

The 2016 NBA draft saw the Sacramento Kings trade down in the first round (from the eighth pick) to acquire two first-rounders from the Phoenix Suns, resulting in the drafting of

And for most of the 2016-17 season, fans saw few glimpses of the two big men due to a crowded frontcourt rotation. Yet the time came for the Kings to decide the future of their franchise, and when they ultimately traded Cousins to the New Orleans Pelicans, the team shifted into rebuilding mode, paving the way for Labissiere to show his skills.

And boy did he ever.

After playing just 52 minutes across eight games before the All-Star break, the 28th overall pick saw 559 minutes of action in the second half of the season and even started 12 games. Sacramento needed to see what it had in the young big man, attempting to tease out whether it had foolishly spent a first-round pick

You should be aware that the 21-year-old’s season didn’t truly begin until March, the month in which he received 20.8 minutes per game and appeared in 16 contests. With that increased opportunity, he averaged 10.3 points and 6.0 rebounds per game while shooting 53 percent from the field. Then in April, the former University of Kentucky big man took it to another level, putting up 13.3 points and 5.3 rebounds per game while hitting 57.7 percent of his shots. In those two months, he also posted true shooting percentages of 55.3 and 64.9, respectively, highlighting his efficiency even as an inexperienced big man thrown into a featured role.

Labissiere had his breakout game on March 15th against the aforementioned Suns, scoring 32 points (on 73.3 percent shooting) while grabbing 11 rebounds and two steals:

Labissiere showed many intriguing aspects of his game in that performance, so let’s break it down a little more.

In the sequence starting at 0:53, his determination getting to the basket and grabbing rebounds in traffic is highlighted, and that relentlessness will go a long way as he gets more mature and physical in the paint. At 1:13, Labissiere shows off his quick hands, stripping Jared Dudley and nearly taking the ball coast to coast before eventually passing it to a trailing Buddy Hield for an open three-pointer. And even after he dished it off, the Haitian big man stayed in the paint, grabbed the offensive rebound and continued to fight to the rim.

Shying away from contact is something Labissiere has no intention to do, even at such a young age.

Finally, pay attention to the play starting at 1:57, as Labissiere shows off one of his several effective moves to free up space for a short jumper. He creates a lot of space with a half-spin move, and even though he doesn’t take the shot right away, he is able to use his height advantage to get the shot off, hitting it in spite of a foul. He already possesses an impressive arsenal of moves, which should strike fear in opposing big men.

In his first NBA season, Labissiere shot slightly over league average (57 percent at the rim), while he was exceptionally good on mid-range shots. On shots within three to 10 feet of the rim, he knocked down 40 percent of his attempts, but he improved as he went further away. He hit 52.1 percent of his looks within 10 to 16 feet and 57.9 percent on two-pointers from at least 16 feet. It’s unclear if Labissiere can and will stretch his range to beyond the arc, but these point to him eventually doing so.

NBA Math’s Play-Type Profile highlights his proficiency in several offensive play-types, as he ranked above the 71st percentile in spot-ups, post-ups and in transition. Labissiere has the unique potential of becoming a devastating post-up and face-up big, which would only increase his value in today’s league. A big who can get buckets in the post yet also space the floor? Every team in the league would be licking its lips in anticipation of having such a player.

Moving to the defensive end, Labissiere showed promise in the limited playing time he saw. His minus-0.9 defensive box plus/minus is much higher than many other rookies’ marks, and he actually fared well defending several defensive play-types, per NBA Math’s Play-Type Profile:

The 6’11” big man ranked above the 66th percentile in defending isolations, players coming off screens and big men in the pick-and-roll. On the other hand, Labissiere failed to block a lot of shots last season, averaging only 0.8 per 36 minutes. In fact, when stationed at the rim, he allowed opponents to shoot 60.5 percent. And among every player who logged at least 30 appearances and faced at least three shots per game at the hoop, only Harrison Barnes, Dwight Powell, Andrew Wiggins, Dante Cunningham and James Harden were worse in such situations. If he is going to play significant minutes in coming seasons, he must be able to competently defend the rim, especially if he moves to center at some point in his career.

However, what he has shown so far is the ability to get steals and cause turnovers, whether by stripping a player in a one-on-one situation (such as the Dudley play from the above video) or by disrupting passing lanes with his long reach, as he does when Kemba Walker drives to the rim and looks to feed Marvin Williams for an easy basket:

That kind of disruption in the paint can cause a lot of problems for opposing offenses, and it’s one way for Labissiere to make up for his poor shot-blocking. Defense will never be his calling card, but if he can continue to display good awareness when guarding off the ball (something the majority of rookies and young players struggle with) and gets stronger defending the rim, he will be able to become at least an average defender. And that’s all he needs to become as he continues to evolve into a go-to scoring option. Whether it be in the post or from the mid-range (and hopefully beyond the arc), Labissiere has already showed enough in limited action to inspire belief that he could become a 20-point-per-game scorer in the future, provided he is given enough of an opportunity. Last season he averaged 17 points per 36 minutes, and that was as an inexperienced 20-year-old! Of course the Kings continue to complicate things by bringing in veterans like Zach Randolph, who further crowd the frontcourt. If they are intent on playing the second-year big at power forward, he should be able to supplant Randolph in the starting lineup fairly quickly, but other young towers such as Harry Giles, Cauley-Stein and will fight for solid minutes in the coming years. Ultimately the Kings must decide what position suits Labissiere best. But when they give him an increased opportunity, he will reward them with sweet post moves and a consistent jumper while evolving into a go-to offensive option in no time. Follow Eric on Twitter @EricSpyrosNBA. Follow NBA Math on Twitter @NBA_Math and on Facebook. Unless otherwise indicated, all stats are from NBA Math, Basketball Reference or NBA.com.