Yeah, that’s still happening.
It may seem as though the race to early entry is all there is to the college game, but there is plenty of evidence that players continue to develop from smaller roles in their early years to stardom as their games and bodies develop and the departure of teammates opens new opportunities.
It’s happening all around, including on some of the most dominant teams in the college game.
Consider these success stories:
Jerian Grant
School: Notre Dame
Position: 6-5 senior guard
2013-14 stats: 19.0 ppg, 6.2 apg
2014-15 stats: 18.2 ppg, 6.3 apg
A year ago, Grant was one of college basketball’s best players right up until the moment he no longer was one of college basketball’s players.
After leading the Irish to an 8-4 start, he was suspended for the remainder of the school year in 2013-14 for an academic violation. The Irish lost 13 of their final 20 games.
Grant handled his transgression nicely, apologizing for the “lack of good judgment and the poor decision.” And he did not waste his time away. He returned to Notre Dame an even more dangerous player, one who is making NBA scouts and ACC opponents take note of his attacking ability.
Grant and teammate Demetrius Jackson are interchangeable as point guard and shooting guard, perhaps the most versatile guard combination in Division I. Coach Mike Brey wants the ball in Grant’s hands as often as possible, and with good reason: He’s had a direct impact on 40.8 percent of ND’s field goals.
Jake Layman
School: Maryland
Position: 6-8 junior forward
2013-14 stats: 11.7 ppg, 5.0 rpg
2014-15 stats: 15.8 ppg, 5.7 apg
When senior forward Dez Wells was injured in the Terps’ CBE Classic title-game victory over Iowa State, the team was in danger of having a promising start implode. Instead it’s turned into an opportunity for Layman to establish himself as one of the Big Ten’s most versatile offensive forwards. And if Wells returns from his wrist injury and plays like Dez Wells, Maryland will own one of the league’s top-two forward combos (along with Wisconsin’s Sam Dekker/Nigel Hayes duo).
Layman was averaging seven shots per game when Wells was active but since has gotten double-figure attempts in five of seven games, six of which were Maryland victories.
Layman has built himself into an ideal “stretch-4”, capable of defending power forwards but presenting a difficult matchup challenge at the offensive end. Layman can handle the ball and drive it, shoot from the perimeter (40.9 percent on threes) and also post up when the opportunity is there.
Maryland will be a serious Big Ten contender if he complements Wells upon his return, rather than deferring to him.
Justin Anderson
School: Virginia
Position: 6-6 junior guard
2013-14 stats: 7.8 ppg, 3.2 rpg
2014-15 stats: 15.1 ppg, 4.8 rpg
Although he made USA Basketball’s U-17 national team in 2010, Anderson’s talent wasn’t beloved among the scouts who follow prep basketball. Scout.com ranked him only No. 63 in the class of 2012 and labeled him a 4-star prospect. One issue was that he was a fine athlete with excellent character who played with great energy – but he wasn’t much of a shooter for a player at his position.
Well, look at him now. He is making more than two 3-pointers per game and hitting at a 60 percent clip. Yeah, that’s right: 24-of-40. That’s 60 percent. Whatever concern there was about the absence of Joe Harris as a shooter has been eliminated entirely, because Anderson’s numbers are superior and he is a better defender.
Virginia has held two teams under 30 points already this season, and not just by playing slowly on offense. They’ve topped 70 points seven times in 11 games. They rank 348th in tempo, according to KenPom.com, but some of that is the product of teams being forced to operate slowly against the Cavaliers. And that’s the case in large part because Anderson and Malcolm Brogdon are strangling opponents on the perimeter.
Tyrone Wallace
School: California
Position: 6-5 junior guard
2013-14 stats: 11.3 ppg, 4.1 rpg
2014-15 stats: 19.5 ppg, 8.9 rpg
Wallace has been a regular at Cal since his freshman season, but he’s a remarkably different player as a junior – and not just because he’s producing more points and rebounds.
He’s different because he no longer is content to stand at a distance and chuck 3-pointers. Look, it’s not as if he was standing around like he was in a pop-a-shot game, but 39.7 percent of his shots came from long distance as a freshman and sophomore. Now it’s 17.5 percent. He averages 6.3 free throws per game now. His first two years, it was less than half that.
The rebounding he’s done represents an exorbitant increase, and he has done it not just against Montana (15) or Eastern Washington (11), but also Texas (8) and Wyoming (8).
Cal is another team that has been without a key player. Forward Jabari Bird has missed five games because of a foot injury, and in those games Wallace’s influence has escalated by necessity. He has averaged 22.4 points in that stretch.
Kyle Wiltjer
School: Gonzaga
Position: 6-10 junior forward
2012-13 stats: 10.2 ppg, 4.2 rpg
2014-15 stats: 16.8 ppg, 5.1 rpg
When Wiltjer completed his sophomore season at Kentucky, coach John Calipari was fairly convinced he would not be playing his junior season in 2013-14. But Calipari did think that season eventually would be played at Kentucky.
Calipari believed Wiltjer needed to spend a year working on his body in order to take full advantage of his talent. Wiltjer ultimately agreed, but decided to do it at Gonzaga. It’s worked out for all involved. UK didn’t need another talented 6-10 guy – wouldn’t THAT have been unfair – and Wiltjer still gets to be a prominent member of a national title contender.
There still is room for growth with Wiltjer’s body, but he has grown stronger. And you can see that in his functionality in the low-post. He is making 62 percent of his two-point attempts, and that includes games against SMU, St. John’s, UCLA and Arizona. Made 3-pointers accounted for just under 50 percent of his point production in his second year at Kentucky. That is down to 27 percent this season.
His rebounding totals could be better, but some of that is a product of being deployed away from the basket because of his perimeter skill.
Willie Cauley-Stein
School: Kentucky
Position: 6-11 junior forward
2013-14 stats: 6.8 ppg, 6.1 rpg
2014-15 stats: 10.5 ppg, 6.7 rpg
Essentially, Cauley-Stein’s improvement at both ends of the court is the greatest reason Kentucky is being viewed as a team that could compile an undefeated regular season.
Cauley-Stein has become such a versatile defender coach John Calipari is deploying him against power forwards primarily, and also switching him onto other hot perimeter players to bury them with length. Providence’s 6-6 LaDontae Henton averages 19.6 points, and he loomed as the most dangerous of the Friars against UK. Cauley-Stein held him to 1-of-8 shooting and 3 points. Remove the Kentucky nightmare from Henton’s record and his scoring average jumps by 1½ points per game and his shooting by 16 percentage points.
On offense, Cauley-Stein has scored some of the team’s biggest baskets, principally when the Wildcats were challenged in an early December home game against Texas. He had 21 in that game. A lot of his points still come on dunks, and the Wildcats are unapologetic about their ability to make the lob an important part of their offense. But he also has become more adept at scoring over defenders in the lane, either with face-up shots or jump-hooks. His decision to remain in college basketball is transforming him from a talent into a player.
Trevor Lacey
School: N.C. State
Position: 6-3 junior guard
2012-13 stats: 17.8 ppg, 5.2 rpg
2014-15 stats: 11.3 ppg, 3.8 rpg
Lacey shot 344 times as a sophomore at Alabama, so he sure as heck couldn’t have transferred out because he wanted more. He was bothered to be playing out of position, though. Tide coach Anthony Grant was surprised when Lacey left, and at this point he’d probably be a bit disappointed, as well. Because this is the player everyone knew Lacey could be when he finished high school and picked the Tide over Kentucky.
Indeed, he has become a more prominent part of State’s offense, if only because he rarely leaves the court. Over his past eight games, he has averaged 3.5 minutes of rest. He has attempted double-figure shots in all but three games.
To this point, he has been a deadly 3-point shooter. His percentages with the Tide always were respectable, but now they’re exceptional. He’s at 45.3 percent from long range, which includes 7-of-13 in splitting the most recent games against Tennessee and West Virginia.
Cameron Payne
School: Murray State
Position: 6-2 sophomore point guard
2013-14 stats: 16.8 ppg, 5.4 apg
2014-15 stats: 18.8 ppg, 5.5 apg
We warned you about Payne upon first seeing him at the Nike’s EYBL Finals at the Peach Jam a few summers ago. He is growing into precisely the point guard we knew he could be. Although his scoring average has increased only by a basket, he’s become a far more productive player.
Payne smacked Evansville with 32 points and 8 assists, and the Racers needed all of that to escape with an 81-79 victory. He has scored in double figures in every game this season and passed for seven or more assists in four of the past five.
His shooting percentages have increased dramatically, particularly on 2-pointers: from 45.5 percent last season to 53.8 now. That’s mostly about growth: He was 5-11, 165 in high school. He’s not a little kid anymore.
