NBA Draft: Former NBA Scout Evaluates Tristan Vukcevic

An evaluation of international big Tristan Vukcevic from the viewpoint of a former NBA scout.

After evaluating 2023 NBA Draft prospect Tristan Vukcevic, Jason Filippi shared his evaluation and scouting report with Draft Digest Pro.

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Team: Partizan Belgrade (Serbia) | Position: PF/C | Class: International

Height 6-11 | Weight: 220

Potential NBA roles: shooter, stretch big, finisher

Draft Projection: Mid to late second round

Angel Martinez/Getty Images

Strengths:

• Good mobility and agility for size
• Offensive versatility – he can play both in the high or low post
• Shooting ability – potential as a floor spacer
• Good hands – feel for the game

Concerns:

• Average rebounder for size/position
• Lacks physicality – plays smaller on defense
• He is not much of a rim protector
• Doesn't finish well with contact

Questions:

• Can his body develop well enough to compete at the NBA level?
• How tough is he? 

Bottom Line:

Tristan Vukcevic struggled to get on the court in Euroleague. Still, he got regular minutes (he started several games, too) in Adriatic League and played quite well when given the opportunity.

Vukcevic is not ready to compete at the NBA level yet, but he has some legit potential thanks to his size and skill set. Above all, he needs to work on his body, as he has a long but weak body with limited core strength and lacks muscle tone. However, he possesses a decent wingspan. He is mobile enough for his size, can get up and down the court well, and can score 1-on-1, but he needs to add some power to his game and perhaps a bit more pop in his legs.

A modern big man with a polished skill set, Vukcevic should translate well to the NBA level as he can play in both the high and low post, and more importantly, he can face-up and shoot it well from out to three-point line helping space the floor. He has a smooth and effortless stroke from long range and a quick release on his shot. He can also put the ball on the deck and drive to the basket quite well, but he needs to finish better with contact. He is a good finisher off cuts to the basket, and he can pick and pop too. He runs the court well and can finish plays in transition.

He showed some nice low post-scoring moves at the youth level, but he has played mostly away from the basket at the pro level. He has an excellent turnaround fadeaway shot but often lacks the strength to finish when you put a body to him. In addition, he doesn't seem to get to the free-throw line much for a big man.

A good passer from both the high and low post, Vukcevic reverses the ball well and is a good passer big-to-big. In addition, he has good hands in general and an excellent feel for the game.

As polished as he is on offense, he still struggles on the defensive end, not just because of his thin build. To begin with, he does not look like a physical player and comes off as too much of a finesse player. He can get overpowered quite easily in the low post. He moves his feet pretty well but does not have much lateral mobility/quickness. He is very foul-prone because of his lack of strength and inexperience. And he is not much of a shot blocker, even at this level.

He is an average rebounder for his size – he rebounds his area well enough. Still, he does not go after the ball aggressively.

Vukcevic still needs time to finish his development and would probably benefit from at least another year in Europe, but this makes him a great stash guy with a 2nd round pick: the fact that he is going to be working under the tutelage of all-time great European coach Zelijko Obradovic makes this an even more intriguing situation for a team willing to roll the dice. 

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