Marouf Moumine | Scouting Report
I’m Kuzey, 19. I’ve been writing about basketball since I was 9. I have been working in Eurosport Turkey for the last 1,5 years. I have written on various sites and magazines before. I’ve been working as a freelance scout for three years. I worked as a consultant. I have interviewed dozens of prospects such as Theo Maledon, Deni Avdija, Henri Drell, Aleksej Pokusevski, Arturs Kurucs, Yves Pons and dozens of notable basketball people such as Luis Scola, Xavi Pascual, Jonathan Givony, Dimitris Itoudis, Joan Plaza, Sarunas Jasikevicius, Derrick Williams. I write an article every day. I live in Turkey, I go to all the Euroleague and Youth League games. MY BIGGEST GOAL IS SCOUTING! Anyway, don’t forget to follow me on Twitter and feel free to DM!
Born: 4 December 2004
Nationality: Cameroon
Height: 6–6
Wingspan: 6–19
Position: SF
NBA Africa has raised star names that can play in PF and C positions. So far they have not been able to grow a good PG, SG or SF. Because the physical tools of these players who played in this position were very low. However, Marouf Moumine, can be the first superstar of this academy who can play as a PG, SG, and SF. He started playing basketball at 9. After playing in Garoua, they moved to Yaoundé after his dad was transferred. His father took MM along and tried to put him in some clubs in Yaoundé. His motivation is his father and his family. His father used to play competitive basketball as well as competitive soccer. He told him that he thought MM could make it as a basketball player. Marouf wants to make him proud. I spoke to four people at the NBA Academy, and all four said positive things about Marouf’s off-court life. Marouf is calm off the court, but besides this coolness, he is also very cheerful. His English is almost perfect. He is disciplined and likes training, especially working on dribbling and shooting. His biggest dream is to be like Pascal Siakam.
Physical Tools
Marouf Moumine (6–6 height) is not physically perfect, but remember that he only will be 16 years old in December. I think for a 15-year-old, he has a good base. MM’s arms are long, shoulders are wide, legs are long, core muscles and wrists look strong. He needs to gain weight and build muscle in general. As I said, I don’t expect a 15-year-old player to look very strong. I think Moumine is a tough player. He can play in multiple positions both offense and defense. He usually plays like a point forward. In doing so, Marouf shows a tough resistance to his opponents. His lower body is fast and the footwork is effective in terms of quickness. He has hip mobility and has shown a lot of hip mobility in three games. Especially, Moumine can do it around the baseline well and create spacing for himself.
Offense
Marouf Moumine has a wide arsenal. Marouf did much of his scoring as a primary handler. Point forward is a crafty handler who can create his dribble channel using screen and/or hesitation moves. I think MM control the game tempo very well. He knows when and where to drive very well. He uses his team’s shot clock perfectly. While dribbling against PG, SG, SF and PF, he can use his body and finish around the basket with a soft touch and smooth athleticism. Also, thanks to his average vertical pop and his strong first step, Moumine can change direction both in the air and on the ground. He has the ability to score off the dribble. Despite showed very promising things, Moumine has room to get more consistent from the 3-point range, but the ability and mechanics are there. I mean, he can shot from 3-point range with smooth mechanics but has to get more consistent. He can create his shot using screens. Also, he showed some flashes on crossover, stepbacks, and deep range (both CnS and movement). He is not a pick and roll maestro but knows to operate roller with wide court vision and crafty handle package. He has not an explosive athlectisim but as I said, his athleticism is smooth. He needs to add strength and gain some weight in order to compete better as an off-ball offense player. I mean, he is not a player who can plays backdoor with using his body or can runs drag screen.
Defense
Marouf Moumine makes up for his lack of elite athlectisim with high BBIQ. I mean, he really knows very well how and when his opponent moves. In on-ball defense, Moumine uses his own footwork against his opponent and makes him an intense defense. He lowers the dribble rhythm of his opponent. Not good in PnR defense. He is heading towards his opponent’s channel after the screen, but his shortcomings physically reduce his efficiency. He makes a timing mistake while struggling with the screen. He cannot protect the rim because of his lack of vertical pop but he gives his opponent bad angle on floaters thanks to his BBIQ, eye-hand coordination, and long arms. He does pretty nice job contesting on ball paint shots. In my opinion, Marouf is a high IQ team defender. He leads the defense to protect his team’s shell around the perimeter and baseline. He directs his friends, talks to them, and makes rotate timing perfect. Despite not has elite athlectisim tools, Moumine can defend PG, SG, SF, and sometimes PF with his overall size, high BBIQ, and energy. It is my favorite thing about him, versatility. He’s not someone I want him to follow in the off-ball defense around the screens. Because he’s not good at timing. Sometimes he does unnecessary help defense. I think he is a very good rebounder for his position and age. In the rebound zone, he cannot give a good position of his opponents and he takes the ball.
Summary
I think MM is the best player of the NBA Academy. He has positional skills on both offense and defense. He is only 15 years old but showed good things about leadership. He is now at a good level and has at least five years to develop. I think we will see him as an elite player in the NBA for these reasons.