Utah Jazz fans caught the full gamut of Grayson Allen tonight, both good and bad. Allen shot the ball poorly after starting for the Jazz, finishing the night just 4-16 from the floor, including 2 of 6 from the three point line. Allen struggled when he got too far into the paint, either getting his shot blocked, or aimlessly throwing the ball at the hoop. He struggled with this against smaller, less athletic players at Duke, so it should be no surprise he struggles with it now.
Allen attributed some of his misses from playing at too high of a speed. While Duke plays quickly, the athletes are at another level it he NBA, and he fell victim to poor decision making with the ball in his hands.
On the flip side, Allen filled the stat sheet, finishing with 11 points, eight rebounds, and seven assists. Allen has a nose for impacting the game, and always seems to be around loose balls. Allen grabbed three offensive rebounds, and turned the ball over only twice.
The rookie said he was nervous to begin the game, as was apparent from his shooting woes, but those appeared to subside in the second half, when he looked more comfortable as a spot up shooter.
Second year center Tony Bradley has an improved body from last season, and it showed against the Spurs. Bradley finished with 11 points and 11 rebounds, and blocked 4 shots against a roster with better than average length. Bradley is still a work in progress, and I’d be surprised if he was a contributor to the Jazz this season, but he’s improved from last season.
Georges Niang was the best player on the floor for the Jazz, and finished with 17 points and 7 of 12 shooting, and 2 of 4 from the three point line. Niang is a borderline NBA player, who will likely spend most of his career on two way contracts, unless he decides he can make more money overseas. He’s got an NBA skillset, but his speed and athleticism are below average, and may keep him out of NBA games.
