BAL Elevate Scouting Series: Mohamed Sylla Report
The next two NBA Draft cycles feature two top big men from NBA Academy Africa in Ulrich Chomche and Khaman Maluach. Could Mohamed Sylla be next up?
Mohamed Sylla quietly, yet effectively, introduced himself to the basketball world when he made his debut for FUS Rabat in the Basketball Africa League. A team with high ambitions, seeing the court at all for them as a teenager would have been huge, let alone becoming an integral part of the rotation. As evidenced by his play in short spurts, Sylla is fearless and no moment is too big for him.
Physical/Mental
The next great NBA Academy Africa big man stands 6’10” with a plus wingspan and a motor to match. Long and slender, the 19-year-old is extremely light on his feet, oftentimes outrunning wings in transition. Mohamed Sylla showed off his motor by putting forth maximum effort at all times, with his hustle even buying FUS Rabat extra possessions and baskets.
An excellent example of his fearlessness was his battle with Yanick Moreira. Moreira is considered a star on the African continent, and some might venture to call him a legend. Sylla never backed down from Moreira, rejecting his shot then flexing on him before Moreira answered back with a slam and stare down of his own.
The fact that Sylla is confident enough to take on this challenge and succeed at it is a promising sign of his strong will.
Offense
Sylla gets most of his baskets by rolling to the rim, receiving drop-offs, or offensive rebounds. He has a keen sense of how to find open spaces to receive the ball in scoring positions.
Sylla also excels at being a consistent roll threat. He sets sturdy screens and rolls purposefully, always looking to finish with authority. If he has his feet under him, it doesn’t even matter if there’s a defender in his way.
He’s comfortable and deft enough to make adjustments and tip the ball back in while he’s still in the air for a rebound.
The big man showed a few early passing flashes as well, whether making a transition dish or finding teammates out of the post.
He doesn’t project as a high level defense-shifter with his passing, but being able to make the right play at the right time can go a long way.
Rebounding
Mohamed Sylla can rebound with the best of them. He cracked the Kalahari conference’s top ten rebounders despite averaging less than ten minutes per game. Sylla was the eighth leading rebounder having played 39 total minutes, while the top rebounder more than doubled that minutes total.
I mentioned Sylla’s hustle earlier and there’s no place that shows up more frequently than on the glass. That extra ounce of effort pays off in his textbook box outs and his impressive 24.1% total rebound rate. He finds a man before searching for the ball consistently and quickly secures the ball once it’s back in the air. That effort sometimes even powered FUS’s transition attack.
Defense
One of his calling cards so far, Mohamed Sylla has shown an uncanny feel for the defensive side of the ball. At his age, he understands and executes advanced concepts very well. Sylla’s drop coverage is nearly perfect, as he recognizes actions early and gets in the right position. He plays cat-and-mouse with the ball handler, forcing them to make a decision and by that time, he has usually closed whatever space needed to contest a shot, block it, or deter the attacker from getting up an attempt at all.
Sylla loves contesting shots whether he gets the block or not. He understands that he could be gaining a possession for his team and ruining one for the opposition on every solid contest. For that reason, he patrols the weak side, covering for his teammates as often as he can.
Sylla could grow into a scary defender as he typically kept pace with his teammate and reigning defensive player of the year, Aliou Diarra. Sylla’s defensive rating of 89.4 was not far behind Diarra’s 84.5 defensive rating.
Areas of Improvement
For as fluid of a mover as Sylla is, he did not convert a single jump shot during the first leg of the BAL. His playing time was obviously limited and the volume of shots as well (he took just three mid-range jumpers in four games), but some of the misses were not even close. That could be a function of his shot selection. At least two of his attempted jump shots were spinning, turnaround fadeaways — a difficult shot for someone who isn’t a natural shooter.
Improved shot selection could unlock easier and more natural-feeling jump shot attempts for Sylla. If he had one or two moves that he knew he could depend on in a bind, moments of erratic attempts could dissipate entirely. This is something fixed through player development from good coaches and an open mind from the player.
Sylla’s mechanics aren’t broken, so that combined with his coordination and hunger leave room for hope. If he can find a way to mix in more comfortable shots like face up or catch and shoot jumpers, his free throw form and percentage (67%) may be an indicator of the growth potential for his shot.
Outlook
I could have started with this, but if you want a clear picture of what the absolute floor of what to expect from Mohamed Sylla at the next level is, look no further than this clip. He plays such intimidating drop coverage on the ball screen that the experienced Childe Dundão can do nothing but dance side to side behind the pick. When he finally gives up the ball, Sylla calmly steps up to contest the runner from Moreira, who then changes his mind and passes to the corner. The recipient forces a contested three, and guess who nabs the rebound. Sylla then gives it up quickly to a guard in stride before sprinting his lane. That sprint presents Sylla as a passing target, which clears the way for Ayoub Nouhi to finish coast to coast.
The only thing this snapshot was missing was a big dunk in traffic from Sylla.
Mohamed Sylla would be a welcome addition to any NCAA program, as a number of ACC and Big East programs, including Florida, Creighton, Seton Hall and Georgia Tech among others have already expressed interest. His ceiling is extremely high due to his physical tools, mindset and early basketball IQ. With Sylla’s measurables and smarts, don’t be surprised if he begins to pop up in draft conversations within the next two years.