Is Tacko Fall actually a good center? At least one prominent analyst says yes

The beloved fan favorite is becoming a force before our eyes.

So far this season, we have seen Boston Celtics two way center Tacko Fall take a big step forward (no pun intended) in his growth as a player, showing off some flashy new skills early in the 2020-21 NBA season.

The University of Central Florida product has shown vastly improved conditioning running the floor, keeping pace with all but the fastest players on the court. He also has better timing and court awareness translating to improved defense — even on former league Most Valuable Players — and Fall has even shown he has a near 3-point jumper with the ability to put the ball on the floor and slash to the basket.

 

But are these new skills only a mirage deployed against some of the league’s worst teams?

To be transparent, his two best games have come against the Washington Wizards and Orlando Magic — not exactly a pair of NBA powerhouses.

The Ringer’s Kevin O’Connor thinks Fall is for real despite this, and shared that he believes that the Senegalese center has what it takes to stick in the league in a recent article.

“If you search for anything on Google, a section turns up related questions called ‘People Also Ask.’ When I searched for ‘Tacko Fall,’ the first question I saw was: ‘Is tacko fall actually good?'” related O’Connor.

“Well, people of the world, I have the answer: Yes, Tacko Fall is actually good. This season, Tacko has blocked Russell Westbrook, banked in a 3* (*actually a deep two because the tippy-toes of his size-22 feet were on the line), attacked a closeout to shake Earth with a dunk, and has just been an overall blast any time he graced the court. Tacko … has a career 25.7 PER, ninth all-time among players to appear in at least 10 games—just behind Wilt Chamberlain and just ahead of Kevin Durant. Legendary stuff, folks.”

“What we have here is another Boban Marjanovic. Boban, who ranks sixth all-time in PER, carved out a career for himself by supersizing lineups and being a lovable teammate” he added.

Pointing to those newly-developed skills, O’Connor is a bonafide believer in Fall’s NBA future after the last week if not before.

And after what we have seen from the gregarious big man, we have to say we’re inclined to agree.

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