Nicolas Batums agent Bouna Ndiyae said he’s 99% sure Batum will be in this years draft, his buyout with his current team is only $500,000 which is not too steep compared to other international contract buyouts.
Nicolas has become a popular international prospect, and his stock is on the rise and has a shot to become a lottery pick. He has good size and length, great fundamentals as an all-around player, and he is very athletic. He needs to work on his ball-handling skills, he has a tendency to turn the ball over alot. He has a nice pull-up mid-range jumper, and is a decent three point shooter. Nicolas is an outstanding defender, who is not afraid to be agressive, however it does get him into foul trouble sometimes.
NBA people see him as draft ready skill wise, and physically at 6’7, 209 pounds, with a 7’1 wingspan and an outstanding vertical leap. Nicolas runs the court really well, and is a good finisher at the basket, he also does a good job at creating his own shot. Batum is an explosive dunker, a decent slasher, but one of his huge known weaknesses is when he uses his left hand. He shows nice footwork, loves to hit open shots, and likes to get his teammates involved. He needs to become mentally stronger but that shoul dcome with age int he future, he sometimes looks uncomfortable with the ball in his hands, but he is a very motivated player.
Overall he doesn’t really have any major flaws that he can’t correct soon, and once he gets use to the NBA game, he will no doubt be a starter in the league. As a forward in the draft he is ranked third behind Kevin Durant, and Corey Brewer. Most people have never heard of this frenchmen, but trust me if you haven’t you will know him soon enough, he’ll be selected in the top 20.
