SUMMARY

Rui has good size for an NBA small forward with broad shoulders, long arms, a strong frame and good fluid movements. He possesses an effortless shooting stroke and shot the ball very well from 3 at the FIBA Under 19 championships. He easily dominated FIBA U 19s with his scoring, rebounding and athleticism against inferior competition. He shows potential as a small ball 4 man with his ability to screen and roll, solid footwork in the post and his shooting range as a pick and pop threat.  Hachimura is a very good NBA level athlete who is quick off his feet, can make plays above the rim and running the floor in transition. He does an excellent job of keeping the ball high and never bringing the ball down where he can get stripped by guards on lob plays or offensive rebounds. He rebounds the ball well and is a threat to rebound and push the break which allows his guards to fill the lanes. Offensively he moves well off the ball and could be a dangerous cutter on the NBA level. His aggressive style of play earns him quite a few trips to the charity stripe and puts a lot of pressure on defenses. Rui shows a nice pull up jumper and 3 point shooting range with the ability to attack close outs and finish plays at the rim.

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Hachimura isn't a bad ball handler by any means, but would need to tighten up his handle and add advanced ball handling moves. He doesn't waste dribbles but his lack of great handles and offensive creativity is evident when he's in isolation. He has a nice pull up jumper but his game consists of only pull up jumpers or attacking the basket. Adding a floater and non dunk finishes around the rim would improve his offensive game tremendously. He has a tendency to turn the ball over by being flashy and forcing passes. Despite being a very good athlete he struggles finishing in transition, which again is related to his lack of creativity. Euro steps, wrong foot layups, should all be added to improve his ability to finish in transition instead of relying on straight line drives. Even though he's unlikely to get a lot of post touches on next level, he could always work on improving his touch around the rim on post ups. Must improve free throw shooting.

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RAFAEL BARLOWE -