Draft Profile: Skal Labissiere

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Skal Labissiere moved from Haiti to the United States during his middle school years shortly after his home was destroyed during the catastrophic earthquake in 2010. He soon became one of the most hyped recruits of the high school class of 2015. Labissiere owned the No. 1 ranking in the nation for Scout and Rivals, and the No. 2 spot, behind Ben Simmons, on the ESPN 100. The center went on to play one season at the University of Kentucky, where he was the program’s leader in blocked shots.

Possessions Scouted from 2015-16 Season:
OFFENSE: 22.6 percent of possessions
DEFENSE: 25.0 percent of possessions

Skal Labissiere is a long, lanky forward who’s skilled at the offensive end. He has very good form on his jumper, with a high release and a nice arc, and he’s always square to the basket with both his shoulders and his feet. He has good hands and a quick release on catch-and-shoot jumpers. I think he can be a high-level pick-and-pop big. His go-to move is the right-handed jump hook but he can finish nicely with his left hand as well. His jump hook is one of the best I’ve seen from a freshman big man in the last few drafts. He sets a nice, wide base on screens. He is more finesse than physical. Physicality is in him, he just needs the strength to accompany it and bring it out. He rarely boxes out. If he grabs a board, it’s typically due to his size, length or athleticism, and nothing else. He plays naturally with leverage at the defensive end, which is a great positive if he is able to add weight and strength. He plays with effort and does the early work to move post ups off their spots. That being said, he needs to add a great amount of strength to do so at the NBA level. Interestingly, players don’t seem to be affected much by his length. Labissiere has good technique on his ices but his recovery must improve. He did improve greatly from the start of the season to the end, which is a great sign of his coachability.

Skal Labissiere was born on March 18, 1996 in Port-au-Prince, Haiti to Lesly and Ema Labissiere. He began playing basketball at College Canado-Haitien, a junior-senior high school in his home city. However, Labissiere’s home was destroyed during the disastrous earthquake in 2010, and he moved to the United States a few months later. He moved to Memphis, Tenn. and lived with Gerald Hamilton who ran the Reach Your Dream Foundation, a program that brings international players to the U.S. Labissiere attended Evangelical Christian School in Memphis and played on the varsity team as an eighth grader. He spent three years at ECS, but missed most of his junior campaign due to a back injury. He then transferred to play at Lausanne Collegiate school – also in Memphis – for his senior season; however, he was ruled ineligible because he had participated in spring practices with ECS. As an alternative, he ended up playing for Hamilton’s prep team and averaged 26.0 points, 12.0 rebounds and 4.5 blocks per game. Labissiere was considered by many to be the top recruit in the nation from the class of 2015. He was ranked No. 1 nationally by Scout and Rivals, and held a No. 2 ranking on the ESPN 100, which slotted him one spot behind LSU star Ben Simmons. He played in the 2015 Nike Hoop Summit and the Jordan Brand Classic. During the latter contest, he tallied 11 points, 12 rebounds and a pair of blocks. Labissiere played one season at Kentucky, where he averaged 6.6 PPG, 3.1 RPG and 1.6 BPG while playing 15.8 minutes per contest. He tallied 59 blocked shots on the season, which ranked him fifth in the SEC. Labissiere exploded for a season-best 26 points on 10-of-12 shooting during the second game of his career, an 87-57 win on Nov. 14 over NJIT. He posted 18 points, nine rebounds and six blocks against LSU on March 5, an effort that helped him earn an SEC Freshman of the Week nod. In the first round of the NCAA Tournament, Labissiere recorded, 12 points, four rebounds and six blocks, which tied for the second-highest tournament swat total in program history. He declared for the Draft on April 5.