Yves Missi is a center prospect from Baylor. He was born in Belgium but he grew up in Cameroon. After moving to the United States just three years ago he ended up being a four-star top 50 recruit in the class of 2023. He improved and now could be a first-round pick in next week’s NBA Draft.
Yves Missi 2024 NBA Draft Profile
College Career
Yves Missi only spent one year in college, so there isn’t a ton to talk about. His Baylor team also had a disappointing finish, falling in the round of 32 to Clemson. But none of that takes away from the season that he had. His stat line isn’t too eye-popping. He averaged 10.7 points, 5.6 rebounds, and 1.5 blocks per game. But don’t let that fool you. He was only a really good team so he wasn’t one of the main options. The role that he did have on that team was a big contribution, and he did it very well.
Despite not being one of the top options he still led the Bears in blocks and was a very close second in rebounding. He was also fourth in the entire Big 12 in blocks per game. Those numbers earned him Big 12 All-Defense and Big 12 All-Feshman team honors. He was also an All-Big 12 Honorable Mention.
Strengths
Yves Missi is incredibly athletic for someone of his size. He’s 7 feet tall and has a 7 foot 5 inch wingspan. At the NBA Draft Combine last month he was tied with having the highest vertical of any player there at 38.5 inches. Missi has elite mobility for a player that’s as tall as him. With that, he does a really good job of running up and down the court and getting back on defense. He also controls his body well for his size. Additionally, as was mentioned above, Missi can be a force in the paint. He has the potential to become an elite rim protector. He’ll get even better as he adds more weight to his frame and develops more.
Weaknesses
Missi’s biggest weakness is on offense. He can work in the paint, but that’s pretty much it. He attempted zero three-pointers during his one collegiate season and didn’t do well from the mid-range. Another thing he needs to work on is reading screens and passing out of trouble instead of always looking to dunk the ball first. His other big weakness is his free-throw shooting. He’s terrible at it. At 61.6% he was by the worst of any of Baylor’s regulars.
NBA Comparison
Clint Capela is a perfect comparison for Yves Missi. Just like Capela, Missi is great inside in the paint and can be dominant there, and is a really good rim protector and rebounder. But also just like Capela, he is limited on offense outside the paint and they are both terrible free-throw shooters. However, Clint Capela has made a name for himself in The Association over the past decade by being a good paint presence, blocking shots, and grabbing a lot of rebounds (He led the league with 14.3 RPG in 2020-2021). Missi has the potential to do the exact same thing.
2024 NBA Draft Projection
Yves Missi is projected to be a mid-to-late first-round pick, and could even go as high as in the lottery.
