Ever since Canadian center Olivier Rioux announced his commitment to Florida there has been discussion about whether he will ever be able to contribute at the high-major level. During his first year in Gainesville his focus was improving his body, and he didn’t get the opportunity to get the kind of live game reps where fans could see where any development had occurred.
Luckily, Rioux was named to Canada’s FIBA U19 World Cup roster, playing alongside a lot of talented future high-major players going against elite competition. This was the first opportunity to see Rioux on the court in some time, so it was the first real checkpoint to see where his development is at.
Ultimately Rioux played in five games and even got a starting role, with Canada having an alright though somewhat disappointing showing. A big loss to Germany in the group phase put Canada on track to see USA in the quarterfinals, and though they played admirably it was America that came away victorious. Here is how Rioux performed in each game of the tournament:
Versus China:
5 Minutes
0 Points
0 Rebounds
0 Assists
1 Foul
Versus Slovenia:
11 Minutes
2 Points
3 Rebounds
0 Assists
1 Foul
1 Turnover
Versus Germany:
9 Minutes
4 Points
2 Rebounds
0 Assists
1 Turnover
Versus Mali:
5 Minutes
2 Points
2 Rebounds
0 Assists
4 Fouls
Versus USA:
12 Minutes
3 Points
2 Rebounds
0 Assists
4 Fouls
1 Steal
2 Blocks
In terms of performance, the first thing that needs to be pointed out is that Rioux played much more than the coaching staff originally expected, and he did look improved from a stamina standpoint. Last year when Rioux played for Canada he couldn’t be on the floor for more than 90 seconds before needing a sub, and one of the limiting factors during his early weeks at Florida in training camp was that he couldn’t do more than 1 or 2 reps in a row–particularly if he had to get up and down the court. This tournament saw Rioux play multiple stretches of 3 or 4 minutes, and while that doesn’t seem like a lot–it is a noticeable improvement.
Offensively, Rioux didn’t have a lot to do other than stand in the dunker spot and he was relatively quiet in that role. However, there was one play that would have looked awfully familiar to Florida fans, as while a guard drove down the lane he did step up to seal his man and eliminate the opportunity for help–something that’s an important job in Florida’s offensive system.
Defensively, it looked like Rioux had improved his mobility from a year ago–though that was a low bar. He is still someone who is not particularly mobile, and while he can take up a of space by simply standing in one spot (he had a comical steal against USA where he was standing under the rim in the same spot for some time with his arms extended sideways, only to have a player pass directly into one of his long trunks for arms), he isn’t someone that can move and adjust to the offense. For this reason he wasn’t much of a shot blocking presence, as he can’t rotate and help out on a drive unless it’s coming right at him.
This lack of mobility also hurts him when it comes to rebounds. When looking at someone of Rioux’s stature (of which, notably–FIBA listed him at 7’8” at this event) you’d think he’d absolutely dominate the glass–but that just doesn’t happen with Rioux. Sure, he’ll get to some balls and keep them alive with his long arms, but he simply isn’t dynamic enough to get to any missed shots that are out of his area. When Canada put up a three he’d get to the middle of the lane and if the miss went right to him he’d secure it without giving any opportunity to his opponent to contest the ball, but anything even a couple of feet in any direction and he just doesn’t have the foot speed to go get it.
Rioux still has a long way to go in his collegiate basketball career, and an event like this does show how far away he is from being someone who can play a regular rotation shift in the SEC–but there was noticeable improvement from a year ago. Rioux will need to continue to work on his mobility, stamina, and basketball IQ, but you can see why the Gators are continuing to invest in his development in hopes that he can one day be a monster in college basketball.