Originally Posted by
Troublemaker
Interestingly, I was more referring to his sophomore year when he was healthy and it seemed like teams with good rim protection (Utah and Kentucky comes to mind) had their way with him inside. I think he could stand to be more crafty (like Luke was) when big men are in the way; more floater game and midrange game would help, too. But when healthy, he definitely is a threat on the drive and can make unchallenged finishes.
Healthy Grayson (sophomore Grayson), and Luke actually posted almost identical field goal percentages at the rim. Grayson shot just over 60% during his sophomore year at the rim (which comprised about 30% of his shots), while Luke converted 61% of his chances at the rim (18.4% of his shot totals). Those are both really good numbers, especially considering only 20% of their shots at the rim were assisted (which is a decent proxy for measuring the difficulty of a shot at the rim). I think Grayson's relative struggles when confronted with big shot blockers had more to do with a lack of a plan B, as you state above. Grayson shot only 36% on 2pt jumpers while Luke shot almost 50%. In fact, I would be willing to bet that if Luke and Grayson were prohibited from taking anything other than threes or shots at the rim, Grayson would look like a better player as his athleticism would allow him to finish more frequently. However, Luke (who is a better athlete than his perception), was so good at 2 pt jumpers (which include his various floaters, push shots, and other creative finishes) that they were a realistic alternative to going all the way to the rim. Grayson, on the other hand, was better off trying to finish at the rim even if it meant getting his shot blocked because his 2 pt jumper just isn't a particularly efficient weapon. Ideally, Grayson will add a reliable 10-foot jump shot/floater that will help take shot blockers out of the equation.
As a side note, it is clear that injuries really hampered Grayson because he got to the rim less (only 19% of his shots) and finished much more poorly when he did get there (52%) during his junior year. I'm looking forward to a healthy Grayson terrorizing opponents with some more ferocious drives to the rim during his senior campaign.
All stats from hoop-math.
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