Why Isn’t Tacko Fall Being Given More Opportunities in the NBA?
The 7'6" Behemoth Is A Force On Both Ends of the Floor
Undeniably Impressive Measurables
Tacko Fall is a giant. He stands at 7'6" tall, he’s currently the tallest NBA player, only an inch taller than the next tallest player, Boban Marjanović. What’s most impressive about Tacko, though, is the way his sheer physical size stands out, he’s got an 8'2.25" wingspan, and a 10'2.5" standing reach.
Considering that an NBA hoop is only 10 feet tall, this means that Tacko Fall can dunk without even jumping. That is a feat in itself. Despite his physical presence and imposing height, he went undrafted out of the University of Central Florida after playing for four seasons there until 2019.
Undrafted and Lack of Perimeter Defense
The Boston Celtics decided to give him a shot. He played well enough in the Summer League and preseason before his first year that he made the roster. Many weaknesses he possesses that have been pointed out by NBA scouts and evaluators are that he is merely not quick enough to close out on the perimeter against outside shooters.
He is very adept at guarding the paint and that certainly helps when a team likes to bring the ball inside frequently but many teams in today’s NBA game are focused on maximizing their potential points.
Showing Potential in Limited Playing Time
There are many skilled perimeter shooters at nearly every position now. If a player cannot guard the perimeter even being someone who is at the center position, then they cannot really add value on the defensive end.
With that being said, Tacko’s interior defense is above average for most NBA centers in his limited playing time. He played in 26 games over two seasons for the Boston Celtics. He averaged 6.5 minutes per game and scored 2.7 points per game and averaged nearly a block per game.
He’s got no real jump shot and no outside shot threat. He played the rest of his rookie season with the Maine Red Claws, the Celtics G-League affiliate.
Free-Throw Woes and Other Stats
Over 48 minutes, his blocks would be close to 8 per game. He also grabbed nearly 2 rebounds per game in his limited playing time. I can see that another weakness teams see in his game is the fact that his free throw shooting is horrible.
He is shooting .320 for his career in three short seasons from the free-throw line. Even Shaquille O’Neal, who was notoriously horrendous from the free-throw line shot .527 from the free-throw line over the course of his Hall of Fame career.
Speaking of shooting though, in the two years Tacko played for the Boston Celtics before signing a two-way contract with the Cleveland Cavaliers this offseason, he was shooting .744 from the field.
Struggled Early This Season And Being Cut
He had struggled shooting in the 11 games he played earlier in the season with the Cavaliers. He did start one game this season for the Cavaliers in which he played 19 minutes and had a season-high 4 points and 10 rebounds.
He had only shot .417 from the field, a career-low .286 from the free-throw line. He was averaging 1.1 points per game in 5.3 minutes. This led to him being waived by the Cleveland Cavaliers on January 9, 2022.
Their G-League affiliate picked him up on January 12, 2022, and signed him to a contract. In the G-League, he’s getting his opportunity to show the rest of the NBA how he’s developing and I’m sure because of his G-League emergence, he’ll get more opportunities to show some improvement and allow fans to see this fan-favorite play in a few more games in the future in the NBA to showcase his raw talent on both ends of the floor.
Two Way Contract and Career Highs
Sure, his past shooting percentages from the floor with the Celtics were in limited minutes with limited shots for a guy who could dunk without jumping, but it’s still worth noting as they were impressive. When he’s been given some meaningful minutes, he’s scored and contributed to his team. He hasn’t hit double-digit minutes often. His career-high is 6 points in the NBA, which he hit twice in the 2020 season.
Because he was on a two-way contract, he’s currently playing for the Cleveland Charge, the Cleveland Cavaliers’ G-League Affiliate. He’s definitely been able to play more minutes in the G-League currently and he’s achieved a season-high in points this month by scoring 27 points against the Greensboro Swarm, the Charlotte Hornets’ G-League team.
Showing Improvement
This season with the Charge, he’s averaging 27.7 minutes per game, 15.6 points per game, 10.9 rebounds per game, 0.4 assists per game, 0.6 steals per game, 2.9 blocks per game, and is shooting .737 from the field, and .651 from the free-throw line, both noticeable improvements from his previous seasons from the line and about the same as what he was shooting from the field with the Celtics, a marked improvement from the start of this season with the Cavaliers.
Give Him An Expanded Role When He Comes Back to Play in the NBA
I know the NBA has changed. I’m not asking for a GM or a coach to try to get him a starting role on a team, but he’s certainly worth a second-team consideration given his size and length. I could see him playing his way to about 10–15 minutes, right in the range of the player of another player his height in Boban. He’s certainly got the talent. It looks like the G-League is finally helping him put all of these skills together. Tacko may never be a legitimate star, but he’s certainly shaping up to be a valuable bench role player for years to come.
