Bryson Tucker Player Evaluation

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Bryson Tucker

IMG Academy (FL)

Does not play Grassroots

Class

2024

Height

6'7 3/4"

Weight

193 lbs

Position

Wingspan

6'9"

Level

High-Major

April 2022

Statistical Sample for the 2021-22 Season (12 Games)

Physical/Athleticism

DOB: 7/5/2006 – a year young for his class
Ideal height and length for the scoring guard position
- 6’7 ¾” with shoes
- 6’7” without shoes
- 6’9” wingspan
Slender frame ripe for muscle development
- Has added functional strength and a considerable amount of lean muscle from his freshman-to-sophomore year
Finesse player who understands how to use his body and is learning how to handle physicality within different parts of the game
Good vertical leap when he can properly load up
- Prefers to jump off of two feet

Hips are a bit tight and slow to open up on changes of direction
Strong stamina
Terrific body control
Very good hand-eye coordination
Great overall timing

Other Offensive Qualities

Offensive Qualities

An advanced, pro-style scorer with a polished offensive game that he can rely on at any time to get a basket
- 3-level bucket-getter who scores in a variety of ways
- Specializes as a jump shooter from midrange and increasingly from behind the arc

Tough shot maker
Plays at his own pace and rarely gets sped up past his comfort level

The truest of scoring guards who played point guard the entire season
- Maintained a score-first approach
- The experience obviously added to and sharpened his overall offensive skillset as the season progressed
  - Improved abilities to function effectively as a primary initiator on the ball
    - Proved himself to be a reliable ball handler and decision-maker
      - 1.7-to-1 assist-to-turnover ratio in the 12 games charted (meant to be a supportive stat and not all-encompassing)
    - Most effective off the ball in traditional scoring guard positions
- Gave him more opportunities to get to his spots around the key and elbow areas
Dissecting a special midrange game
- Excels at each of the levels that exist within the midrange, from short midrange to long midrange
  - Proficient on the catch and off the dribble
- “Getting to his spots” – quickly mastering the skill with signs pointing toward continued improvement, which is downright scary
  - Refined, polished pull-up game can appear like he is going through drills
  - Has a superb feel for the on-ball defender to go along with a real ability to read the positioning of the other four defenders. He uses this feel and ability to internally direct him to his spots.
    - Spots are from both wings, both baselines, each elbow-to-elbow extended, as well as the key area. Also likes to get right into the lane and pull-up from 13-14 feet. He’s got a lot of spots…
  - Uses dribble moves, ball screen work, and one, two, and three-dribble pull-ups going right or left to arrive at the spots

Gets the defense moving laterally, pulls up off a jump stop when he is not yet squared to the rim, then squares in mid-air as he elevates (can do this going right or left)
- Takes advantage of an innate feel for time, space, and momentum; as well as his height, length, and high release

Possesses ball handling skills to effectively get him to his spots (see more below in the “Dribbling” section)
- Capable of beating on-ball defenders who try to press up into his body and crowd him

Uses straight-line dribbles with no change of direction
- Simply hard drives right or left to use the defender’s momentum against them

Utilizes a quick behind-the-back pull back to, again, use the defender’s momentum against them

Employs single change of direction moves into the straight-line hard drives in either direction to aid in space creation
Uses the occasional double move to shake free and create additional separation for space

One of his go-to dribble moves is a spin right, which he is extremely comfortable shooting off of
- Often uses the hard drive left to come back right
- Spin can be tight or elongated to cover more ground and aid with separation

Growing jab-step series that he can couple together with nearly everything listed above

Can mix the spin with a half spin to keep the defense guessing

Understands subtle movements, shifts in weight, and momentum that lead to the slight advantage he needs. Sometimes, he is just looking for something ever-so-slight to give him the green light to make his move.

Prefers shooting going right, but it does not reflect on his effectiveness or willingness to go left. It is simply a preference.
- Moving left, he often uses a slight fade to create more separation for space

Exceptionally effective in the post for his age
- Displays tremendous patience, an superior feel for the defender, and growing vision of the floor

Likes to shoot the one-legged fade, and it is extremely effective

Uses his size, length, and high release to get quality shots from different ranges that depend on his post position and help side positioning
- Low/traditional posts around the blocks/painted area – prefers to turn over his right shoulder and shoot a slight fade
- Wastes little time in these situations. Will often turn over either shoulder after feeling the defender and seeing the help, resulting in a slight-to-full fadeaway conversion.

Will benefit from establishing better position by using his behind and elbows more effectively

Mature, skilled mid-post game and even farther out – employs subtle movements and momentum against the defender. Just takes his time and moves into the shot when he is ready. His set-ups into the shot are simply executed. At least that’s the way he makes it look.

Will kill you turn over either shoulder
Has a baby one-legged KD/Dirk fade over his right shoulder

Can turn and simply elevate over top of the defender

Has an absolutely beautiful turnaround jumper/fadeaway twirling right
- Set up with multiple dribbles left, accompanied by some upper body contact to get defenders moving and slightly back on their heels
- The twirl back right is practiced, smooth, and done with good technique. There’s no time/movement wasted. No hesitation.

High percentage 3-point shooter who mixes his attack from behind the arc between spots-ups, catching and shooting off of movement, off the dribble, and two-man play (see more below in the “Shooting” section)

30.8% of his points came from behind the arc in the 12 games charted
- 27.7% of his shot attempts were from 3
Uses many of the same setups in his midrange game to get the three off

Moving without the ball - highly intelligent
- Feels the defender, reads the defense, and reacts accordingly off the screen
- Has all the necessary cuts in his repertoire
  - Especially good off of pin downs, fades, curls, and L-cuts

Naturally moves to the open areas on the floor
Has room to improve off the ball by becoming a better screener himself
Learning to implement changes of pace
Understands how to use his shoulders and hips to limit space between himself and the screener, while keeping the defender at a manageable angle as he receives the pass

Owns sound footwork off of various screens to set up shots on the catch or the following jab step footwork after the catch
Very effective coming off dribble hand offs going either direction
- Executes many of the same principles coming off of screens without the ball, and will utilize the one and two-dribble pull-up often

Can struggle a little against physicality off the ball

Developing pick-and-roll play
- Prefers to move right-to-left
- Does a good job of coming off shoulder-to-shoulder
- Turns the corner well, getting to the rim and finishing with the left

Will come off the screen and use a change of pace to give him time to read the defense and process his next move

Has improved at reading and running the pick-and-pop

Progressing vision of the court as he comes off the screen

Excellent fundamentals and polished footwork
Excels in offenses with free movement supported by structured concepts off the ball
Highly capable of scoring in bunches
- Has a real nose for the basket
- Can improvise when necessary

Able to board and push himself to put pressure on the defense in transition/semi-transition

Although capable of getting to the rim, he tends to be dependent on the jumper. This dependence can sometimes render his offensive plans predictable.
- Rim attack typically comes off the bounce when defenders press up. Will also use dribble moves or straight-line drives to take advantage of his size against smaller defenders.
- At his best when mixing in the dribble drive with his midrange/long-range attack

Has a tendency to pre-determine his offensive move
Low free throw rate reflects his dependency on the jumper

Finishing
- Largely a finesse player who finishes away from contact
  - Capable of finishing through some contact
    - Should continue to improve as he matures physically

Lacks some explosiveness off the dribble drive through traffic, but is more than capable of finishing above the rim in the open court

Often lifts off of two feet on his drives to the rim
Very capable finisher with his off hand
Has great touch

Shooting

An excellent shooter from all over the floor, inside and outside the arc
Tremendous midrange shot maker and an improving shot maker from deep (see the “Offensive Qualities” section above for more details on his midrange game)
- Very good shooter under duress
  - Elevates nicely
  - Maintains focus on the goal when heavily contested
  - Able to convert, even when not completely squared to the basket
    - More effective unsquared going left
  - Unhurried and largely unbothered

Very consistent shooter from deep with even greater potential for the future. Shot 44.3% on just over 5.1 attempts per game in the 12 games charted. At his best as a catch-and-shooter via spots-ups and off movement, but is capable of knocking it down at a high clip in various situations:
- Spot up catch-and-shoot

Catch, size up the defender, release
- Can add a jab in for good measure

Movement catch-and-shoot

Semi-transition pull-ups

Iso situations off the bounce/iso pull-ups

Dribble handoffs

Extending his range to deeper distances

Versatile footwork into the shot
- Jump stops (going right or left), the 1-2 step (right-left or left-right), or one foot (going left)
- Fades and L cuts, where his momentum is moving backwards
- Post footwork into fadeaways and turnarounds
- Tight curls with limited space
Has improved the quickness of his catch, shoot, and release process
- Gets it off quickly without affecting the accuracy of the shot

Has good touch from all over the court, and it translates around the lane and in the low post
Shot selection
- Highest percentage of his shots come from the various midrange levels, especially 15-17 feet
- Again, just over a quarter of attempts are from 3
- Rarely settles for a shot he doesn’t like, but will force the jumper from midrange or 3-point distance at times. Overall, he displays good judgment.
  - Again, can grow dependent on the jumper and somewhat predictable
Exhibits good muscle memory on various shot types
Mechanics:
- Limits unnecessary movement in the shot
- Preps well for the shot

Right leg is inverted and almost touches his left sometimes. Left foot can also be turned in slightly.
Left shoulder tends to hang open
- Occurs most when shooting going left
High elbow/high release
- Release is perched above his head and uses his wrist as the lever for the shot
Release varies between a fluid stroke that gives the ball good trajectory and more of a shot forward that is flatter in arc
- Experiences some struggles from 3 when his shot is flatter

Dribbling

Uses very fundamental technique by keeping his hand directly on top of the ball
Protects the ball well
- Has a small tendency to allow the dribble to drift too high
Improved as a ball handler as he ran PG for his team throughout the year
- Keeps things simple entering the ball into the offense or initiating offense
- Handled full-court man pressure nicely, utilizing his size and length to protect the ball, while showing solid ball control and an effective change of direction dribble

Takes his time and seldom gets sped up as the ball handler
Can be a bit too upright, which allows smaller defenders to successfully get into his body
- Will improve by handling it from a lower basketball position
Expect the handle to tighten as he progresses overall

As mentioned in the “Offensive Qualities” section above, he has the ball handling skills at the point of attack to get him to his spots or beat defenders who attempt to press up
- Growing his bag of dribble of moves and will dip into it when he needs to create space or get to the rim

Prefers to keep it simple, using his dribbles efficiently with purposes of getting to the spot. No frills.
Displays good ball control on his dribble moves and while “stalling” to allow for the development of off-ball movement
- It is rare for him to fully turn his back to the defense
Has a tendency to initiate the offense from the right side of the floor
Handled zone and man presses quite nicely, not trying to do too much with the dribble

Replaces himself well with the dribble
Improved open court handle that allows him to maneuver through traffic in transition

Passing

Grew as a passer over the course of the season
- Decent, plus growing overall vision and reads the defense well, leading to sound decisions

Capable passer off the live dribble, which he regularly displayed in pick-and-roll play and in transition situations

Shows flashes, but has room to grow as a drive-and-kick threat as he continues to identify the advantages he creates for his team

Shows a maturing ability to pass out of oncoming double teams
Understands how to draw the defender on the break and dish off
Looks to advance the ball in transition with the pass
Tends to get a little tunnel vision when he’s in the middle of reading the on-ball defender
Displayed good judgement passing against zone presses
Sound passer out of the post
Growing court awareness as a distributor, understanding where his teammates are and will be in reaction to his movement with the ball in his hands

Defense

Tends to be passive but, overall, has the potential to be a solid defender
On-ball defense
- Looking to keep his man in front and does not exert much ball pressure
  - Allows the ball handler to operate freely
  - Has a tendency to open up too much, allowing favorable angles for the straight-line drive
- Decent recovery ability against the dribble drive
  - Displays limited hip fluidity
  - Opening up too much will hinder anyone’s ability to recover after being beaten initially
- Defensive stance
  - Keeps his knees slightly bent, while being bent over quite a bit at the waist. Head protrudes forward a bit.
    - Will benefit from sitting down more
    - Makes it more difficult to defend the dribble drive
- Has flashes of on-ball effectiveness
Off-ball defensive stance tends to mirror his on-ball stance when he is not standing up
Contests well using his length and agility
Can struggle with physicality, especially in the post
- Allows easy post position
Will improve with more activity and energy
Serviceable on the defensive boards

Basketball IQ

Very smart; high IQ
Took multiple steps toward learning how to win this season
- Led his team to a 32-7 record; won the Baltimore Catholic League tournament title and the Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association title
Understands the subtleties of time, space, shifts in weight, and momentum
- Manipulates the defense within the confines of space and time using momentum, small movements, and overall feel
- Makes the defender pay for mistakes, no matter how small
Good awareness of time and score
Superior feel for the defender and an advanced ability to read the positioning of the other 4 defenders
- Drives his decision making
  - Reliable decision-maker
    - Averaged 2.1 turnovers despite serving as the primary ball handler and offensive initiator, while playing the majority of the minutes
      - Again, a 1.7-to-1 assist-to-turnover ratio
    - Progressing as a processor overall
- Comprehends how to place himself in position to score
Understands who he is as a player and how to play to his strengths
- For instance, he knows how and when to take advantage of size mismatches

Will play a game within the game at times, using moves/shots to set up other moves and shots later in the game
An unhurried decision-maker that can analyze the court and take what the defense gives him, such as this short pull-up jumper in transition

Dispostion/Presence

Disposition/Presence

Even-keeled
- Keeps cool and stays calm
Let’s his game do the talking, but will let the opposition know about his skills from time-to-time
Stays to himself on the court, for the most part; all business
Doesn’t change in disposition often, but does have a small tendency to display frustration through body language
Learns from his mistakes on the court, and has an ability to limit them moving forward
Competitive nature and plays to win
Plays through adversity
Gradually becoming a leader
Increasing in grit

Coachability

Responds well to coaching
Works hard in practice
Will challenge ideas and engage in dialogue about the game in an effort to increase understanding
- Seeks to break things down in detail
Executes game plans and has no problem making adjustments mid-game
Works with coaches to improve on thinking ahead to the next play/pass, especially against double teams

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