By Valentin Le Clezio
-Mathias Lessort (1995, 6’8, Power-Forward)
The Martinique-born Power-Forward is another intriguing player from Chalon’s talented squad. Even though he had already made some appearances at this level last season (15 games, 8 minutes per contest) the 2013-2014 season is his first full-time year with the Espoir team. He has been able to make his impact felt immediately, averaging 14 points, 12,1 rebounds and 1,4 block in 32 minutes per game. After getting cut by the U18 French national team a few days before the European championship, Lessort had time to get ready for the season. An undersized power-forward at around 6’7-6’8, Lessort makes it up with his length (wingspan around 7 feet), great athleticism and never-stopping motor. Lessort plays hard and will fight on every 50/50 ball, is willing to sacrifice his body on any given play. He is a very good rebounder with a feel for the ball and above average timing and leaping abilities. He is particularly efficient on the offensive glass (4,5 per game). He still needs to add strength but already possesses a nice frame for a 18 year old kid. His mobility enables him to guard pretty much any position at this level. His length makes him a very disruptive element on the defensive end where he is a constant threat on passing lanes. He is still a quit limited offensive player, getting most of his opportunities off cuts and rolling to the basket following picks. He can put the ball on the floor but tends to be a little bit out of control and turnover prone (more than 4 a game). He also struggles shooting from outside 10 feet. He is a liability from the free-throw line as well (57%) and will certainly need to reconstruct his shooting mechanic. All in all, his upside is limited by the fact that he is undersized for his position and unable to spread the floor with his shooting. A transition to the 3 spot may be his next and best move. However, to do so he will need to substantially improve his skill-level. Mathias may also be moving out of Chalon next season as he is heavily recruited by a few colleges, in particular Gonzaga University and North Carolina State.
-Drissa Ballo (1995, 6’10, Center)
Drissa Ballo has certainly been one of the most intriguing prospects at this level over the past couple of years but he seems to have stagnated a little bit. Already a dominant player last season (13 points and 12 rebounds per game) he doesn’t seem to have made the next step in his progression, averaging 13 points, 11 rebounds on 60% shooting in 29 minutes a game this season. A few factors can explain that absence of bump in his statistics. First of all, he has been hit by couple of injuries (tore his ACL a couple years ago, broke his foot last season...). Secondly, his physical maturity may simply limit his overall upside. The Mali Native is a man among boys at this level. He possesses an incredible frame with an NBA-ready body, good athleticism and lateral mobility. He is so physically strong that many people call into question whether or not he is really 18 year old. Nevertheless, despite those understandable doubts, Ballo is still an interesting raw prospect. Outside of dunking the ball and a nice hook-shot, his offensive game is not very polished. He gets over 80% of his shots at the rim on cuts and pick and roll situations. He is so physically stronger than his opponents that he also regularly bullies them on the low block. He will need to develop his offensive skills in order to have an impact at the senior level where he will have to face players his size. A more polish post-game and the ability to knock down a 10 to 15 footer would help him greatly to balance his game. He is also still quit shaky from the charity stripe (54%). Defensively, he is a real dissuasive force, thanks to his long arms and leaping ability. He only averages 1,2 block per game but contests and bothers many more shots at the rim. His progresses will need to be closely monitored as he makes his way to the Pro team of Dijon over the next year.
-Petr Cornelie (1995, 6’10-5, Power-Forward)
Cornelie -at the pic- is an extremely long and mobile big-man possessing a good touch around the rim. He was part of the U18 French National team at the European championship last summer where had to endorse a lot of responsibilities in the paint(6 points, 7 rebounds in 23 minutes per game). He was a disappointment during that competition, in particular following a convincing U17 world championship the previous summer (7,4 points, 5 rebounds in 17 minutes per contest). Cornelie seems back on the right track this season leading the third ranked team Le Mans, averaging 12 points and 10 rebounds a game.
Cornelie is a very fluid athlete who likes to run the floor and play in pick and roll situations where he can take advantage of his mobility. Moreover, he is at ease playing with his back to the basket in the low block where he has added some moves to his arsenal over the past two seasons (drop step, right-handed hook shot...). At over 6’10, Cornelie is a very intriguing prospect, as he hasn’t been playing organized basketball for a long time. His upside is very important as he is far from having reaching his physical ceiling and should be able to add some muscle to his frame. Defensively Cornelie is a good team defender who puts in the necessary effort not to be a liability on that end of the floor. He knows how, where and when to rotate on defense. However, he isn’t a dissuasive force at the rim as it could be expected from somebody that long and athletic.
Cornelie has still ways to go skill-wise. He has starting to develop an outside shot and seems to become more and more a stretch 4 but his shot still needs to be polished (4/17 from 3 this season). He is not a very good ball handler and can prove to be turnover prone at times (3 a game). Cornelie has all the tools to become a high level pro player. Whether it is at the French or European level will be determined by how far he is able to develop his skills level.
Honorable mentions and younger players to closely follow: 1997 born Power-Forward Amine Noua (’97, 6’6) is the youngest player to have an impact at that level (9 points, 6 rebounds a game). Noua is very undersized but possesses good intangibles. He has good hands a good touch around the rim. He was part of the U16 French National Team last summer (6 points, 7 rebounds a game). Scoring leader of the 1996 French Generation, Antoine Wallez (’96, 6’8) is putting up nice numbers this year (16 points, 7 rebounds per contest) despite being stuck between the 3 and 4 positions. He improved his outside shot (40% from 3) but is not quit mobile enough nor athletic enough to guard the 3 position. He already has a mature body and tends to struggle against players his size. He doesn’t seem to have a ton of upside and needs to settle at one of the forward positions but will need to be closely monitored in the future. His teammate on the U16 team, and also part of the u18 squad last summer, Lenny Charles-Catherine (’96, 6’4) is one of the main prospects of the Espoir championship. He certainly is the best prospect of the 1996 French Generation. Very athletic 2 guard (6’5) who excels on transition situations, Charles-Catherine loves to play above the rim. He averages over 14 points a game this season despite having a very limited (and streaky) outside shot. Most of his potential lies on the defensive end where he could become an incredible on the ball defender thanks to his excellent athleticism.
Twitter of the author: @BBfromLA
Photo: FIBA Europe / Romans Koksarovs
