It's difficult to get a read on this kid but the fact that he has international experience and is coming in as a 23-year old who was given an Exhibit 10 contract to play in the G-league is interesting. This game vs Canada is an impressive result. I searched for a video of the game but have not found it yet but the fact that he dominated the Canadian U23 team in this game is very promising. No one on either team scored more than 16 points but Mariano had 27, 10 & 5 Blocks.
Canada's team was filled with high D-1 players who averaged double-figures this year. Their frontcourt had Michael Nwoko (LSU), Elijah Mayi (Santa Clara), Enoch Boakye (Nova) and more with Aden Holloway, Xavian Lee and Vasean Allette in the backcourt. Brasil won 85-78 with Mariano taking over the game. You have to have some ability to take over a game against good competition.
From watching his highlights, he reminds me of a young Tyrese Samuel. 6'9" 220 pound Forward who has 3-pt range, runs the floor well, can handle the ball a bit and is good at driving to the rim when he has some space. Shows some agility and skill in the post but he looks like a pick and pop, pick and roll type who can also sit in the corner and hit an open 3. Is a decent weakside shotblocker, can't really evaluate his rebounding or overall defense.
Samuel was talented but was underwhelming his first 3 years at SH. He didn't become a good, reliable player until his Senior year under Sha. Sha played him at the 5 and forced him to play inside. Can Sha get Mariano to buy into using his size and agility to score more inside and not spend most of his time on the perimeter? If so, he might be a useful player. Pleased to see us dipping into the international pool and G-League pool.
fibalivestats.dcd.shared.geniussports.com
