NBA Draft 2018 News: Hard Work Is Fueling Prospect Mohamed Bamba's Rise Up the Board
In all likelihood, Texas Longhorns center Mohamed Bamba will not be taken first overall in the upcoming NBA draft.
The Phoenix Suns, the team with the number one overall pick in the draft, has seemingly closed in on Arizona Wildcats big man DeAndre Ayton as their preferred pick, and understandably so, as he's flashed the kind of talent which suggests that he has the potential to be the best basketball player in the world one day.
Ayton's really good, but Bamba is not far behind.
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Those who have been monitoring recent news about the draft have likely noticed a trend concerning Bamba.
After appearing for a while that he was grouped in with other notable prospects such as Duke's Marvin Bagley III, Michigan State's Jaren Jackson Jr. and Missouri's Michael Porter Jr. in what is kind of the second tier behind Ayton and Real Madrid's Luka Doncic, Bamba is starting to gain some buzz as someone who deserves to go higher.
The book on Bamba is that his defensive upside is off the charts, and he's also shown enough skill on the offensive end to suggest that he won't be a liability on that end of the floor.
Still, in a league where shooting matters more than ever, there are analysts concerned that Bamba's lack of a consistent outside shot could limit how good he can be in the NBA.
Bamba is aware of that, too, and that's why he's spent the last few weeks and months leading up to the draft improving on his outside shot.
A recent article from ESPN's Jonathan Givony touches on Bamba working with player development specialist Drew Hanlen to improve his suspect jump shot. Bamba also talked about the improvements he's seen in his form, saying that it now "looks really smooth" while adding that he's been able to shoot quicker as well.
Bamba working constantly to improve his shot is drawing attention from executives around the league, and it's bolstering his case for why he should be considered a better prospect.
There are also concerns over whether Bamba will be strong enough to handle banging in the paint in the NBA.
Suns general manager Ryan McDonough hinted that Bamba will need to address that, though he also compared the youngster favorably to Rudy Gobert the man who is considered to be the favorite to win the Defensive Player of the Year award. McDonough remarked that the 20-year-old Bamba is ahead of where Gobert was when he was 20 years old, the Sporting News reported.
As for the questions about how he will hold up against the wear and tear of playing inside in the NBA, Bamba is already working on making sure that he can withstand the punishment by doing more strength training, yoga and other things that will enable him to get the most out of his body.
Bamba was already a promising prospect at the end of the college basketball season, but now, he's turning into someone who has a legitimate shot at being the best player from this draft class, and he's done that by dedicating himself to improving several aspects of his game.
