Noa Essengue grades out as a very nice NBA prospect, hence his draft position prop being set at 9.5. The 6-foot-10 forward from France moves very well for his size, and is one of the youngest players in this draft class. His age is definitely a positive for him, and Essengue has drawn Pascal Siakam comparisons if he can develop to his ceiling.
However, one of the obvious risks in selecting Essengue is that he’s a raw talent. While this probably doesn’t go down as a historic draft class, it certainly is deep into the late first round with some very polished players, many of which are only a year older than Essengue. The top eight prospects in this draft class seem to be taking shape, at least according to mock drafts and the betting market. While someone will surely sneak up the board and be a surprising pick, the early names we expect (in no particular order) are Cooper Flagg, Dylan Harper, V.J. Edgecombe, Kon Knueppel, Ace Bailey, Tre Johnson, Jeremiah Fears and Kahman Malauch.
I’d be surprised to see an NBA team roll the dice on Essengue over one of those eight prospects. That leaves the No. 9 picks as a potential landing spot, and one that would lose us a play on the over on his draft position prop. That pick belongs to the Toronto Raptors, who once drafted and developed his NBA comp (Siakam) into a champion and All-Star.
With other intriguing prospects also still on the board, Essengue falls out of the top-10 picks in a majority of mocks. A minority of mocks have him being selected at No. 8 or 9, but the number is small enough that I’m willing to place a bet on his over. While Essengue is an exciting prospect, his raw ability likely isn’t enough to go top-nine in this draft class.
It also doesn’t hurt that due to his season overseas, Essengue has not been able to hold individual workouts for NBA teams. He will attend the NBA Draft, and if a team falls in love with his film, it won’t hold them back. But if Essengue is comparable to a prospect that teams in that 8-12 range have had in house, maybe they take the safer route.
NBA Draft Bet: Noa Essengue OVER 9.5 (-135)
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