Lin Wei Scouting Report

Lin Wei is a 6-foot-3 dynamic self-creator playing for Nanjing in the Chinese league.

This is a guest post written by Harry Zhang.

BORN ON: December 25, 2003

TEAM: Nanjing (Chinese Basketball Association)

Lin Wei is a 6-foot-3 dynamic self-creator who has taken on a larger role this season in the Chinese league, averaging 20.5 points, 3.3 rebounds, and 4.9 assists on shooting splits of 40.5% FG, 34.4 3P%, and 88.3 FT%. Lin has become a key organizer of Nanjing’s offense given his increased responsibilities as a point guard.

Lin is a true three-level scorer. The first thing that stands out when watching him play is his ability to pull up from anywhere on the court. He looks extremely comfortable shooting from the midrange and beyond the arc, using his high release point and dribble combinations to create space and avoid contests. While he can be streaky at times and his shot selection can be worrisome, he has the ability to get hot quickly and take over games. Lin plays with great confidence and is one of the few Chinese players in the CBA trusted to handle the ball in clutch situations. Nanjing often relies on him to orchestrate offense down the stretch, and he has proven to be a reliable clutch player.

Lin doesn’t have the quickest first step, so most of his drives to the rim come out of pick-and-rolls. His shooting gravity forces defenders to step up, allowing him to use his decent burst to blow by slower big men. Although he has shown improvement in his aggressiveness when attacking the rim, he still needs to refine his footwork, rhythm, and physicality to become a more consistent finisher in the paint. Despite being an excellent free-throw shooter (88.3 FT%), he generates only 4.1 free throw attempts per game, which is okay but still has room for growth.

Lin’s natural position is as a shooting guard, but Nanjing has tasked him with playing point guard and initiating the offense at times. He is effective as a primary ballhandler and can make basic reads in pick-and-roll situations, although he is not an elite passer. His 2.0 assist-to-turnover ratio is solid but not exceptional. Continuing to improve his pick-and-roll decision-making and playmaking ability will be crucial for his development, as his size (6-foot-3) would make him an undersized 2-guard at higher levels.

Defensively, Lin has significant room for improvement. He is often too upright, and gets blown by too often. His screen navigation is poor, both from a technical and effort perspective. He can get lost in multiple actions, lose track of his man or get caught ballwatching. Overall, he is a clear negative on this end of the floor, though some of his struggles may be because of his heavy offensive workload (28.1 USG%). Lin tends to show better defensive effort in clutch moments and can occasionally make impactful plays when fully engaged.

At 21.5 years old, Lin is a relatively older prospect. He is not draftable given his current production, size, and defensive limitations. Smaller guards who struggle to consistently attack the paint and defend at a high level have a low floor. It’s good to see that he is continuing to improve some part of his game every year, and his trajectory makes me believe that he may one day become a G League caliber player.

I think Lin may want to go to Summer League, similar to Jacky Cui’s path, but I have doubts about his ballhandling if coaches decide to play him as a point guard. However, I think he definitely has the ability to score at that level.

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Xiaohan Zhang, Harry, is a basketball lover studying anthropology in Hong Kong. He is dreaming of becoming a scout.

Piece edited by Wilko Martínez-Cachero.