OKC Thunder draft prospect profile: Leandro Bolmaro

European guard Leandro Bolmaro is an intriguing prospect but won’t likely be available when the OKC Thunder select.

Leandro Bolmaro is like many European prospects in that fans don’t have the same access to view their games weekly like the college prospects. That also tends to result in a wide variance of the international player ranking. That could mean the OKC Thunder will have the opportunity to draft Bolmaro with their 25th pick.

The Barcelona guard has two years under his belt playing in the EuroLeague honing his skills while competing against professional players.

Let’s dive into his profile to determine if Sam Presti should be interested in the youngster should he remain on the board when it’s time for the OKC Thunder to select.

Leandro Bolmaro draft prospect preview:

Specifics:

• Height: 6’7″
• Weight: 180 pounds
• Wingspan: 6’8′
• Position: Guard
• Birthdate/Age: September 11, 2000 – 20.2
• International: Liga ACB – Euroleague
• Home Town: Las Varillas, Argentina

Provided by Basketball-Reference.com: View Original Table
Generated 11/16/2020.

Current Ranking:

As noted the FC Barcelona guard projected ranking has a wide variance of 16 spots from the highest (17) to the lowest (33) rank.

• The Ringer: 23rd
• NBA DraftNet: 32nd
• ESPN: 22nd
• CBS Sports: 31st
• NBA: 17th
• Sports Illustrated: 18th
• Bleacher Report: 33rd

Strengths:

• Could be the best playmaker in this class
• His ball-handling skills are unparalleled  (both hands are equally strong)
• High basketball IQ
• Old school style “point guard” with new school fundamentals

Weaknesses:

• Lack of shot and range stunts his offensive versatility and tools
• Fundamental issues persist with his mechanics (potential for a strong player development team to fix these issues)
• Needs to add size
• If he could improve the quickness in his first step it could open up his offense

Pro Comparison:

Kevin O’Connor of The Ringer suggests Joe Ingles and Evan Turner as possible NBA comparisons. Perhaps Sergio Llull is a better example.

OKC Thunder fit:

Bolmaro has all the little nuanced shots in his repertoire like floaters, runners, and tricky layups. The problem is without a reliable and consistent shot at any spot on the court it removes almost all those options.

Still, his playmaking and quick processing of the game parallels some of the best currently in the NBA. If Sam Presti felt his player development staff could fix the Argentinian’s shot he might be worth taking a risk on, but it’s likely another team will scoop him up prior to the Thunder 25th pick.

That’s because numerous teams have rosters with guards who love to score and adding a talented playmaker like Bolmaro who prefers creating offense for his teammates is a rarity in this era.