Scouting Ian Mahinmi

In about one or two years, Ian Mahinmi will be a rotation player for the San Antonio Spurs. As for now, he's a lanky, 21 year old Frenchman trying to learn the nuances of NBA basketball. He was a surprise selection (the 28th pick in the 2005 draft), but has shown enough potential for the Austin Toros to be named a D-League All-Star this past week. He has averaged of 18 points (on 62.5% from the field), 8 rebounds, and 1.5 blocks a game in 26 games. I'm going to blog about Mahinmi's development whenever I can, partially because he's going to be a major part of their future, but also because it's better than writing about Tony Parker's foot for the millionth time.

Ian, Mahinmi
Position: PF, C
6'11", 230 lbs

Strengths: To this point, the most promising part of Ian's game is his shot blocking prowess. With long limbs to go with his 6'11" frame and above average hops, Mahinmi is a fantastic help defender. Even more impressive is that he goes after everything. He hustles on fast breaks to contest layups and rotates over when a teammate needs help. He has great instinct for swatting shots and alters more attempts than his stats will give him credit for.

Offensively, Mahinmi gets most of his buckets by utilizing his athleticism. He outruns his defender down the floor most of the time and uses his length for offensive rebounds, putbacks, and easy dunk opportunities. I've yet to see him take a shot outside of 5 feet. When opposing teams send him to the line instead of giving up easy buckets, Mahinmi makes them pay by shooting at a 76.8% clip (his form is decent considering he's not a jumpshooter). He has decent hands for his size and doesn't drop many passes. Not a fantastic rebounder because of his slender build, but he hits the boards hard on each possession.

At 21, his intangibles are just as valuable. He listens to his coach and hustles each game.

Weaknesses: Most of Ian's weaknesses are a result of his youth and inexperience. While he plays his ass of, he does make the occasional spastic rookie play, making a terrible outlet pass or creating an inexplicable turnover. Defensively, his rotations are solid but could use improvement. Because of his intuitive shot blocking skills, he picks up some cheap fouls by leaping after shots instead of contesting shots without leaving his feet.

Offensively, Mahinmi has a very unrefined offensive repertoire. He has a right-handed baby hook that seems to be his only consistent tool. Ian possesses no real 1-on-1 scoring maneuvers...when he gets the ball in the post his bad footwork leads to some awkward attempts reminiscent of Reggie Evans. He has a good first step but doesn't possess the handle or the jumper to play face-up on the offensive end.

He is built a bit like David Robinson, with a long, slender torso and thin hips. Because of this, he gets pushed out of positions easily (Ian compensates by using his speed to get where he wants to go). His lack of a strong "foundation" forces him to miss a lot of rebounding opportunities.

Needs to Improve: As I mentioned, most of his weaknesses will be corrected just by getting some experience and overcoming the natural foreign rookie learning curve. As his game progresses, he needs to become more vocal on the court and hit the weight room while developing some sort of offensive weapon, be it a spin move, a hook, a midrage J or a respectable up-and-under.