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You need supreme coordination at that size and length which requires double as much work as normally proportioned players

Tacko Fall is like 7’5” and he can’t even make a roster

These "he's raw at everything but just look at those measurables" prospects fail a very high % of the time. Especially when you add motor issues into the mix.

Had to be the song just way too hype.

People would not remember him by now if the song never existed

Nothing went wrong, he just isn't good at basketball. He has all the physical tools but absolutely none of the mental ones or even basic fundamentals. He couldn't box out or even set screens and had really really bad awareness. He was also a bit moody, would get down on himself for missing a shot or committing a foul, and that would just pull him down even further. Absolutely no motor either, very low effort if his shot wasn't falling. I mean he was getting beat for minutes by a Khem Birch simply because Birch knew how to do basic shit like get in rebounding positions and set actual screens.

Dude just isn't a basketball player. Really just an example of how far you can get with those physical traits and not much else. I know this sounds harsh but it's true. I watched damn near every game he played for us.

u/SincereFan

Bamba is the rule, wemby is the exception…there’s been a ton of sloppy, bumbling 7 footers in the league..humans aren’t meant to be that smooth at that height

If you've played organized team basketball you realize that it's not just how fast you are, what your standing reach is, or how high you leap. There is a very real mental component and this is what separates the very best from the rest of the best.

A lot of time people call this "feel for the game." It's quickly making reads and making the right play, with the right timing, which isn't an easy thing to do at the pace that basketball is played.

Bol Bol is definitely more comparable to Wembanyama both physically and skillset wise. Wembanyama is Bol Bol if he was taller and a LOT better. a LOTTA lot

Effort

what everyone else is saying is legit facts however i also think location matters. when he was drafted imo he went to the worse possible draft location. they were trying to be a playoff team that had no reason to play a top 10 pick at the time

the song

The song really hyped him up didn’t it

You can have a freakishly long wingspan and still be a terrible basketball player. Drafting players based on their physical attributes and hoping they'll learn how to play basketball is like scratching off a lottery ticket.

He’s just not good at basketball. Never was a natural rebounder, he’s a volume chucker who takes way more 3s than he has any right to, not a physical player despite being big. If he just focused on being a rim running big with an occasional 3 he’s probably a good backup center, but he’s not good at the any of the little things big men need to be good at.

Can't teach tall and long. So when someone is athletic enough to look like a basketball player and is tall and long people will take a chance on them to be able to teach them basketball skills. Up to the person to learn it though and apply it in games. But that takes a lot of time and passion for the sport. To sit and watch and breakdown film. To apply what you trained and coached on the court. Some people just naturally grasp basketball concepts and some people need to work on it and some people never figure it out. Bamba seems to be in the group that never figured it out.

He was never good just big

he literally cant play pro basketball

What. The. Fuck.

We don't even need to go into "what went wrong with Bamba", they were from different universes as far as the level of prospect they both were coming into the league.

Same problem as Reddish. Perfect basketball body with little to no basketball skill to match

We expected Mo Bamba but we got Les Bamba

Being tall doesn't equate to being good.

Giannis has a sibling playing basketball. ON THE BUCKS.

His brother is fucking awful. And would not be in the league if it weren't for Giannis.

Bamba's physical attributes got him to the league. Then, it's about ability (and, every great once in a while, having the best player in the world as your brother.)

Turns out he should thank his boy Wes for getting him employed

I think coming into a franchise that you're supposed to be the next starting C for the foreseeable future just to get stashed on the bench because the other guy had his best year and became an all-star didn't really help. then there's Clifford who isn't really known for developing young guys, even fucking up their development. After that I think he just stopped caring, not sure he was ever gonna be an all-star level talent but I don't think his situation and the way the fans and FO talked about him really helped his motivation to try harder.

Mo Bamba just wasn’t good and it was pretty obvious his height was carrying him far. Webb has the height and great skillset.

Song went to his head

He had a song made about him too early

Size comparisons are pointless especially when you’re looking at 7 foot and above which guys like Wemby are simply rare from a skillset and mobility aspect. Some guys are born to be great and their ceiling is truly unlimited, where some guys are born tall and they have to work their ass off just to be good or great. Wemby works his ass off but it’s gonna push him past just great. You wouldn’t ask why Marcus Morris can’t do what Lebron does with similar sizes. Some people are born with gifts and they maximize it with passion and work where as some ppl aren’t as naturally gifted but also don’t put in the work like Bamba.

I'm taller than Chris Paul but could not make the NBA, might as well be asking what went wrong with me

Talent

Nothing has to go wrong for a project player to not pan out. It's not as if he was lighting up college ball.

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All 7 footers look good in high school blocking 10 shots a game because you're playing against kids who aren't trying to make a career out of the game.

No good work ethic, no good touch or feel for the game. Just raw potential that will never pan out.

Clearly doesn't have a cool enough name.

Only 6'11" barefoot. Never stood a chance.

Ali never showed up with the mfing dope

That’s like asking went wrong with Tacko Fall. Being extremely tall with a long wingspan doesn’t mean you’re automatically going to be a great basketball player. Players at that size usually have poor coordination. That’s what so special about Wemby.

He was worse than I could have imagined

Got a song that outshines him.

IQ and work ethic are extremely underrated predictors of a basketball player's success and athletics/physical abilities are vastly overrated...how many "freak athletes" have we seen flop? there are literally dozens of examples... how many "unathletic" players plummeted in the draft only to become All-Stars and Super Stars?

Imagine thinking somebody won a genetic lottery ticket. Try putting yourself in his shoes and imagine somebody asking a question like this about you. He could be 4 foot tall, and the fastest point guard with the highest vertical. Not everybody is a Kobe out of high school and not everybody is a Mutombo. And statistically Bamba is not a bust. He’s a perfect team member the last few seasons actually, Not every soldiers got to be on the front line, and especially not just because he looked built for it.

Imagine making 35 million dollars and still going to work

From what I've seen is low motor, low BBIQ, poor footwork. Despite that wingspan he's usually played on the perimeter. I think he'll always find a job but as a bench role, not even sure rotational