NBA Comparison: Al Horford

Strengths: Bigman with excellent size, strength and polish … Combines brute strength with a high skill level … Soft hands … Long arms and solid athleticism allow him to be a force in the paint … A tremendous rebounder. Plays with a high motor and enjoys contact … Has a strong frame and a high basketball IQ … Has a scorers mentality. Owns a diverse offensive game with the ability to use post moves and strength to score on his opponent or face the basket and knock down mind-range jumpshots … Has the strength to muscle through contact and finish … Smooth offensive game. Has a soft touch and excellent shooting motion … Good free throw shooter … Has legitimate center size. Measured 6-11, 261 lbs at the LeBron James Skills Academy in July … Possesses great dexterity and body control for a bigman … Coachable kid with a positive attitude and strong work ethic …

Weaknesses: One of the big concerns scouts have with Kanter is his physical health. He has had a history of knee problems and there are concerns about his knees not checking out 100% when he has NBA physicals … Foot speed is good but not at the level of some of the top inside forces in the NBA … Played one year of high school ball at Stoneridge Prep in Simi Valley, California and was somewhat inconsistent …

Notes: Has dominated his age group for a number of years in European competitions … Set the Hoops Summit record for points with 34 …

Aran Smith 8/22/10

Comment: At only 15 years of age, Kanter has an incredibly strong and mature body, somewhat similar to Greek prospect Sofoklis Schortsanitis at the same age… His potential is enormous already 6′9″, he only has to grow another 2 or 3 inches to become a solid center prospect … His rebounding skills are impressive, not only because of his massive body, but because of his timing … He was one of the leading rebounders at the 2008 Albert Schweitzer Tournament, despite most of the competition being two years older than him … Although Turkey is suspected of "rejuvenating" players (e.g. Ersan Ilyasova), there is no reason to mistrust Kanter’s age, as he was born in Zürich, Switzerland … He won the "Burkhard Wildermuth Award" for the most talented player at the 2008 AST and was also named to the All-Tournament Team.

Notes: Kanter was named MVP of the 2009 U18 European Championships after dominating the competition like not even Ricky Rubio could at the same age. He recorded 18.6 ppg and 16.4 rpg.

Stefan Lorenz 4/2/08