Observations on Alperen Sengun and Sehmus Hazer

October 17^th, 2020

By Alan Lu

I decided to take the time to watch Besiktas’ 2002-born Turkish big man, Alperen Sengun as well as 6-4 combo guard, Sehmus Hazer play against Fenerbahce Ulker in the Turkish BSL in a game that that took place on October 4^th, as I saw this with thanks to YouTube via We are Fenerbahçe.  Alperen Sengun is a young, productive forward that has been putting up very good numbers in Turkey’s top league overseas this year, and 2020 draft entrant, Sehmus Hazer has also been playing well this season.  I took the time to see both of them play, and here are my thoughts on how they fared, as well as how their games may stack up in the NBA.

Alperen Sengun had a solid showing in his team’s loss in this game, as he scored 21 points on a perfect 9-of-9 shooting from the field, and he also made all three of his free throws that he took when he was at the foul line.  He also showed off some rebounding, passing, and shot blocking skills, but he was ran into foul trouble, as he fouled out towards the end of the game.

Sengun excelled at scoring on hustle plays.  He did a great job of scoring on quick, strong put backs after getting offensive rebounds for his team, and he managed to overpower his opponent to get an extra free throw after scoring on a put back once.  He also threw down a dunk off of a roll to the rim, and Sengun also showed that he can score off of cuts and in transition.

He also showed a solid ability to score in the post.  Sengun used a pivot move to score on a sweeping turnaround hook shot, and he also used a crafty ball fake and pivot move to score another time.  He possesses good footwork and shooting touch, and Sengun is a crafty scorer that can finish plays using either hand.  Also, he used multiple pump fakes, as he was effective both times in getting the defender in the air to score on a controlled drive to the rim.

He also displayed solid playmaking skills in this game.  Sengun continually made good passes both off the dribble and from the post to find the open man, and he showed off some solid ball handling skills and court vision to set up numerous scoring opportunities for his teammates.  He was able to dribble past a double team to kick it out to a shooter, and he also can find cutters on the move out of the post.  He also would set plenty of screens to help get his teammates open jump shots, and he also did not turn the ball over once.

Plus, Sengun also did a good job of rebounding the basketball.  He would leap up to get many offensive rebounds in traffic, and he also would tip balls to help his team get defensive rebounds.  However, there was one possession where he committed an over the back foul when trying to go for an offensive board.

Defensively, he looked to be fairly average.  Sengun did a solid job of blocking shots, as he would rotate to opponents in the paint to swat shots around the basket.  He was active in contesting shots off of drives and in the post to force misses, and he showed that he can play solid interior defense when he was in position to do so.  However, he would tend to over-help and over-rotate, as he would leave his man open, and he would tend to be late on his rotations, which would lead him to commit fouls and allow scores.  He also would sometimes struggle to defend quicker opponents in one-on-one situations, as he does not possess great lateral quickness.

In general, Alperen Sengun is a strong, physical big man that can score and rebound the basketball, and he is a better passer than advertised.  He will need to improve his on-ball defense and mobility, and also extend his shooting range.  Right now, he may project to be a second round prospect for the 2021 draft, as he could project to be an effective rotation player similar to Malik Rose in the NBA.

Sehmus Hazer played fairly well in his team’s loss to Fenerbahce Ulker.  He is a better athlete than advertised, as he showed good speed and some surprising hops on the court, and he excelled at scoring and defending in this game.  He did struggle with some turnovers, but he turned in a solid showing overall.

Hazer did a good job of scoring on aggressive drives to the hoop.  He was able to throw down an emphatic dunk in traffic early on, and he also was able to change speeds as he used a stutter step, hesitation move to score off the glass.  He would drive hard to the rim to draw plenty of free throws.  He showed good speed and body control to regularly finish plays around the basket, and he also used a Euro-step move to score on a drive in transition once.  Late in this game, he drove up court after picking off a pass to score on a high-flying breakaway dunk after taking off from just inside the free throw line.  He did struggle to score on floaters, but Hazer generally showed a solid ability to score off the dribble. He also showed a solid ability to knock down jumpers.  Hazer was able to make a pair of wide-open, spot-up threes off the catch, and he had ample time and space to get his shots off to knock them down.

He also displayed average at best playmaking skills in this game.  Hazer is a solid ball handler that can ably create his own shot on a consistent basis, but he was quite turnover prone in this game.  He can throw long, accurate passes to find the open man, and he also split a double team when handling the basketball, as he weaved a pass to a post player in traffic to set up a scoring chance once.  However, he tended to throw hasty, inaccurate passes that would go astray, and he also stepped out of bounds another time.

Also, Hazer did a decent job of grabbing rebounds for his team, and he was able to haul in multiple boards on both ends of the floor.  Plus, Hazer also played solid defense in this game.  He would run in quickly to intercept crosscourt passes to get steals, and he also tipped a pass to a teammate to help his team force another turnover.  He excelled at poking balls away and deflecting passes, and he would make it tough for his opponents to handle the ball or to get their passes through.  Sometimes though, he would gamble too much defensively, which would lead him out of position to allow scores.

In summary, Sehmus Hazer is an athletic, skilled combo guard that can make solid hustle plays on both ends of the floor.  He did a good job of shooting and scoring the basketball, and he also defended well.  He will need to continue to shoot the ball well, and he will need to show that he can effectively run the point in games.  Right now, he may project to be a borderline second round prospect for the 2020 draft, but if things go well for him, he could end up being an effective rotation player similar to former NBA player, Willie Green in the association.

Other Notes:

Besiktas’ 6-10, 2000-born center, Sadik Kabaca had his ups and downs in his team’s loss to Fenerbahce Ulker.  He is a stretch big that can space the floor and make shots from all over the floor, and he also showed off some defensive skills.  However, he struggled to make shots consistently in this game.

Kabaca was able to score on a jump hook, and he also drove to the hoop to score on an emphatic dunk another time.  He did miss on a turnaround jump hook, but still, he managed to show that he can score off of aggressive drives as well as in the post. He also was able to make a deep three and he also made an open mid-range jumper.  However, Kabaca had trouble making threes consistently from beyond the arc.

He displayed fairly average playmaking skills in this game.  Kabaca is an unselfish player that will look to make the extra pass, and he also set a screen to help his teammate score on a jump shot.  However, he would sometimes tend to be inaccurate with his passes, as he threw a couple of balls away that landed out of bounds.

Plus, Kabaca also was able to get his fair share of rebounds, as he was able to haul in boards on both sides of the ball.  He also played decent defense.  He would rotate to deflect and alter shots inside to force misses, and he was active in contesting shots in the paint.  However, he also committed an over the back foul on an opponent’s put back once.  On another play, he struggled to defend a pick and roll ball handler on a switch, which caused him to commit a foul and allow a score simultaneously. Overall, Sadik Kabaca had some good moments in his team’s loss to Fenerbahce Ulker.  He will need to improve his defense and be less mistake-prone in games, but he could be a prospect to keep an eye on in the future.