Joey Graham

Overview: A decent small forward with all kinds of physical assets who hasn’t developed his game enough to warrant consistent minutes. One of the strongest players at his position in the NBA. Couples his great build with good size and a big wingspan. Possesses very good overall athleticism. Shows a nice first step, runs the floor well, and can make some explosive plays at the rim. Hasn’t developed the perimeter skills necessary to be a contributor, and lacks a great feel for the game. Can play tough defense. Had a nice two year stint at Oklahoma State after starting his career at Central Florida. Was very productive as a senior. Garnered a selection in the middle of the first round. Has had a very hard time breaking out of his combo forward mold to become a legitimate NBA roleplayer. Needs to make some significant improvements to his perimeter game to get some long-term security. Currently not a threat from beyond the arc and not a good enough ball-handler to consistently create his own shot. Has become a bit more perimeter oriented recently. Has the physical tools to be a good player, but needs to build his game to fit a role. Twin brother Stephen currently plays for the Indiana Pacers.

Offense: Has been a somewhat efficient option in limited opportunities recently, but has struggled historically. Gets most of his touches in spot up situations, in the post against smaller wings, cutting to the rim, and going one-on-one. Doesn’t have ideal form on his jumper. Defenses don’t have to respect him from beyond the arc. Gets good elevation, but lacks the touch to be an effective catch and shoot player. Much more effective off the dribble. Hits pull up jumpers at a respectable rate, and is much more comfortable when he’s able to get closer to the rim for his shot. Not going to take many threes, and not going to make many either. Hits the 15-footer consistently, and has found more chances to take it recently. An average ball-handler who is unable to turn the corner consistently. Likes to drive right when he puts the ball on the floor and when he does go left, likes to go all the way to the rim. Hasn’t shown the capability to put the ball on the floor very effectively in the half-court. Showing some improvements in the consistency of his pull up jumper. Will still have some bouts of inconsistency, especially against defenders who can contest his shot. Strength gives him the ability to get separation when he initiates contact. Tough to stop when he has a head of steam on the fast break. Can do some damage in the post against weaker defenders. Not a bad finisher at the rim due to his explosiveness and strength. Will get a little wild at the rim when he forces things. Goes to the line at a solid rate and shoots at very solid percentage. Runs the floor well in transition and moves well without the ball. Needs to continue improving his perimeter skills to not be a liability offensively. If he could add about five feet or so of range to his jumper he’d be a much more passable roleplayer.

Defense: A somewhat disinterested defender who has the physical traits to be a nice stopper. Doesn’t always show the best intensity or focus on the defensive end, choosing to rely on his strength too often. Lacks awareness and feel on this end of the floor. Will get beaten off the dribble periodically when he doesn’t get in a good stance. Likes to try and push his man out of position when he’s forced to recover. Gets called for a ton of fouls for a wing player getting limited minutes. Isn’t very active when his man has the ball. More of a reactive defender than anything else. Won’t give up an inch to most wings in the post due to his physical stature. Doesn’t fight through screens as well as he should. Rebounds the ball at an excellent rate. Won’t force many turnovers. Would be much more valuable off the bench if he focused his energies and focus towards being a good defender.

Graham had another solid outing, and it is obvious that his strengths allow him to dominate on this level. He’s as strong as most centers, and will bully his man offensively. Today he showed a nice midrange jumper, using a physical move at his man’s shoulder to create space to push him out of the way before pulling up and knocking down elbow-range jumpers. His ball handling leaves a lot to be desired, but if he learns to use his body better, he could hide that weakness.

Graham didn’t have much of an impact on the game defensively, since Denver was able to capitalize on any number of mismatches. However, most of the points the Nuggets scored from the outside weren’t on Graham, and he even spent some time covering the post. He’s a great rebounder, and obviously has some tools, but he’s still a few more feet of consistent range on his jumper away from being a nice role player.

Graham had a very nice showing today, but didn’t do anything that we haven’t seen in this setting before. He’s impossible to stop when he has a head of steam, using his body to shield the ball and get to the rim. With a chiseled frame, Graham is a physical marvel, but his perimeter game is still lagging. Despite consistent shooting form, Graham doesn’t have any touch on his jumper, rendering it largely ineffective. He gets overaggressive at times, leading to turnovers. His lateral quickness is good, but he isn’t terribly quick with his crossover when he has to react to a defender. Playing good defense will be key to Graham’s future, and though he did some good work tonight, both offensively and defensively. He still has a lot of things that he needs to work on.

Strengths
The first thing to talk about with Joey Graham is his impressively sculpted body. At 6'7 and 225, Graham looks like he could be playing in the NFL. With his combination of first tier athleticism and superior strength, there are very few NBA wing prospects as physically equipped to play in the league. Once Graham gets going to the basket, rim-rocking dunks are sure to follow. He uses his leaping ability and long wingspan to convert with ease near the basket, and rarely forces things at the offensive end. However, where Graham's potential really shows through is on the defensive end. He is a converted PF, and this tendency towards physical play could allow him to develop into an absolute terror on the defensive end. Graham is currently up and down on the defensive side of the ball, but clearly has as much upside in this area as any wing prospect in the draft. As he continues to improve his perimeter play, Graham's defense could be the area that really explodes. The aspect of the game that Graham has already mastered is the mid-range jumper. He doesn't have a very consistent release, but his shots simply keep going in. He seems to have no problem hitting it with a man in his face, and as long as he gets his feet set, Graham is as good as automatic. On the season, Graham shoots a very impressive 54% from the floor and an astonishing 88% from the line. The three-pointer isn't a regular part of Graham's arsenal at this point, but he is showing signs of being able to shoot a very high percentage from behind the arc. Mentally, Graham plays under control and with the savvy of a veteran. Despite a tendency to float at times, he usually plays an aggressive, physical style, and thanks to his days as a 4-man, really knows how to pick up easy points at the rim.



Weaknesses
Graham began his career as a PF at Central Florida, before transferring to Oklahoma State for his final two seasons. Despite his athleticism and perimeter shooting, Graham is clearly still a developing wing, and nearly all of his weaknesses revolve around this transition. The first thing to talk about when it comes to Graham's weak points is his lack of a first step. You would expect a player with Graham's physical characteristics to be able to slash to the basket with ease, but Graham doesn't, unless he is allowed to clear space with his left arm (the source of many of his offensive fouls this year). He isn't able to get by quicker perimeter defenders, and doesn't have that knack for knifing down the lane, unless he's close enough to dunk it. In another weak point related to a lack of perimeter skill, Graham shows very little in the way of ballhandling ability. He rarely puts the ball on the floor and when he does, he will always attempt to go left. When it comes to creating offense, he either shoots the standing perimeter shot, or catches the ball near the basket and floats it in. The ballhandling and first step difficulties sort of compound each other, making it somewhat difficult for him to be a go-too guy on the offensive end. Part of the reason that he may shoot such a high percentage is that he would really struggle if he did decide to start forcing things a bit at the offensive end, and OSU needs a guy to force things at times. For Graham to truly take advantage of his unique athletic ability, he needs to develop his ball skills and driving ability quite a bit more. Finally, if we were talking about a sophomore here, these weaknesses might not be as concerning. Unfortunately, Joey Graham is a 23 year old 5th year senior. I fully expect him to continue developing his guard skills, but how much more can we expect from a prospect already fairly advanced (relatively speaking) in years?

Competition
Graham plays in the Big XII, so he gets some of the best competition in the nation on a nightly basis. There is a disturbing correlation between Graham shooting less and OSU losing, which means better teams/defenders might be able to keep Graham under control from time to time. However, Graham has put up some very nice stat lines against some very good teams.


Outlook
Joey Graham has the potential to rise or fall quite dramatically within the first round. He has the physical tools of a lottery pick, but might be a bit behind the curve skill-wise. His first step and overall slashing ability really need to improve. However, his midrange jumper has to be considered a plus, and he's the kind of player that could really skyrocket once individual workouts begin. Keep an eye on out this March, as a big tourney performance could signal the beginning of a very successful couple of months for Joey Graham.

Not the most emphatic display we could have asked for from an NBA wing player in the making, but Graham did what he needed to do tonight and went down swinging in a tough loss to Arizona. He was definitely a lot more aggressive tonight than he has been in the tournament so far, putting up 19 shots and making 9 of them, but unfortunately it just wasn't enough to get the Pokes over the hump. There was no doubt from the very start that Graham wasn't going to settle for single digit scoring, as he came out looking to take his team on his back, taking a lot of shots early but only starting the game 1-6 from the field. The first half wasn't really one to remember in terms of showing off his wing skills. Most of his points came from posting up his man in the paint, scoring off offensive rebounds and getting to the line. The 2nd half was a lot more impressive, though, as he nailed three flat-footed three pointers that Arizona dared him to take by leaving him wide open, used his strength (rather than his ball-handling) to create his own shot against the much slower 6-10 Ivan Radenovic and was assertive with his trademark mid-range jumper. One particular move showed why many feel he has as big of an upside as any wing player in this draft. Graham took the ball the ball strong on the perimeter against the flat footed Radenovic, palmed the ball and skied through the air and then finished beautifully off the glass on his way down using his strength. Graham refused to be denied at the end of the game as well, and scored what could have been the game winning basket with a borderline offensive foul bullying his way to the hoop. Unfortunately Salim Stoudamire refused to let his team lose and came right back for the win, and Graham's emotions got the best of him as he was led off the court. He showed a lot of heart tonight and should be proud of the way he played and bounced back out of his mini-slump.