Nolan Traore
Guard
Bursty initiator with passing acumen.
Before the 2024-25 season began, many scouts (myself included) projected Nolan Traore as a future top pick. He didn’t maintain that status throughout the season, though some evaluators undervalued his play in the French LNB Pro A. No longer a dominant interior scoring threat, Traore found other ways to help his team.
Traore made significant defensive strides for Saint Quentin this season, applying his physical tools, speed and instincts to add positive value. Though Traore’s steal and block numbers (1.8% steal rate, 0.3% block rate) don’t paint a positive picture, his excellent range helped him execute long rotations and blow-up actions as an off-ball defender.
His 6-foot-8 wingspan boosts his suite of point-of-attack matchups, letting Traore check quicker guards and larger wings. Traore must continue adding core and lower body strength to hold his position against stronger opponents, but he projects as a positive defender at the NBA level at the very least.
Though Traore struggled to score efficiently this season — his 51.2% true shooting ranks below the 20th percentile among drafted guards since 2008 — further context favors Traore’s projection. Saint Quentin depended on Traore to create offense, resulting in enormous usage stats. He leads the 2025 class in assist rate (42.8%) and offensive load (55.4) and ranks fifth in raw scoring usage (30.4%).
An elite first step breaks down defenses for Traore to score at the basket and find open teammates. He attempted an excellent 36.9%% of his shots at the bucket, converting a respectable 58.8% of them. Despite underdeveloped strength, change of speed and footwork, Traore still lives at the basket and scores efficiently, suggesting quite a bit of possible growth.
Playmaking numbers paint Traore as an excellent passer, reflected by his gargantuan previously-mentioned assist rate and solid 1.82 half-court assist-to-turnover ratio. Many of those assists come from his offensive scheme, where head coach Julien Mahe treats Traore like a game-managing quarterback, trusting him to execute actions and find open teammates.
His live-dribble decision-making still needs work, evidenced by a fairly high 11.5% creation turnover rate. Live defensive rotations are often too much for Traore’s fledgling processor, resulting in bad shots and turnovers. That makes him a great but not elite passer who playmakes at his best with good teammates and a coherent offensive structure.
Outside shooting is Traore’s most obvious swing skill, as the teenage floor general made just 31.4% of his triples this season. Opposing defenses dipped under ball screens and dared Traore to shoot and he often obliged, resulting in huge pull-up volume and poor efficiency (28.6% from 3, 23.6% from mid-range). He converted a respectable 37.5% of his catch-and-shoot threes, which will help him scale down to a heavier off-ball role in the pros.
Traore may never find himself in a heavy on-ball role in the NBA (though we shouldn’t rule it out with burst as dynamic as his). He still has pathways to success through the development of his on and off-ball shooting, decision making and finishing craft. Shifting to a low-usage role isn’t a given for young players, but Traore is talented enough to make it work.
Ben Pfeifer