Mo Bamba to Make 1st Career Start as Nikola Vucevic Sits After Birth of Child

Orlando Magic center Mo Bamba will make his first career NBA start against the San Antonio Spurs on Wednesday, according to Jeff McDonald of the San Antonio Express-News.

Bamba replaces regular starter Nikola Vucevic, who is with his family after his wife gave birth to their child.

A 7-footer with a 7'10" wingspan, Bamba has averaged 6.8 points, 4.6 rebounds and 1.4 blocks in just 16.9 minutes per game.

The Magic are three-point home underdogs, per OddsShark.

Picked sixth overall in the 2018 NBA draft, Bamba shined at Texas thanks to 12.9 points, 10.5 rebounds and 3.7 blocks per game.

Jonathan Wasserman of Bleacher Report compared him to Oklahoma City Thunder forward Nerlens Noel and Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert, saying "a rich-man's Noel works as a comparison in terms of style and shot selection, though the hope is his impact will mirror Gobert's."

Wasserman also said Bamba had "Defensive Player of the Year potential" thanks to his long wingspan, and the 20-year-old has flashed on that end as evidenced by this block on Jazz forward Derrick Favors:

However, Bamba's offensive game still needs work. He's shooting just 48.8 percent from the field overall and is ranked just 47th out of 61 qualified centers in offensive real plus-minus, per ESPN. A 34.6 percent three-point rate is encouraging, although that's based on a limited 52-shot sample size. Still, Bamba is only 28 games into his career and has time to develop his offensive skill set.

He'll get a great test on both ends against a hot Spurs team that has won five of six. Spurs center LaMarcus Aldridge, who is averaging 18.9 points, 9.6 rebounds and 1.2 blocks, should primarily match up with Bamba on Wednesday.