Mario Saint-Supery Has Talent, but Can He Become an NBA Player?

The 18-year-old Spanish point guard had some impressive performances to start the season but since then, his numbers have been average and his lack of explosiveness has been exposed. Mario Saint-Supery must show scouts more to play in the NBA one day.

Mario Saint-Supery / fiba.basketbal

Spanish basketball is in a rebuilding phase. Both Gasol brothers retired, Serge Ibaka is seeing through his final years in EuroLeague, Rudy Fernandez finally called it quits after the 2024 Olympics, and the golden generation of point guard play - Ricky Rubio, Jose Calderon, Sergio Rodriguez, and Sergio Llull - is finally coming to an end. The talent pipeline in Spain hasn’t kept up in a manner that allowed for a smooth transition from one generation to the next. That’s partially why Fernandez and Llull remained valuable players for Spain even into their late 30s. 

New talent is emerging though. Santi Aldama is an exciting young NBA prospect with the Memphis Grizzlies, who looks capable of being a high-level starter in the league for years to come. Hugo Gonzalez is a potential lottery pick in the 2025 NBA Draft, Juan Nunez was a second-round selection in the 2024 NBA Draft and fellow point guard Mario Saint-Supery is earning minutes for Baxi Manresa at only 18 years old. It’s not the Gasol brothers, but it’s a step up from the generation sandwiched between this one and the golden days that’s for sure. 

At 6-foot-3, Saint-Supery is skilled in the pick-and-roll and has put up dominant numbers at youth tournaments for Spain alongside Gonzalez. With Manresa this season he’s playing 14 minutes per game, his most ever at the senior level, and averaging 5.8 points, 2.6 assists, and 1.6 turnovers. His shooting splits, however, 31/18/85, are not good. Saint-Supery can shoot -- 119 three-point attempts across FIBA youth tournaments since 2022 his shooting splits are 43/34/80.

Why the rapid decline? 

For starters, this is only a five-game sample. Over the course of the season, we will see a return to averages of some sort. But it isn’t exclusively a bad run of games, Saint-Supery’s weaknesses have been exposed. He simply isn’t big enough, quick enough, or strong enough to regularly create separation or space for himself. He’s 4-of-6 on unguarded catch-and-shoot threes, but 2-of-11 on off-the-dribble jumpers.  

Shooting isn’t the only area of the game where Saint-Supery’s physical limitations have been clear. His 0.93 assist-to-turnover is tolerable but the nature of his turnovers is concerning. He’s sometimes weak with the basketball in his hands and is forced to pick up his dribble far too easily. Even when he is beating his opponent off the dribble he’s regularly being forced into runners and other difficult shots instead of exploding to the rim for a simpler finish. 

Saint-Supery’s talent remains undeniable. He has good court vision and has regularly put a whooping on his class in age-regulated competitions. But the step up to the senior level is exposing his flaws, and while some of this can improve over the next few years it’s beginning to look like Saint-Supery won’t have enough physically to be an NBA player. A EuroLeague/EuroCup career, and potentially a very good one, appears to be on the cards for him instead. That can still be good enough to help the Spanish national team, and even be valuable in international play in the future alongside potential stars in waiting for Spain. But currently, he is not yet ready to be a draft pick for NBA teams.

---

Want to join the discussion? Like Draft Digest on Facebook and follow us on Twitter to stay up to date on all the latest NBA Draft news. You can also meet the team behind the coverage.