2015 NBA Draft: Guillermo Hernangomez (C; Siviglia)

Center

6'-11", 255 lbs

Spain
Age: 20
Birth: Aug 2, 1994
Hometown: Madrid, Spain
Reach 9'-1"
Wingspan7'-2
NBA Comparison: Felipe Reyes

Strengths: 

Has an old school style of playing the center position, but is highly effective ... Tough minded, and plays with physicality and toughness ... Strong work ethic. Competes hard and has shown steady improvement ... He understands angles and how to use his body to create space, always being in the right place ... "Willy", as he is called, has a high IQ and instincts for the game, which allows him to compete with much more athletic opponents ... He is fundamentally sound, has a couple of go to moves in the post that are highly effective and gets more than 6 rpg ... Was very effective in the top European league, the ACB but also shows potential to improve ... Has very good hands ... Defensively he is an effort guy, who likes contact and doesn’t back down ... He has a strong base and is hard to post up deep and move around ... On pick and rolls he has decent feet and compensates for lack of athleticism with hustle ...

Weaknesses: 

The big questionmark is whether his IQ and effort can compensate for his athletic deficiencies ... He is an imaginitive passer but sometimes is overconfident in this aspect of the game, resulting in TOs ... At 6’11 in shoes, and not explosive or athletic he is not a rim protector ... He is certainly skilled enough, but most of his moves offensively will be more difficult to finish against NBA athletes ... He will have a hard time finishing at the rim as the roll guy, and though he doesn’t have bad hands at this point in his career he is far from a reliable NBA mid-range shooter ( though I believe he can improve considerably in this aspect) ... More than his offense, His NBA future likely depends on his ability to be a consistent NBA level defender ... Right now he looks a half-second slow and an inch too short to efficently defend ... He needs to play with a stretch 4 who brings size to the table to avoid mismatches ... On pick and rolls he may have a hard time on switches, something that could hurt his NBA chances ... May not go to NBA for a number of years as it is clear he would like to stay with his "mother" team (Real Madrid) for a while ...

Notes: 

He was Kristaps Porzingis' partner in crime this season for Sevilla ... The perfect complement to the young Latvian ... Hernangomez reminds a lot of a mix between Felipe Reyes and a shorter Marc Gasol in the way he moves and uses his body ... He was impressive during the 2013 Eurocamp, as he plays like a much older and experienced player and he is as polished as you will find at 21 years of age ...

Outlook: 

An intriguing draft and stash guy ... Destined to be a high level European player for many years, who may ultimately go to the NBA... He's the type of player every coach wants as he requires little coaching and you will never have to draw anything up for him to be effective ... Ultimately I look for Hernangomez to be an NBA guy but he still must improve his shooting and gain experience ... He should find a place because of his IQ, he is smart enough to figure out a way to succeed at the next level ... I think he can be a good role player for a winning team ... Then again his attributes and skills may be better utilized at a high level team in Europe...
Rick Pietro 5/27/15