3 Reasons why UCF's Tacko Fall won't be drafted by an NBA team

The history of March Madness is littered with huge upsets, and last night, UCF almost pulled off a win that would have topped them all.

Entering the second round game, most college basketball experts predicted that Zion Williamson and Duke would comfortably sweep the Knights aside, however, UCF held their own throughout, and led by three points with 15 seconds remaining. Nevertheless, the Cinderella story wasn't to be on this occasion, as a mixture of bad luck and the brilliance of Zion Williamson secured a thrilling 77-76 victory for Duke.

Nevertheless, UCF's brave performance elevated a number of players to the public's attention, none more so than the 7-foot-6 Tacko Fall. During a dominant display, the 23-year-old center recorded 15 points and 6 rebounds, and Fall was widely applauded by basketball analysts for limiting the impact of Zion Williamson.

Fall's performance was also enough to renew talk over whether he will be selected in the upcoming NBA draft. Evidently, the big man has a lot to offer to prospective teams, although doubts remain over his ability to make the step up, and here we will look at three reasons why Fall is unlikely to be selected in the upcoming 2019 draft.

#3 His skillset is of the past

NBA teams now want their centers to contribute from beyond the arc

If Fall had declared for the NBA draft five years ago, there is no doubting that a team would have taken a chance on him. For more than a decade, teams around the league were fascinated by the prospect of finding the next Yao Ming, and evidently, Fall is as close as many teams could wish to ever come.

Nevertheless, the NBA has changed immensely over the last half-a-decade, with teams now embracing the three, while also increasingly ignoring traditional positions and player size. The revolution of the three-ball has also led to a near non-existence of centers that cannot offer a threat from beyond the arc, and unfortunately, Fall looks to have emerged five years too late.

#2 Limited offensive ability

Fall's offensive skillset is extremely limited

As discussed, Fall lacks any sort of range in his game, with the senior attempting just one three-pointer during his four years at UCF. Fall has instead utilised his height and power at the rim to his advantage, and while this tactic has served him well in college, its success is unlikely to be replicated in the NBA.

Fall has connected with 75% of his field goal attempts this season, which highlights his problem. The center's huge frame makes him an unstoppable force when he is directly under the rim, although once he steps a few yards back, Fall's offensive skillset is virtually non-existent.

The center's accuracy from the free-throw line has also reached a new low of 36.2%, and it is fair to say that Fall will struggle to have much of an offensive impact when going up against the NBA's most dominant centers such as Anthony Davis and Joel Embiid.

#1 His draft projections are not promising

Most draft projections list Fall outside of the top 100

Fall's strengths and shortcomings are apparent, and NBA teams know exactly what they are getting if they choose to draft him. Nevertheless, it seems that teams around the league are more likely to be swayed by his limitations, as most draft projections have the 23-year-old well outside of the top 100.

Despite his impressive performance in combating the impact of Zion Williamson, serious doubts remain over Fall's ability to adapt to the NBA, and with the draft class improving with every passing year, it seems as though teams won't be willing to use a late second-round pick on the Senegalese center.

Nevertheless, due to Fall standing at 7-foot-6 while possessing an 8-foot wingspan, it remains possible that a team will pick him up for the summer league, and he could still eventually find a route to the NBA.