the season, we saw him being increasingly used in the high position offensively, before taking one or two dribbles and finishing towards the circle, which seemed difficult to imagine a few months earlier. We are still far from it, but he has explained in the past that he looks closely at Giannis Antetokounmpo, more than the more “traditional” pivots.
Weak points
– Technical qualities. On the other side of the coin, the pivot is still very frustrated from a basketball point of view. His shooting (61.6% on free throws) could push his future opponents to send him to the line. His very solid contribution to offensive rebounding is limited by his poor vision of the game which sometimes pushes him to get entangled in defenses. Also watch out for naivety in defense, where he must better choose when to look for the counter.
Comparison
A sort of mixture of the two pivots of the Hawks, with the ability to finish at altitude of Clint Capelaand the mobility/length comboOnyeka Okongwu – with whom he shares a 2m18 wingspan – in defense.
Prognosis
Second half of the first round. A place in the Top 20 would probably be a bit high, but it seems very unlikely to see him slip into the second round.
