Tyon Grant-Foster

[FarBeyondDriven]

I think he deserves his own thread. I spent a great deal of time watching as much available tape as I can and I'm convinced he's a top 5 talent in this draft class.

He's pretty much a carbon copy of Jaylen Brown physically and athletically

Brown

6' 5.25" with a 6' 11.75" wingspan at 222 lbs

Grant-Foster

6' 5.75" with a 6' 11.75" wingspan at 215 lbs

Grant-Foster is what small forwards are supposed to look like. Long, powerful, explosive and can score on all three levels and defend. The knocks on him are that a few years ago he had a mysterious heart illness and after that, with COVID and transferring, his circuitous route has him entering the NBA as a 24 y/o. But he's a beast with a high motor and plays both ends of the floor. He averaged over 1.5 steals and blocks! That's pretty damn rare.

He and Knecht imo are the most NBA ready players in this draft. Day 1 contributors. I'm surprised by the lack of talk surrounding him. It has me wondering if I'm crazy and way off base or whether teams are hoping nobody notices so they can swoop in and get him.
There's no escaping the age issue. But I will remind you that Bird was 23 y/o when he came into the league and Hield was 24 y/o and taken 6th overall. With how little mileage he has there's no reason why he can't enjoy a great 10-12 year career.

When teams take 19 y/o kids with this type of athletic and physical profile, guys like Jaylen Brown and Jonathan Kuminga, they're hoping that when these guys are fully developed they'll be the player that Grant-Foster is now. It took until Jaylen Brown's 4th year, his age 23 season, before he was as good as Grant-Foster is now. Kuminga is entering his 4th season at age 22 and he's still just about 75-80% the player Grant-Foster is.

I know his level of competition was lower but he can't control that. And when he finally faced great competition, despite being a one-man team and getting injured in the game, he put up 29 against Alabama.

I'm taking Holland over him and only because he has similar upside but is younger. I don't think any of the other wings in this draft class have higher upside or will contribute immediately like Grant-Foster. Not Buzelis, Risacher, Williams or Watkins. The fact that he was advised not to play in the scrimmage should be viewed as him likely getting a 1st round promise.

a reminder of his impressive combination of size, power and skill

Watch on YouTube

[Chuck Everett]

I think he can play, I just don't know what team should be looking at him. I mean, if I had a choice, he actually might not be a bad place for Washington (in the 2nd round) because they should have minutes available and Johnny Davis is a bust. Cleveland and Chicago would also not be bad places either. His age is a deterrent, but he should find a place.

Wouldn't shock me if he showed out during Summer League with the kind of spacing the NBA offers.

[babyjax13]

The physicality and some of the skill is interesting, not sure I trust the jumper. When I see guys like this I get Rayjon Tucker flashbacks - insane athlete with a jumper that looked okay but just never went in. Tyon is obviously bigger and that gives him more margin for error.

[2weekswithpay]

I think people are using the term 3-level scorer too loosely. Tyon only shoots 33% from 3 and Barttorvik has him at 55% at the rim which isn't great for someone who's 6'7 and is being compared to Jaylen Brown athletically. Brown was above 60% at the rim as a freshman.

[FarBeyondDriven]

I think people are using the term 3-level scorer too loosely. Tyon only shoots 33% from 3 and Barttorvik has him at 55% at the rim which isn't great for someone who's 6'7 and is being compared to Jaylen Brown athletically. Brown was above 60% at the rim as a freshman.

if a guy can shoot threes, has a mid-range game and finishes at and above the rim he's a 3 level scorer. It's not that deep. You know it when you see it because it's very rare.

[shangrila]

I think people are using the term 3-level scorer too loosely. Tyon only shoots 33% from 3 and Barttorvik has him at 55% at the rim which isn't great for someone who's 6'7 and is being compared to Jaylen Brown athletically. Brown was above 60% at the rim as a freshman.

if a guy can shoot threes, has a mid-range game and finishes at and above the rim he's a 3 level scorer. It's not that deep. You know it when you see it because it's very rare.

So do you have a threshold for a good 3 level scorer? Or are you just saying that TGF can score for all 3 levels?

[shangrila]

The physicality and some of the skill is interesting, not sure I trust the jumper. When I see guys like this I get Rayjon Tucker flashbacks - insane athlete with a jumper that looked okay but just never went in. Tyon is obviously bigger and that gives him more margin for error.

Yeah, I like everything aside from the shot and I guess the age (although it's understandable in context).

He's a ridiculously quick and twitchy athlete who was able to beat anyone in his conference to the basket. Combine it with long strides and extension and I can see him thriving in the more wide-open NBA.

But that shot form is so bad it needs an entire tear-down.

[FarBeyondDriven]

The physicality and some of the skill is interesting, not sure I trust the jumper. When I see guys like this I get Rayjon Tucker flashbacks - insane athlete with a jumper that looked okay but just never went in. Tyon is obviously bigger and that gives him more margin for error.

Yeah, I like everything aside from the shot and I guess the age (although it's understandable in context).

He's a ridiculously quick and twitchy athlete who was able to beat anyone in his conference to the basket. Combine it with long strides and extension and I can see him thriving in the more wide-open NBA.

But that shot form is so bad it needs an entire tear-down.

it's a weird shot. He has a Ray Allen hitch at the top of his jumper. But not all the time. The kind of form that isn't really repeatable and will lead to hot and cold streaks. He's a hard worker and I imagine they're working on that very thing before the draft.

[babyjax13]

The physicality and some of the skill is interesting, not sure I trust the jumper. When I see guys like this I get Rayjon Tucker flashbacks - insane athlete with a jumper that looked okay but just never went in. Tyon is obviously bigger and that gives him more margin for error.

Yeah, I like everything aside from the shot and I guess the age (although it's understandable in context).

He's a ridiculously quick and twitchy athlete who was able to beat anyone in his conference to the basket. Combine it with long strides and extension and I can see him thriving in the more wide-open NBA.

But that shot form is so bad it needs an entire tear-down.

it's a weird shot. He has a Ray Allen hitch at the top of his jumper. But not all the time. The kind of form that isn't really repeatable and will lead to hold and cold streaks. He's a hard worker and I imagine they're working on that very thing before the draft.

My worry is that the poor shot and less-than-expected rim finishing is a sign he has poor touch. But even then I think he can carve out a role with that athletecism and some development around the edges. You are probably right he gets drafted, that or he has an offer lined up with a preferred team and does not want to be drafted.

[shangrila]

The physicality and some of the skill is interesting, not sure I trust the jumper. When I see guys like this I get Rayjon Tucker flashbacks - insane athlete with a jumper that looked okay but just never went in. Tyon is obviously bigger and that gives him more margin for error.

Yeah, I like everything aside from the shot and I guess the age (although it's understandable in context).

He's a ridiculously quick and twitchy athlete who was able to beat anyone in his conference to the basket. Combine it with long strides and extension and I can see him thriving in the more wide-open NBA.

But that shot form is so bad it needs an entire tear-down.

it's a weird shot. He has a Ray Allen hitch at the top of his jumper. But not all the time. The kind of form that isn't really repeatable and will lead to hold and cold streaks. He's a hard worker and I imagine they're working on that very thing before the draft.

Hopefully. I'd like him to get more consistent extension on his follow through in terms of upper body.

His legs concern me as well though. There's too much movement there when he's going up and It looks like it throws his balance off.