NBA Draft 2017 Prospect Watch: Lauri Markkanen

Weaknesses

Size and physicality will end up hurting Markkanen on both sides of the floor. Markkanen will need to be put on a strength regimen to bolster his ability to play against NBA bigs.

He stands tall, but the rest of his body isn’t quite as impressive. He lacks length and he is bullied around by more physical players. While his ability to drive and pull-up efficiently is an impressive attribute, being able to finish at the rim with strength will take some work.

Many of his weaknesses were made up for by his intelligence and discipline. In his single season at Arizona, Markkanen put up good rebounding numbers due mostly to his solid positioning and textbook box-outs. Additionally, while struggling playing on-ball defense, he looked competent switching and positioning when thrown into pick-and-roll scenarios.

Despite his size, Markkanen’s lack of length, vertical ability and overall physicality will hurt his chances of playing meaningful minutes out of the gate. He will need to become a better passer, as well. That said, Markkanen’s shooting ability will make it impossible to keep him off the court.