Aleix Font is one of the most solid prospects of the F.C. Barcelona programs in the last year. He is someone who doesn’t make noise during his formation as a player and he didn’t get as much buzz as Eric Vila o Rodions Kurucs, but he was always working on improving his game. He stepped up his game in the last two years, where he became a pro and he’s one of the best players on LEB Gold.
These minutes that he could play at almost max level are the difference between Font and his rivals in international competition. He was more mature than other players at his age. His coldness against France and Lithuania where he got some clutch baskets in the second half and made the difference to win the games. His performance at FIBA U20 Europe Championship was the cherry on the cake in a successful career as a youth player with the Spanish national team. Despite the team results, his individual performance was one of the best of the tournament and empowered him to become the best prospect in Europe of his generation.
He isn’t a playmaker guard or being a secondary handler (this is a basketball idiom), but he is an elite shooter and finisher on fast breaks. Aleix is essentially a shooter who has developed his game into a scorer. From time to time, he is developing his handling and finishing around the rim to become a prolific scorer.
ATHLETICISM
According to FIBA.com, he is listed as 1.93m (6-3) and 76 kg (165lbs). He isn’t an athletic guard and he also doesn’t seem to have any special physical tool (average height, wingspan). He needs to work on building his body to get ready for the contact when he goes to the rim. He is fast and agile and that lets him run the screens on offense and defense, but he needs to be more explosive to climb the career ladder of elite basketball.
OFFENSE
As I said before, Aleix Font is one of the best shooters in Europe at his age. He got a 50% 3pt with a huge volume of shots (>6 per game). He knows how to run then screens and he has a very polished foot technique to get the best spot to shoot. His shot mechanic is very quick and fluid and he can score even if the shot is contested. He has shown as an elite spot up shooter with high percentage in the catch & shoot. Maybe his only black spot on shooting is his shooting off the dribble. He is not so bad, but his range is shorter and he use to do it to shot on the mid-range distance.
He isn’t a playmaker guard so if he doesn’t see a scoring situation he would pass the ball and look for a better spot to do it. He used to go to the rim when he had some space created by blind screens or in 1×0, 2×1 fast breaks. Anyway, when he decides to go to the rim he does with confidence and without trying to evade contact. He can finish with both hands.
DEFENSE
On the defensive end, he needs to improve a lot. As some players at this stage/role, his is focused on stealing the ball while he is defending the passing line. He has good attitude on defense, but his physical development doesn’t let him to be a great defender. He needs to be quicker on lateral movement, he needs to be stronger to hold the contact. His progress in this part of the game would be crucial to become an Euroleague type of player.
