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TECHNICAL PROFILE
Mara’s profile is the one of a center that, in a certain way, it’s kind of traditional, but, looking from the other prospective, it’s a lot contemporary, and for this reason he might have a bright future in nowadays basketball.
It’s surely a classic big for his body size and style of play, without position versatility and with a scoring dimension that have his roots in the inside game, while he’s with no doubt an up-to-date player, if we consider a bunch of so much intriguing characteristics, which we’ll try to clear up in the following part of our analysis.
Trying to sketch the traits of his outline, it’s probably helpful to find a comparison that can give us a more well-define picture of the player and to contextualize him technically.
Referring to our Spanish sources, that also have particular connections with the NBA environment, we want to point out how’s a player that’s universally perceived as really, really good, comparable even to a legend as the already mentioned Marc Gasol, for his reading of the game and his skills as a passer. So the prospects from their point of view could be that to arrive, over time, to a type of player that can have similarities with Jokic for impact on team’s game.
Again on the basis of those rumors that we have collected, overseas Mara is often paired with a profile like that of Walker Kessler, a rookie who’s doing good things in Utah Jazz jersey (here for who wants to have a clearer idea of the player). Obviously it’s believed that the young Spanish could be even better than the American big, although today he’s definitely behind him from the physical point of view.
If we move towards the type of athletes which are linked to his outline in Spanish and European press, with a more media-oriented prospective, we often find names like Wembanyama, Porzingis, Holmgren or Markkannen. Different players, which are all part of the perhaps inflated category of the so-called “unicorns“, basketball cyclops which do much more than stay around the basket, dunk and block shots.
My idea is that in all of these comparison there’s something good to preserve to complete a puzzle so complicated as that of a player’s outline, moreover if it’s so young and in continuous becoming.
Personally I think that with Kessler they’ve in common approximately the size, a good feet speed in relation to the height, the feeling for blocks and (for now!) the limited possibility to create their own shot. Definitely the American is more solid physically, but infinitely less good as a passer and, for this reason, less impactful in the offensive team potential.
If I can add an other piece to the patchwork, remaining in the Spanish basketball environment, Mara resemble for me, in the physical structure and in the realm of passing from the post-up situation, a prime version of Ante Tomic. In relation to the Dubrovnick’s giant, he has less experience and tricks in his bag, but also all a different prospect in term of offensive spectrum growth, defensive potential (rim protection) and that kind of thing that in Spain and surroundings they call “garra“, that suggest great hope.
OFFENSE
Aday is undoubtedly a really special talent, who can offer, both with his current and with his potential skills, very interesting chances to his team offense.
One of the preeminent possibility his game can present is of course his quality as a pick and roll target, a tactical circumstance in which he’s a reliable scoring source, as Martin Schiller told in occasion of his debut. He’s in fact a serious threat when he rolls to the basket, in cutting deep and receiving near the rim, as well as in playing short roll situation, a case in which he’s able to use his reading abilities or to punish the defense with his growing mid-range jumper.
When he concludes to the basket, he’s used to dunk with ease, near the rim he often choose this solution as preferential because of his height. Talking about his finishing, he has good touches in close proximity to the rim and, moreover, he stands out as a very efficient lob-threat.
On this type of matter, it’s proper to highlight as in some scouting report they criticized him for not having a so steady hand in converting bunnies (not contested attempts right under the basket) and, despite a decent athleticism for his size, even for an improvable vertical jump, since not all his dunk attempts end with the best safety.
It’s a different debate, the one concerning his shooting skills.
For the talent that he has, shooting competitively seems a natural develop of his game, so much that our Spanish sources expressed with confidence about the fact Mara will be a shooter, so he could be a really complete player, as Jokic is indeed.
With all this considered, this confidence isn’t always unanimous.
“What he didn’t prove in this tournament to be a viable NBA player is his shooting from deep. He made one three all tournament and that one shot banked in. He also was only a 55% free throw shooter during this tournament“.
Eric Guilleminault, NbaDraft.net, U-17 World Cup 2022
It’s undoubtedly an ability he’s trying to improve, trying to be more and more effective, and that he likes to use in particular in pick and pop situations, from the top as well as from the mid range, or an other example are his jumper against Baskonia, attempted receiving the ball dynamically after having run the floor.
“[…] judging from his free throws he does have a repetitive form, but his left hand seems to be engaged too much in the shot, messing up his accuracy.”
Igor Chytrzynski, Eurospects, ANGT Istanbul 2021
As it’s clear his shot it’s still developing, it’s also evident he needs to improve his technique and his form, but some steps ahead are already done. So far his shot is a bit flat and slow, but starting from the idea we now have formed about this guy, we can definitely say that Mara can grow a lot in this part of the game.
For what concerns the rest of his offensive spectrum, he runs the floor in a very promising way and he’s able to stay ‘patient and poised’ on low block position, ready to receive and capitalize his teammates’ passes.
Besides all of this, he adds a good fade-away shot, which is one of his favorite solutions and which allows us to shift our analysis towards his post-up efficiency.
Of course until now he has faced not so challenging opponents from the physical point of view, also and especially for his not so common size, but, assuming this, he has already showed a more than decent footwork back to the basket, with his good ability to get by the defender with a spin move, or to find the right space for a traditional hook shot, in some case even to use the fade-away we were mentioning before.
He’s very capable to keep the ball high, using his long arms to prevent his rivals from stealing it and he never loads up the defender.
The key in this aspect of the game for him is again the physical factor, because Mara’s body is still one to be built, in addition to a certain kind of toughness in contacts that he have to feed and internalize, with a desirable growth of his frame. Between the two ANGT, in fact, Eurospects has noticed that he has put on a few pounds, while he has still a lot to do about his stamina.
In conclusion, his lacking possibility to create his own shot is also linked with the necessity to give power to his physique, that’s why he often score ‘mainly thanks to good positioning, simple catch and finish situations’, and not with scoring inventions that his talent would allow.
His post-up dimension is still relevant, even if it’ll have to be implemented more, and that makes him a quite frightful presence for his opponents, because, joined with his passing skill, it weakens defense possibilities to stop him and dissuades to send helps.
So finally we can talk about the real elite quality of this player, that is at this point this analysis’ elephant in the room: his excellent ability as a passer. The success in this fundamental for the Zaragoza golden boy is recognized with unanimous enthusiasm.
For our sources, and not only for them, Mara is one of the best that we’ve ever seen, at his age and with his size, in the art of passing, and we find so hard to deny it.
Elite is in particular his pass from the post-up position, but actually he’s so good from many other position, from the elbow to the top, as well as in those great vision for that kind of baseball passes after the rebound, finding the running man in transition. A full-scale playmaking possibility that’s so rare and that, again, represent the Jokic vibes many people feel watching his game.
“[…] what makes him an interesting prospect is his feel for the game and touch around the basket. He reads defenses well and is an excellent passer as Spain at times had him play the point center role even making a few Jokic like handball passes.“
Eric Guilleminault, NbaDraft.net, U-17 World Cup 2022
For him it’s a natural talent, the epitome of his genius and refinement. A gift about personally he’s perfectly aware.
“Since I was little I have read the game well. That is why when I practice I always try to improve the passes that I am going to make the most during the games to fail as few times as possible”.
Aday Mara about his passing, from fiba.basketball
Always referring to FIBA, they reported in an article about him some very interesting data around what probably is his main virtue on the basketball court.
Talking about the U-17 World Cup, they report that ‘with Mara on the floor, Spain had a 47 percent better chance to create viable offense in comparison to him off the court‘. ‘Based on stats from more than 25 games with Mara’ that season (the one before the global tournament), ‘the expected number of possessions with Mara are expected to be above 78 whereas without him over a stretch of 5-10 minutes it could drop down to 67. That means with Mara on the court, his teams are more efficient in getting to shots earlier in the shotclock and therefore being able to produce more possessions.’
The impact of his creativity with the ball in his hand is clear and could be even bigger if he’ll improve his shot and his post-up game as far as the level of his gravity on the court.
“He has a passing skill set that you can’t teach. Court vision, eyes behind his head, timing and accuracy: it is great to spread the floor and kill defensive traps or help. Since Jokic we have not seen any other European international big as good a passer as him.”
Anonymous scout, from fiba.basketball
DEFENSE
For what we can say about his defensive approach, the premises are of course those of the physical aspect. As our sources underline, he can only struggle, paying for his 220cm, but he’s not soft at all, he’s gritty and his has a good timing in blocking shots.
This player has good balance and coordination, besides his large hand and light feet, he’s really mobile for his size and, what he lacks in speed, he can sometimes compensate it with his lenght.
His best defensive skill is undoubtedly his timing in blocking shots, which is surely supported by his very long arms, but also by a strong sense of this fundamental, and this give him great chances as a rim protector. Certainly he’s not switchable, he struggles on switches, because, even if he moves well, he’s easily exposed when he’s outside the paint.
“It is questionable how well he can defend an NBA level pick and roll as he rarely defended anyone above the free throw line extended.”
Eric Guilleminault, NbaDraft.net
Defensively in every pick and roll situation he finds himself into, he’s in serious difficulties and the team has to work hard to cover his holes. His speed and athleticism are what they are, since he’s so high, but he can get better a lot in limiting damages with the right choices and timing. I’ve seen him doing a decent show in defending Howard’s pick and roll, while on Costello’s pops he was an inevitable liability.
Parining him with a defensive and athletic 4, as it is Aaron Gordon near Jokic, and protecting him well tactically, even with a kind of Box-and-one for example, his rim-protector ability inside the paint can really stand out.
At last, in rebounding he doesn’t seem a natural talent, he doesn’t appear so hungry at the boards, the main part of the balls he wins under the rim he takes it thanks to his size, more than for his position or imposing himself in the physical fight. However, at least in his first presences in ACB, I’ve seen a good amount of nastiness in throwing himself to get offensive rebounds. Mara in fact, in the games played so far, has always forced at least one board under his basket and not rarely he had found an occasion to convert some point from the garbage.
Sources: https://www.nbadraftjunkies.com/aday-mara, https://eurospects.com/player/aday-mara/, https://www.nbadraft.net/2022-fiba-u17-world-cup-top-10-international-prospects/, https://www.fiba.basketball/world/u17/2022/news/spain-big-man-mara-passing-his-way-to-star-prospect-status, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZgwyEtFAuBE, https://youtu.be/PWjuG4WvpyU?t=912
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