Khyri Thomas
One of the hottest names at the bottom half of the first round is Khyri Thomas. The 6-3 shooting guard out of Creighton is being touted as one of the best two-way players in the draft pool.
Offensive positioning is an aspect of a player’s game that is often underrated, especially coming out of college. Watching Thomas, this was the first thing that stood out to me. He seems to always to be in the right spot on the floor. Match this with the silky smooth jump shot he possesses and you get a deadly outside shooter.
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He’s already found his range in college, shooting 40.6% throughout his college career, including 41.1% in his final season, on a .44 3-point attempt rate.
His real strength however is his elite defense. He finished off his collegiate career earning Big East Defensive Player of the Year honors in each of his final two seasons, joining legends like Allen Iverson, Alonzo Mourning, Dikembe Mutombo and Patrick Ewing who have done the same.
He makes his money on defense with quick, jabbing steals that would make even the best ball handlers nervous. He’s never caught sleeping covering passing lanes and his deceptive 6-10 wingspan compared to his relatively short height of 6-3 can catch unsuspecting passers by surprise.
He’s also very athletic and can easily take any steal he nabs coast-to-coast for an easy transition score.
While this all sounds great, Thomas does have some negatives. First, Khyri will be one of the oldest players hoping to be drafted, 22, which is probably due to the fact that he’s mostly seen as a late bloomer.
He’s also not much of a playmaker, averaging just 2.5 assists in 27.2 minutes in his three seasons combined. Thomas can also been considered undersized at just 6-3, and his game might actually be better suited at the 3, but he was thrust into the 2 spot because of his lack of size.
Khyri Thomas anticipates in the passing lanes like few others in college basketball. Take a look at this sequence for @BluejayMBB. pic.twitter.com/0aM8jIV6fc
— John Fanta (@John_Fanta) March 3, 2018
He’s getting plenty of comparisons to other current 3-and-D players like Avery Bradley, Jrue Holiday and Robert Covington. Even if he doesn’t reach the ceiling of those guys, he can still turn into a good role player for any team.
If he falls to 30 the Hawks would be hard-pressed not to take a chance on one of the most NBA-ready guards in the draft — someone who can instantly make a positive difference on both offense (and especially) defense.