Najuvett Pontja

A very aggressive player who has shown a certain swagger and toughness around him, leading him to improve rapidly over the course of a few years. Offsets his lack of weight, athleticism, balance and ballhandling skills real well by his aggression and ferocity, which leads him to get things his way real well. Offensive game is currently predicated around attacking the basket and drawing fouls, where he hits a solid 72% from the line. He draws contact well and knows how to throw his body towards defenders, rather than defenders blatantly fouling him. Despite his frail frame he has a clear winner's mentality, and his improvement in his jumpshot is a huge plus, where he has shown ability to hit 15 and 18 foot jumpers consistently at a good clip. Defensively he loves to play excellent pressure defense even though he doesn't have the quickest legs or athleticism, which may spur concerns about this aspect in the NBA level. His aggressiveness often gets the better of him leading him to pick up fouls at a rapid pace. He's also had run-ins with his coach, as he has a hothead behavior.

Overall, scouts feel his game would translate better to the NBA, and with his rapid improvement every year, scouts are intrigued about his potential especially since he is only a 1987 prospect. He still needs a lot of polish, but is still young as well and should put more weight on in the future. Concerns do exist about how his athleticism and lack of great physical tools would translate to the NBA, but he has the talent and learning curve to offset those weaknesses in the future. He won't be a smooth and polished NBA player, but with his aggressiveness, he can be an enforcer type for sure.