We always hire for likability first. When you say he lacks the skills, do you mean he doesn’t possess the skill set, or the experience? If he doesn’t have the skill set, that could be harder. If he needs to be taught, and then consistently practice to obtain the experience he needs, go with the nice one. You can’t teach nice. I had a very wise teacher say once to me, “The interview is as good as it gets. They are trying hard to impress you...” If he was rough in the interview, it won’t get better than that.