I knew everything I needed to know about Grant before this draft. ND gets a lot of air time and he had an excellent tourney. Funny, I didn't know
his uncle was Horace
but I can overlook that
I didn't have him on my draft radar at all. #4 was obviously too high. I couldn't envision a sellable trade down scenario (turns out Mudiay was choice #1). I also thought he would be too high to buy/trade a pick for. I think the top 10 was about right, and I figured Grant would get picked up in that 10-14 range. Its really kind of a sweet spot in many drafts. The "high ceiling" guys get scooped up in the top ten and often overlooked are older more seasoned players who rather than "high ceiling" will just have to be comfortable with "damn good ball players."
Seeing Grant slide wasn't surprising... draft is always funny like that. I remember the Jameer Nelson drama, but I think Grant is a hell of a lot better than Nelson. I think the Bobby Jackson comparison is bang on. Look... you are going to live with some suspect shots at times, and he's a high caliber athlete with a lot of confidence so he's going to need to temper some of that. But man I think NY is going love this guy and what he brings. I def see him and Jose starting right away with both guys playing a mix of off and on the ball. Grant's huge for a PG, and has acceptable size for a SG. That might be his better defensive matchup because he's very strong and physical, but he's a solid dude and gives some of that up in later quickness. I wouldn't call it a weakness, but just not his strength.
From
http://www.nbadraft.net/players/jerian-grant
NBA Comparison: Reggie Jackson/Bobby Jackson
Strengths: A familiar face for those who follow college basketball, Jerian Grant is a high level athlete for an NBA guard with explosive hops, strength, quick reflexes, and nice lateral speed ... From an athletic, size standpoint alone, Grant screams NBA translation ... At 6’5’’, and a mature 205 pounds, he possesses excellent size for an NBA point guard, and if you peg him into an off guard he still has good positional size ... Jerian’s athletic ability and length allowed him to finish at a truly elite clip for an NCAA guard ... He made 73.1% of his shots at the rim as a senior ... Grant also has developed into a player who takes extremely good care of the ball, while setting up his teammates at a high level ... His 6.7 assists per game as a senior (7th in the nation), were met with just 2.2 turnovers per game, which was good for a 3.04 assist/to ratio ... Grant is also a strong shooter, both off the dribble, and spotting up ... He hits FT’s at a good clip (78%) ... His ball handling allows him to create space for himself, and he’s a very savvy 1 on 1 player, who has showed improved shot selection as he’s progressed as a player ... From a defensive standpoint, he looks to be a player who can translate to the next level ... He’s capable defending on the ball, and he’s also good in the passing lanes, which allowed him to finish 6th in the ACC in steals per game ... He also is good challenging the shots of smaller guards, and even in the NBA his length will prove an asset when getting a hand up on NBA sized guards ... Grant has also shown the ability to step up in big games ... He looked amazing in Notre Dame’s run in the ACC tournament, and followed it up with a solid NCAA tournament Weaknesses: While a polished and athletic guard, the first thing that comes up with a player like Jerian is how much left does he have to improve ... He’ll turn 23 before his first NBA game, and although I feel he’s not done developing, some may feel he lacks the ceiling of a younger player ... Grant also got off to a hot start his junior year from beyond the arc before sitting out the second half of the season for academic reasons ... Despite an early .408% clip, he regressed as a senior, and shot a pretty unimpressive .316% from downtown ... Although Grant has good shooting ability, many of these shots were not quality shots, often coming off the dribble ... He needs to adjust both his long range shot selection, and just gain more deep reps when looking towards the next level ... He is also viewed as a combo guard of sorts, which isn’t a huge deal because of his positional size, if he is indeed a point guard, then he’s huge, but if he’s an off guard with some point skills, he doesn’t have that same advantage and intrigue ... Improving upon the ability to set up others in the pick and roll will be important to his future ...
Overall: Jerian Grant could help just about any team from day 1, he’s a smart, well rounded player with highlight-reel hops (ask Tadrick Jackson), and NBA level skills at the point ... His development in college leads me to believe he still has some room for growth, and his athletic ability and size is top notch ... Today you’d like your guards to be a little better shooting from distance, but with some reps paired with getting used to his role in the NBA game, that could be something Grant could develop ... Despite his age Grant is most definitely a first round talent, and could be a real sleeper if teams underestimate what he can do, in favor of focusing on the year he was born ...
Notes: Son of former NBA player Harvey Grant, nephew of former NBA player Horace Grant, and brother of Philadelphia 76er Jerami Grant. 1st Team All-ACC 2014-15, 1st Team All-American 2014-15
That writeup was posted 4/22/15
Cheers :)
"winning is more fun... then fun is fun" -Thibs
6/27/2015 11:40 AM