George Odufuwa

Kyle Nelson

Junior power forward George Odufuwa emerged from obscurity to lead North Texas to a Sun Belt Conference championship and an automatic NCAA-bid. The Arizona State-transfer followed a mediocre sophomore campaign by establishing himself as one of the nation's top rebounders and a nightly double-double threat. As a senior, Odufuwa must prove that his junior season was not a fluke while dispelling the notion that his motor runs hot and cold before he is considered anything other than a fringe prospect.

At 6'8 with a solid 240-pound frame and long arms, Odufuwa has average size for the power forward position. He is a good athlete, however, with excellent mobility in the post and solid explosiveness around the basket. His conditioning could stand to improve, as could his overall strength, but he has the physical tools to play at the next level.

His offense however, leaves much to be desired. He improved considerably as a junior, and he averaged 14.0 points per 40 minutes pace adjusted on 60.4% shooting from the field, but his skill set is raw and he is still quite limited.

His footwork must improve, as he sometimes looks mechanical engaging in even simple drop-step or spin moves in the paint. He also lacks countermoves. His raw ball handling abilities likely hurt him, as well as, and he is often called for traveling violations while spinning towards the basket. His quickness and agility in the post are clear advantages at this level if he could only develop his skill set and basketball IQ enough to utilize them.

Odufuwa is more effective around the rim, however, where his scrappy hustle and nose for the ball result in points off of put-backs and offensive rebounds. While his touch lessens as he moves farther away from the basket, he actually has good form on his jump shot, which should emerge as a more prominent feature in his repertoire next season.

For as efficient as he is on the offensive end, Odufuwa struggled defensively. As evidenced particularly in North Texas's match up against Kansas State in the NCAA Tournament, he had trouble sizing up to an NBA-caliber frontcourt. He did not fare much better against lesser competition, where his focus waned and he did very little to distinguish himself, despite his solid lateral quickness and athleticism.

He was impressive on the defensive boards, however, averaging an impressive 9.3 defensive rebounds per 40 minutes pace adjusted, which ranked 7th among prospects in our database.

Odufuwa showed some potential as a junior, and certainly established himself as one of the NCAA's top rebounders, but he must make serious strides as a senior on both ends of the floor before he is considered to be a legitimate prospect. He will have to prove himself against NBA-caliber big men, which makes an early-season game at Kansas essential. Otherwise, Odufuwa should find success in the D-League or overseas, where he can develop his skill set and learn how to use his size and athleticism to his advantage.