Trae Young

[No-Man]

His FG% at the rim is 61.5% (36.1% of his shots). For comparison, Bruce Brown shot 62.3% (47.3%) in 2017 and 58.8 (44.2%) thus far in 2018. Collin Sexton shoots 61.7% (39.5%). De'Aaron Fox shot 64.2% (48.1%), Markelle Fultz 61.6% (25.5%). Not saying he can't or shouldn't improve but I don't see a clear weakness here – he drives into bodies and has some creativity and touch around the rim which leads to decent success there (along with the elite ability to get there in the first place it's pretty valuable).

Do you have the HC/Transition splits for FG% at the rim?

Unfortunately not, just what hoop-math.com provides.

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[The-Power]

Do you have the HC/Transition splits for FG% at the rim?

Unfortunately not, just what hoop-math.com provides.

Read on Twitter

Read on Twitter

Thanks for providing the info!

Sample is still too small to read too much into it. Also, it would be helpful to see his fouls drawn rate when he goes to the rim in halfcourt settings as this is obviously huge when it comes to determining his efficiency in those spots.

Whenever I see him he misses some shots around the rim he should make and coverts some tough lay-ups which only the very creative and controlled players can convert regularly. I wouldn't be surprised if he struggles a little more than some bigger Guards against length, but he has decent tools to work with around the rim and, which was an important emphasis in the tweets, he has the floater in his arsenal which really expands his options in those spots and helps to increase his efficiency as a driver in halfcourt settings.

[SeattleJazzFan]

He's 6th in 2PT% and 4th in 3PT% on his team.

Not sure if that's meaningful or not.

Not really sure what the point of this post is.

His TS% is 64%. and he's scoring 29 ppg.

put those two numbers together and it is elite, no matter how you slice it.

[SeattleJazzFan]

This is my gripe about tray on he has to have the ball and I don't know if I will be willing to draft a guy who cannot be effective without the ball in his hands it just got good enough to alter your entire offense around him having a ball is he an NBA player yes is he going to be a good NBA player yes is he worth Drafting and changing my entire philosophy on offense I don't think so

lol. wut? you want the ball in his hands. all the time. he's the ultimate offensive playmaker - hardenesque in the way he creates for himself and for teammates.

[prime1time]

Trae Young is not a perfect player, but his ability to impact the defense when he doesn't have the ball is so powerful, that I don't see how he ends up outside of the lottery. His off the ball shooting will force defenders to play him close. He will be able to get to the hole at will in the NBA. Coupled with his ability to create for others, hit the floater and be an adequate finisher at the rim and you have an offensive dynamo. I would love if he was more athletic and had a longer wingspan but it is what it is. The impact that a great shooter can have on defenses is so great that I don't care. And then you add in ball handling, creating for others and being able to finish? It's a no brainer for me.

As for the fit, he needs to be paired with a big athletic guard to make it work. Even then, teams with two great guards will exploit him (I.E. Wizards). Luckily for him, the vast majority of defenses in the NBA are terrible so he'll be able to score easily. He needs to add muscle. Just like with KD and Steph, teams will get physical with him and try to take him out of his rhythm.

At 19, there is no way to really determine how his basketball career will go. One thing that's for certain, however, is that he's coming into the NBA at the perfect time. If he can tighten up his ball handling (which is already pretty good tbh. He doesn't need to be Steph or Kyrie and he already changes speeds), improve his finishing, get stronger, and tweak his shot selection the I like his potential. In an era of super teams, I think Trae Young can be a starter/main contributor on a championship level team. I'd take him on my team in a heart beat.

[prime1time]

For as rangy and high level his shot is, I actually don't think it's very versatile. He clearly likes the rhythm of dribbling in to his three ball, and he can obviously spot up also, but the way he shoots it I don't think is very conducive to high level off ball shooting.

If you compare his technique to Jamal Murray, for instance, Murray can run off screens or whatever other situation, catch the ball in a variety of situations, and effectively square up and shoot with speed and separation.

Young hasn't been put in that situation much but I don't see it being part of his game based on his form and tendencies. If there's one thing he can be effective at off the ball, it's obviously shooting, but I'm not sure he's off-ball shooting would be as prolific as his on-ball shooting is.

This is silly. I come on this website and I have to read post after post telling me how - insert athletic bad shooter here - is going to be amazing once he improves his jumper. Now that we have a guy with a good jumper, I have to read how he can't improve. Assuming that what you point out are real flaws, the fixes are easy. Therefore, why should we harp on something that can easily be remedied? Give me one player that could consistently shoot well off the dribble but couldn't make catch and shoots? The toughest aspect of shooting is to develop a consistent concise shooting motion. Once you have that, the other stuff is easy.

[prime1time]

This is my gripe about tray on he has to have the ball and I don't know if I will be willing to draft a guy who cannot be effective without the ball in his hands it just got good enough to alter your entire offense around him having a ball is he an NBA player yes is he going to be a good NBA player yes is he worth Drafting and changing my entire philosophy on offense I don't think so

C'mon breh. Does Trae Young project as Kobe or LBJ or James Harden? No. But can he be an absolute fixture for a championship squad as a guy who fills a specific role ala Draymond? Yes. Teams that already have their 'stars' will see the benefit of Trae Young. Trae Young is the type of player that good franchises draft. I'd love to see him on the Spurs, but that would never happen.

[GimmeDat]

For as rangy and high level his shot is, I actually don't think it's very versatile. He clearly likes the rhythm of dribbling in to his three ball, and he can obviously spot up also, but the way he shoots it I don't think is very conducive to high level off ball shooting.

If you compare his technique to Jamal Murray, for instance, Murray can run off screens or whatever other situation, catch the ball in a variety of situations, and effectively square up and shoot with speed and separation.

Young hasn't been put in that situation much but I don't see it being part of his game based on his form and tendencies. If there's one thing he can be effective at off the ball, it's obviously shooting, but I'm not sure he's off-ball shooting would be as prolific as his on-ball shooting is.

This is silly. I come on this website and I have to read post after post telling me how - insert athletic bad shooter here - is going to be amazing once he improves his jumper. Now that we have a guy with a good jumper, I have to read how he can't improve. Assuming that what you point out are real flaws, the fixes are easy. Therefore, why should we harp on something that can easily be remedied? Give me one player that could consistently shoot well off the dribble but couldn't make catch and shoots? The toughest aspect of shooting is to develop a consistent concise shooting motion. Once you have that, the other stuff is easy.

I didn't say he couldn't catch and shoot. He's undersized, he has a low release, and he 'sets up' his shot a bit, shows ability to get his shot off in a variety of off ball situations is low, imo.

[doordoor123]

For as rangy and high level his shot is, I actually don't think it's very versatile. He clearly likes the rhythm of dribbling in to his three ball, and he can obviously spot up also, but the way he shoots it I don't think is very conducive to high level off ball shooting.

If you compare his technique to Jamal Murray, for instance, Murray can run off screens or whatever other situation, catch the ball in a variety of situations, and effectively square up and shoot with speed and separation.

Young hasn't been put in that situation much but I don't see it being part of his game based on his form and tendencies. If there's one thing he can be effective at off the ball, it's obviously shooting, but I'm not sure he's off-ball shooting would be as prolific as his on-ball shooting is.

This is silly. I come on this website and I have to read post after post telling me how - insert athletic bad shooter here - is going to be amazing once he improves his jumper. Now that we have a guy with a good jumper, I have to read how he can't improve. Assuming that what you point out are real flaws, the fixes are easy. Therefore, why should we harp on something that can easily be remedied? Give me one player that could consistently shoot well off the dribble but couldn't make catch and shoots? The toughest aspect of shooting is to develop a consistent concise shooting motion. Once you have that, the other stuff is easy.

I didn't say he couldn't catch and shoot. He's undersized, he has a low release, and he 'sets up' his shot a bit, shows ability to get his shot off in a variety of off ball situations is low, imo.

I don’t know where this came from that he has a low release. He gets his shot off so quick it’s hard to even tell where his release is. But his arc is beautiful, it looks like it’s going in every time. I get what you’re saying, but I would think his lightning-quick release would be hard to guard even off-ball.

[916fan]

I was unsure on where to rank Young, but I have him lotto now. If he seriously keeps this up till the end of the season, he's going to end up a top 5 pick.

[blazeyo]

This is silly. I come on this website and I have to read post after post telling me how - insert athletic bad shooter here - is going to be amazing once he improves his jumper. Now that we have a guy with a good jumper, I have to read how he can't improve. Assuming that what you point out are real flaws, the fixes are easy. Therefore, why should we harp on something that can easily be remedied? Give me one player that could consistently shoot well off the dribble but couldn't make catch and shoots? The toughest aspect of shooting is to develop a consistent concise shooting motion. Once you have that, the other stuff is easy.

I didn't say he couldn't catch and shoot. He's undersized, he has a low release, and he 'sets up' his shot a bit, shows ability to get his shot off in a variety of off ball situations is low, imo.

I don’t know where this came from that he has a low release. He gets his shot off so quick it’s hard to even tell where his release is. But his arc is beautiful, it looks like it’s going in every time. I get what you’re saying, but I would think his lightning-quick release would be hard to guard even off-ball.

Did anyone watch the game? How did he score 22 assists?

[Mulhollanddrive]

This guy is going to end up with Dantoni somehow and finish top 5 in MVP.

[akhan786]

This guy is going to end up with Dantoni somehow and finish top 5 in MVP.

Any Dantoni disciples coaching in the league? They should try to nab Trae up.

[akhan786]

Hot take: I contend that if Trae wasn't as fugly, he'd be ranked a lot higher. What separates him from Kyrie as a prospect?

His shot is a bit too slow for my taste (similar to how Lonzo's shot has been bothered quite a bit in the league), but if his shooting translates, this kid looks like an All-star level PG.

[Mulhollanddrive]

I think it's just a size issue as there was the same discussion around Malik Monk when he was averaging 23+ ppg this time last year. But if Young can average 10 assists he then can then be more of a 2nd-3rd efficient scoring option instead of needing 20+ every game at NBA level.

[doordoor123]

I think it's just a size issue as there was the same discussion around Malik Monk when he was averaging 23+ ppg this time last year. But if Young can average 10 assists he then can then be more of a 2nd-3rd efficient scoring option instead of needing 20+ every game at NBA level.

Also think about him on an NBA team, with players that are actually above average. He’s literally doing everything for his team right now. I think his whole team is trash and he’s winning with them.

[SeattleJazzFan]

I didn't say he couldn't catch and shoot. He's undersized, he has a low release, and he 'sets up' his shot a bit, shows ability to get his shot off in a variety of off ball situations is low, imo.

I don’t know where this came from that he has a low release. He gets his shot off so quick it’s hard to even tell where his release is. But his arc is beautiful, it looks like it’s going in every time. I get what you’re saying, but I would think his lightning-quick release would be hard to guard even off-ball.

Did anyone watch the game? How did he score 22 assists?

he carved em' up. an just like in any game, he could have had about 5-6 more if guys had just made layups/wide open threes.

but seriously, he just dominated the game on the offensive end. like he always does just created ridiculously easy shots for teammates. and imo, it is very important to note he had those 22 assists (and 26 points) in just 29 minutes.

[GIMME_DATT]

Most interesting player in the draft right now

Really interested to see him at the next level

[prime1time]

I didn't say he couldn't catch and shoot. He's undersized, he has a low release, and he 'sets up' his shot a bit, shows ability to get his shot off in a variety of off ball situations is low, imo.

I don’t know where this came from that he has a low release. He gets his shot off so quick it’s hard to even tell where his release is. But his arc is beautiful, it looks like it’s going in every time. I get what you’re saying, but I would think his lightning-quick release would be hard to guard even off-ball.

Did anyone watch the game? How did he score 22 assists?

I don't care what anyone says, you don't get 22 assists without great vision and passing ability. To get that many assists requires you to constantly give the ball to people who are in a position to get an easy score. The only question about Young now is how translatable his game is to the NBA. He's up there with the best college pg's we've ever seen.

[Mulhollanddrive]

It's interesting he has a completely different narrative to Lonzo Ball.

Oklahoma are 9-1 after going 11-20 last season but no storyline of being a winner or making his teammates better.
3 Assists more per game than Ball but no favourable comparisons to other great passing PGs.