NBA Draft: Ratiopharm Ulm Prospects Continue To Impress

Ben Saraf and Noa Essengue have maintained impressive production in their first handful of games with the 2024-25 Ratiopharm Ulm team.

Apr 8, 2024; Glendale, AZ, USA; General view in the second half between the Connecticut Huskies and the Purdue Boilermakers in the national championship game of the Final Four of the 2024 NCAA Tournament at State Farm Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Patrick Breen/Arizona Republic-Imagn Images / Patrick Breen-Arizona Republic

Coming into the beginning of the 2025 NBA Draft cycle, Ben Saraf and Noa Essengue both had potential first-round pick conversations surrounding their names. For Saraf, that was due to an elite performance at the FIBA Eurobasket U18s over the summer, where he put up 28.1 points, 5.0 rebounds, and 5.3 assists in 7 games and firmly put himself onto draft radars. He showed off a nice handle in combination with shiftiness and shotmaking while leading Israel to a 4th place finish.

For Essengue, though, that hype began earlier in the calendar year during the 2024 Adidas Next Generation Tournament (ANGT), which spanned from January to May. In the tournament, the 6-foot-9 forward averaged 16.4 points, 2.0 steals, and 2.4 blocks. He was an effective driver and inside-the-arc scorer (55.4% on two-pointers) and a defensive playmaker with his length (6-foot-11 wingspan).

The two prospects are now playing together on Ratiopharm Ulm for the 2024-25 season and have continued to build on their bases that put them in the spotlight. Saraf has continued his savvy on-ball creation, averaging 14.5 points and 5.0 assists in 4 games, while Essengue has excelled in an off-ball heavy role, averaging 11.3 points in 4 games as well.

While Saraf has struggled with efficiency thus far, shooting 43.1% from the field and 28.6% from three, Essengue has been uber-efficient in his role shooting 54.5% from the field and a blistering 50.0% from three.

Essengue's early development as a shooter and decision-maker thus far has been particularly intriguing. After shooting 11.5% on threes and posting a 0.54 assist-to-turnover rate at ANGT and shooting 8.3% while posting a 1.04 rate at FIBA Eurobasket, he's shot 3/6 on threes with a 2.0 assist-to-turnover ratio with Ratiopharm. It's obviosuly a very, very small sample size and should thus be taken with a grain of salt, but the process of these threes has been encouraging, including this moving three:

Look at Noa Essengue moving into the corner three 👀

Ulm vs. Joventut going on right now in EuroCup action. NBA decision-makers in the building pic.twitter.com/r31gpV2Wjx

— Wilko (@wilkomcv) October 1, 2024

If Essengue can showcase improved 3-point accuracy and decision-making over the course of a larger sample alongside his foundation of driving and defense, he could enter serious late-lottery conversations as an ideal off-ball, two-way forward.

For Saraf, better shotmaking to go along with his handling and passing skills is the clear goal as of right now. There's still a ton of season left to go, so tracking these two players and their development throughout the 2025 cycle will be interesting.

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