Due to the recent struggles of the Charlotte Bobcats, the organization has had the luxury of several lottery picks. While most of the youngsters have first honed their skills at powerhouse D1 schools like Indiana, Kentucky, Connecticut and Duke, the Bobcats strayed away from that trend in 2011 when they picked up Bismack Biyombo. After two seasons, the undersized center from the Congo has yet to make a significant impact. In year three, it might just be a make or break year for the 21 year old.
Biyombo went from possibly second rounder to a lottery talent in a matter of weeks in the spring of 2011. Many teams fell in love with his long limbs and raw ability. Although he is just 6’9”, he is able to play like a true seven footer thanks to his build. It was unanimously accepted that his offense was a work in progress, but then again, so was fellow countryman Serge Ibaka.
One thing that has hurt Biyombo is that he simply does not have the type of talent surrounding him as Ibaka. It is hard to get minutes on a team that has trouble scoring, when in fact you can’t score yourself. His 5.0 points per game average is not making him a daily fantasy sports star by any means. In fact, his only promising daily fantasy sports statistics right now are his rebounds and blocked shots.
Heading into the 2013-2014 season, Biyombo’s minutes will definitely be challenged. First, the Bobcats took Cody Zeller with the 4th overall pick to help provide some offense down low. Then, management went out and signed Al Jefferson to a favorable deal, allowing them to possibly add two starters to their frontcourt.
In Year 3, Biyombo might be able to settle into a nice role as an energy bench player. He will still have to play 20-30 minutes a game, but he can focus on what he is instead of what he isn’t. He probably is never going to be a guy who can be relied on in daily fantasy sports to put up numbers, but he can be a productive rotation player who hustles and provides value on the defensive end. That’s probably not the value the Bobcats were hoping out of the #7 overall pick, but Biyombo just seems lost on offense.
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