By Pierre-Andréa Fraile | Sports journalist
Announced relatively high during the 2025 NBA Draft, Noa Essengue got a first impression of the league and the game that took place there this Wednesday. Contrary to the Blazers, he took advantage of the opportunity to show himself to the scouts, which he admired.
Like Victor Wembanyama against the G-League Ignite Team in 2022, he has a good chance to show his qualities a few months before the Draft. Passing through the United States in recent times with Ratiopharm Ulm, Noa Essengue faced the Blazers as part of the preseason NBA. And despite his club’s loss (100-111), he got the chance to have two offensive and defensive highlights:
Noa Essengue trained all three pic.twitter.com/5NXGQKoqEy
— Wilko (@wilkomcv) October 17, 2024
Noa Essengue troubling and speeding up Deni Avdija.
Got bullied and dislodged on Deni’s next drive on the next play though pic.twitter.com/tCRnY7KpvV
— Wilko (@wilkomcv) October 17, 2024
NBA Draft experts salute Noa Essengue’s performance
Beyond the simple actions above, Essengue can be considered to have delivered an excellent match on the floor in Portland. He finished as the top scorer of his team with 20 points (6/14 shooting, 3/6 from 3 points), also collected 8 rebounds, 3 assists and 1 interception. Enough to justify its status as a potential future lottery pick with praise from American Draft specialists X :
Rafael Barlowe: Noa Essengue is only 17 years old. I firmly believe in its potential.
Derek Parker: Noa Essengue was very impressive this (Wednesday) night: 20 points, 8 rebounds, 3 assists. We remind you that this is a 17-year-old kid facing an NBA team
He is also obliged to recognize the good performance of the young French winger, Sam Vecenie in The Athletic on the other hand expressed great doubts about his possible future in the league:
Sam Vecenie: I found Noa Essengue to be solid in this game. He is one of the most productive players. I also think he’s a better passer than you think. Like his teammate (Ben) Saraf, I just worry about what he gives when his shot doesn’t go in (and that hasn’t been the case so far in his career).
Coming to Portland with Ratiopharm Ulm to increase his rating in the NBA and in the United States, Noa Essengue achieved this with an amazing performance against the Blazers. It’s up to him to confirm in the coming months to move up in Draft projects.