A pro for 5 years and the French LNB B League’s best young player before transitioning to the Australian NBL, Hugo Besson has had a successful overseas career. In the NBL, Besson played a heavy majority of the season as a 20 year old. On the year, he averaged 14 PPG, 4 RPG, 2.3 APG, 0.6 SPG, 0 BPG, 0 BPG (1 total block for the season), and 1.8 TOPG on shooting splits of 39/31/80. Below is his full scouting report:
Name: Hugo Besson
Height/Weight: 6’6/180
Wingspan/ standing reach: 6’6/8’6
Hand size: 8 ½
Position: SG
Pre-Draft team: New Zealand Breakers
Tools: Playmaking, shooting, floater
Pros:
- Super quick jumper
- Consistent shooting touch
- Comfortable driving with both hands
- Reliable floater
- Can navigate screens well offensively
- Knows how to create using his pump fake
- Comfortable absorbing contact on drives
- Good ball security and low turnover rate
Cons:
- Needs to expand deep range to be more consistent
- Mediocre athlete; doesn’t finish above the rim
- Needs to get stronger to finish through contact more consistently
- Must reduce foul rate
- Below average separation ability on drives
- A bit passive at times
- Short arms
Summary:
Hugo Besson is an offensive minded combo guard that can play both on-ball as a creator for himself and others, as well as playing the role of a lethal catch & shoot off-ball player. Besson’s finishing ability will dictate how much of an off-ball player he can be, due to his variable finishing ability.
With short arms, a lack of athletic dominance, need for physical maturation, and an alarming foul rate, Besson’s defensive outlook is bleak. Teams shouldn’t expect him to be a contributor on that end, and the hope is that his shooting & passing combination outplays his defensive woes. Simply put, Besson has the IQ to overcome physical shortcomings at times, but more often than not, he will be a negative defender on the court. He will in turn need to be surrounded by positive defenders in lineups he is in, and he also must be hitting shots to contribute at a meaningful level.
Offensively, Besson can run pick & roll with advanced reads, while also being able to score as a jump shooter around screens, both on-ball and off-ball. Besson also possesses a strong and reliable floater, while being comfortable absorbing contact on drives, which helps him get to the free throw line. As he gets stronger, Besson should develop into a better finisher at the rim despite a short wingspan. One other weakness he will have to overcome is his lack of separation ability on drives due to a lack of explosion. In order to get to his spots on drives, he will have to learn more moves to manipulate defenders with deceleration ability.
A big strength for Besson that can counter some of his creation weaknesses is his ability to play off-ball. With a quick release and strong wrist-action on his shot, Besson has realistic upside as a sharpshooter that can run pick & rolls at 6’5. In this role, Besosn projects as a quality backup guard that can mesh with any personnel, even with defensive shortcomings.
Similar to: Svi Mykhailuk, Doug Christie without the defense, Dallas Vince Carter
Projected draft range: 25-50
Expected role: Combo guard with shooting prowess, playmaking, and multi-level scoring
Unplayable if: Athleticism reduces his offensive ability into being purely a shooter and unable to create for himself. His defense would also be a killer that makes him unplayable in this scenario.
Exceeds expectations if: Shooting and playmaking thrive at a high level; His high IQ, finishing ability, floater, and jumper at any angle make him a scoring threat, with a reliable playmaker status. In this case, Besson could edge out a career as a starter.
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