Oliver Rioux's unprecedented height makes him a captivating basketball prospect, but modern pace and versatility expose limitations that may ultimately keep him from thriving at the professional level, let alone the NBA.
Standing at a towering 7-foot-9 (236 cm), Oliver Rioux has been turning heads in the basketball world for years, due to his mind-blowing height that is truly rare.
Once labeled the tallest teenager in the world, the Canadian big man has become a viral sensation and a fascinating prospect to watch.
But beyond the viral clips and highlight reels, there's a more complex question forming: Can Olivier Rioux actually make it to the NBA?
Will Olivier Rioux make the NBA?
After committing to the University of Florida, Rioux spent his redshirt season away from game action, focusing intensely on transforming his body.
He dedicated himself to building muscle, improving his athleticism, and developing the fundamental skills necessary to play high-level basketball.
Olivier Rioux with Team Canada
Olivier Rioux with Team Canada
Credit FIBA Media
It's a long-term project, and his path is unlike anything we've seen in recent years. However, there are a few major disadvantages to that height, which will be very hard to overcome.
Defensive struggles and drop coverage dilemma
As inspiring as it sounds for someone of that height to try to make it to the NBA, we all know the trends in basketball and the challenges even more mobile centers face when they aren't mobile enough.
With his height, being taller than NBA players like Manute Bol and Gheorghe Muresan, Rioux belongs to an even more special category.
The primary pick-and-roll defense that any team at any competition level would use with a giant like Rioux is deep drop coverage, which is almost nonexistent in modern basketball.
Drop coverage is still used by some slower centers like Nikola Jokic or Alperen Sengun, but the type of drop that Rioux would have to play is an even deeper one.
This creates a serious problem that hasn't been solved, and he would be targeted on every single possession, not just in the NBA, but in any professional basketball league, especially in today's era of constant mismatch hunting.
Olivier Rioux blocking the opponent
Olivier Rioux blocking the opponent
Credit FIBA Media
Even better defensive players than Rioux, who are far more mobile, are constantly being targeted because they struggle to perform well in certain schemes, such as switch defense.
We've seen that a million times in the NBA. Just look at how Tyrese Haliburton destroyed Jarrett Allen in those situations, and Allen is one of the best big-man defenders in the league. Yet he was still hunted relentlessly.
So, it's safe to say that it would be impossible for Rioux to survive in any serious basketball league defensively.
If your primary coverage is deep drop and, beyond that, you're extremely slow and unable to move, rotate, or close out, then you can't play pro-level basketball, at least not in any kind of decent-minute role.
Too slow for the modern pace
Basketball is faster than ever, and every year it continues to evolve at a rapid pace.
Teams around the world are embracing the modern tendencies of pushing the ball and speeding up the game.
That alone makes it nearly impossible for a big man like Rioux to keep up, even before we get into half-court defense and his struggles in pick-and-roll coverage or rotations.
He wouldn't even be able to get back in transition to defend his man if the opposing team is playing fast.
And if you can't get back on defense, you're already a liability before the possession even reaches the half-court.
Can offense save Olivier Rioux?
Offensively, the situation is slightly better for Oliver Rioux, but only slightly.
In theory, a player of his size could potentially compensate for defensive shortcomings by becoming a dominant force on the offensive glass.
However, well-organized teams can neutralize that theoretical advantage through collective effort.
In modern basketball, rebounding, especially on the offensive end, is about much more than just size. It's about positioning, timing, quick reactions, and having fast, agile footwork to get inside leverage.
Unfortunately, due to the way Rioux is built, these are all things he lacks. His body simply doesn't allow for the speed, balance, or flexibility needed to compete at the highest level in those gritty, physical rebounding battles.
Olivier Rioux dunking
Olivier Rioux dunking
Credit FIBA Media
Take the recent FIBA U19 World Cup as a real-world example. Despite being one of the tallest players to ever appear in a FIBA event, Rioux only played around nine minutes per game and averaged just 0.4 offensive rebounds per contest.
That's a stunningly low number considering his physical advantages. It clearly shows that he's not dominating the glass in any meaningful way, even against teenagers, let alone grown professionals.
So while the offensive side might seem a bit more promising on the surface, the deeper you look, the more it becomes clear that the same physical limitations that hurt Rioux on defense also limit his effectiveness on offense.
No shooting, no spacing, no role
Another issue is that Rioux does not shoot threes, which means he can't stretch the floor—a crucial skill in today's game.
This lack of shooting significantly affects spacing, as it limits what a team can do offensively when he's on the court.
Because of that, his natural offensive role becomes very restricted, usually placing him in the dunker spot, where he simply waits for dump-off passes or put-back opportunities.
Olivier Rioux NBA Draft verdict
So, no matter how you look at it, Rioux is highly unlikely to play or have a real impact in any serious professional basketball league across the globe, let alone be drafted to the NBA.
And this isn't something he should be criticized for; it's just a reflection of how the game has evolved.
The game evolves, so do the players, strategies, and overall demands—and in today's basketball world, there simply isn't a place for a 7-foot-9 player to have a serious role. That's just the reality.
Vukašin Nedeljković
Vukašin played basketball competitively in his youth, and now contributes to Synergy Sports Technology and Sportradar regarding basketball analysis. He also has experience working as a journalist in Serbia and is passionate about writing basketball articles mainly focused on basketball X's and O's.
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