BACKGROUND: Born in Mostar, Hercegovina, a town where also NBA player Bojan Bogdanović was born. Practiced karate for six years and then started playing basketball when he was 10 years old. He played in Široki till the end of last season and in the beginning of this season signed a four year contract with Cibona. In February 2020 he also made his debut for Croatian national team and was the top scorer of the team on his first match. Has one older brother, Dario, who is playing for Široki. His basketball idol is LeBron James.
PERSONALITY: Hard worker with great work ethic and always giving 100% percent. Coachable and will adapt quickly and easily to new teams. Doesn’t look for any accolades or honors, has feet on the ground and wants to improve every day.
PHYSICAL/ATHLETIC TOOLS: Has good positional size and capable of playing on different positions. Great motor, never tired and can play with high intensity all game long. Loves to run the floor and sprint in transition. Even though not the most explosive vertically, he can surprise with his athletic abilities sometimes and make a statement dunk. Moves fluidly and has good footwork too.
OFFENSE:
Shooting: Decent shooter. His release could be quicker especially in catch & shoot situations where he needs too much time to make a dip and go into the shooting motion. His shots can be off target sometimes and lacks consistency in his release. When coming off screens he leaves too much space to the defender and should initiate the contact and use the screens better. Definitely an area in his game that has room for improvements.
Pick & rolls: Plays a lot as pick & roll operator. Makes good decisions and knows when to attack or pass the ball. With his size he can put defenders on his back and patiently look for a better solution. Can attack in both directions with both hands and also capable of rejecting screens and going past defenders with his good first step. If you leave him too much space, he will take an off the dribble shot behind the three point line or go a little closer and pull up from mid range.
Slashing: Very good catch & go player and hard to stop when he goes down the lane with full speed. Reads the defender well, finds his weakness and goes by him with an explosive first step. Can finish under sharp angles but his finishes around the rim could be better. Lacks touch and struggles with finishing under contact, especially with his left hand.
Playmaking/passing: Runs as secondary playmaker. His court vision is on a high level and also his passes are strong and sharp. Reads the situations instinctively where the defense is moving and if it is safe to pass. Doesn’t look for fancy passes but sticks to fundamentals. His full court passes are accurate and precise, showing his good passing touch.
Ball handling: Has fundamental ball handling skills. Not showing any advanced ball handling moves but controls the ball and doesn’t make many mistakes. Knows how to maintain dribble under pressure and come out of double teams. Can reach high speed with ball in transition.
Off ball offense: Great court awareness and feel for cuts. Whenever he sees an opportunity, he will try to cut directly to the rim and look for easy points. His defender should always watch him otherwise Mateo will instinctively cut to the rim whenever his defender loses sight of him. Mateo is also showing his instincts in offensive rebounding, he just knows where the ball is going. As I already pointed out in shooting, he could use the screens better and initiate the contact not just run by them.
Transition: Great in transition. Likes to run and excels in transition. Knows his lane with and without the ball, likes to run without the ball while also pushing forward as ball handler. His decision making on the go is on a high level too and usually finds the best solution.
DEFENSE:
Perimeter defense: Very good defender. Brings energy on the defensive end, moves his feet well and can play aggressive on ball defense. His feet and hands are quick and active and even though he is usually not going for steals, he is still making life hard for the offensive player. Anticipates the screens well and can go around them smoothly. His body control and balance is very good and not thrown easily out of balance. Sometimes he is too aggressive which results in an unnecessary foul.
Pick & roll defense: Anticipates the screens well and can go around them smoothly. With his size he is strong and tough enough to even switch on bigger men but usually he is battling through the screen and staying with his man. Directing the offensive player to use the screen and not allowing any rejections.
Off ball defense: Follows closely and goes good around off ball screens too. If the offensive player gets some advantage, Mateo tries to recover as soon as possible. Showing good anticipation for steals that lead to easy points in fastbreak. He makes good rotations, knows when to and when not to help and contests shots on closeouts. Showing his good court awareness and high basketball IQ on the defensive end too.
SUMMARY:
Mateo was mostly overlooked by scouts in recent years but that hasn’t slowed him down, he just worked harder on practices and results are starting to pay off. Not a flashy player that will look for highlight reels but he sticks to the fundamental stuff and gets his job done efficiently. Still not a done product, there are rooms for improvement in all categories but especially in his scoring game – in shooting and in finishing in traffic while also capable to bring other aspects of his game to a higher level. With his versatility in offense and energy in defense, he could find a place in most teams in Europe.
