Washington Wizards 2020 NBA Draft: Precious Achiuwa profile

Precious Achiuwa: Strengths

Hustle, energy, and effort cannot be taught. You either have them, or you don’t. These three things come down to strictly heart. Every franchise wants to know, are you willing to go 100 percent when you’re dead tired, and your shot isn’t falling? And every franchise wants guys that will answer with an emphatic ‘yes.’ The pure desire and determination to give it your all for the entire time you’re on the floor are scarce nowadays.

Precious Achiuwa may not have the most complete skill set, but he plays with intensity from the opening tip until the final buzzer. His motor is always running, and it remains in high gear on both ends of the floor. Tenacious and relentless on the glass, Achiuwa led all freshmen in the nation in rebounds by grabbing nearly 11.0 boards per game. He’s a double-double machine, finishing his freshman season with eight games of 20+ points and 10+ rebounds.

Achiuwa is one of the most athletic prospects in the entire 2020 NBA Draft class. He excels at setting strong screens, rolling to the basket, and finishing with power. These strengths will be on display regularly playing alongside a pass-first point guard in John Wall. Wall just has to put the ball near the rim, and Achiuwa will do the rest. Even though he’s a great lob option, he can grab the rebound and lead the break as well. His ball-handling is sneaky good for someone his size.

While at Memphis, Achiuwa also showed flashes of a three-point shot. He shot 32.5 percent from the three-point line, converting on 13 out of 40 attempts. He’s not a sharpshooter right now by any means. However, these numbers show Achiuwa has the potential to be a solid three-point shooter with more time in the gym. Big men have to be able to shoot in today’s NBA, and he’s the perfect modern-day stretch five.