Is Mouhamed Faye the Best International Center Prospect in the 2025 Class?

19-year-old Senegalese Center Mouhamed Faye is coming off a Rookie of the Year campaign in Italy and has picked up where he left off. At a young age, he has already proven capable of starting and playing a heavy minutes load for Reggio Emilia.

Mouhamed Faye / fiba.basketbal

Rocco Zikarsky is the international center prospect that has drawn the most hype for the upcoming 2025 NBA Draft, but the 7-foot-3 Australian has struggled in NBL play so far. While Zikarsky has floundered, another international big man has begun to see his name percolate more regularly in draft conversations: Mouhamed Faye

The 19-year-old is a Senegalese international, currently playing for Italian club Reggio Emilia. Last season he averaged 8.3 points, 4.9 rebounds, and 1.2 blocks in 18 minutes per game and won the Italian League’s equivalent of the Rookie of the Year award. Through five games this season, Faye has taken an even further leap. He’s up to 13.2 points, 8.4 rebounds, and 2.6 blocks in 26 minutes per game. It’s rare that players as young as Faye get to play this much in Europe, but after only a few minutes of watching him, it’s easy to see why he’s been trusted with so much responsibility. 

For starters, Faye has seen his minutes increase by nearly 45 percent this season and yet his foul rate increase has been nominal. For a young athletic center like Faye, who adopts an aggressive approach to defending this is a massive testament to his overall talent, intellect, and timing. Many young bigs, including good ones, with similar play styles struggle with staying out of foul trouble at this stage of their careers. But not Faye. 

The rising prospect has a high motor, and it’s fully on display on defense. He is constantly meeting pick-and-roll action at the level, then uses his size and length to deter any simple passes to his man, and is able to recover back to his man before the ball can rotate to him back underneath the rim. His consistent execution in hard hedge schemes stands out. Additionally, standing at 6-foot-10 and with a 7-foot-5 wingspan Faye is capable of fully switching onto the perimeter and rotating out to shooters. His athletic profile and motor embolden a versatile defensive profile that is desirable in the modern NBA. 

Averaging over eight rebounds per game the numbers speak for themselves, but Faye’s motor and intellect come into view with his impressive skill on the backboard too. Faye is not only an athletic rebounder who relies on physical advantages to have an impact on the glass but he’s battling for position too. On offense and defense when shots go up, he’s looking to grab an edge that becomes additive to his physical superiority. His timing isn’t the best yet, and he has some struggles with rebound security. But the signs of being an elite rebounder in the NBA are there. 

On offense, Faye does his job. We don’t mean to diminish what he does on that end of the floor, but his role is limited. He’s screening, catching lobs, and grabbing offensive rebounds for the most part. He does all three things well, and his verticality is borderline unguardable for some of the opposing bigs he faces at this level. Emilia has thrown him the ball in the post too. There’s room for improvement as a low-post player, both in terms of touch and footwork, but those skills are still far from raw for him. 

Faye stands out due to his size and athleticism, but his mobility, coordination, and the overall refinement and nuance he displays in his game at such a young age compared to a prospect like Zikarsky is, to put it lightly, staggering. Teams are probably considering Faye as a second-round stash at the moment but if he keeps up his current level of play he could be ready for NBA minutes as soon as next season, and even slip into the first round. Regardless of where he ends up, he currently deserves a lot more discussion than he’s getting. 

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