Senior Spotlight – Tyler Kalinoski

The Senior Spotlight is a look at senior players who may not be high on NBA Draft boards, but have the talent and/or other intangibles to play professionally.

As the leading scorer on one of the nation’s best offenses, Davidson senior guard Tyler Kalinoski has quietly established himself as one of the better guards in college basketball. The Kansas native has hit over 200 three-pointers in his college career, at an almost 40 percent rate, and he has hit 43 percent this season. Averaging over 16 points per game, Kalinoski also contributes in other facets, grabbing almost 6 rebounds per game and dishing out over 4 assists, while averaging less than 2 turnovers per game. The 6’4 guard has adjusted well to the competition of the Atlantic 10 Conference, helping lead Davidson to 7 wins already.  With his college career coming to an end in a few months, let’s take a look at Kalinoski’s game and how it translates to the professional level:

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Offense

Kalinoski is a tremendous asset to the Davidson offense, showing the ability to score as well as distribute. He is one of the best three-point shooters in the country, and while he is at his best as a spot up shooter, he also has the ability to hit the three off the dribble or hand-off.  Kalinoski is an above-average ballhandler, using both hands well, and having the ability to attack the basket in either direction. While he doesn’t have a great first step to the basket, he draws defenders out because of his shooting ability, and he uses his body well to shield the ball from defenders. Kalinoski isn’t a great finisher at the basket, especially against length, but he is able to pull up for the short jumper or floater easily. As with all Davidson players, he has a great understanding of spacing on offense, and he uses it to his advantage to find gaps to attack. Kalinoski is also a good ballhandler in pick-and-roll situations, making good reads and decisions, and finding open teammates easily if he doesn’t have a path to the rim. His ability to be patient with the ball allows multiple options to open up, and he does a good job keeping his head up and scanning the floor when looking to create. Kalinoski is also very good in transition, whether as a ballhandler or running one of the wings, and though not very quick, he gets the ball moving up the floor easily. Kalinoski is a very good free throw shooter, but with about 70 percent of his shots coming on jumpers, he doesn’t get to the line often. Still, he is a reliable option to have the ball in his hands down the stretch of a game.

Defense

This is the key area where Kalinoski will need to put in work to play at the next level.  He does a good job with his positioning on and off the ball, but he doesn’t have the foot speed or reaction time to contain faster guards. He should work on playing angles better, looking to force his man into the help defenders, or away from the basket. Also, Kalinoski often has to give up some space, which leaves him vulnerable to good perimeter shooters. He needs to work on getting over screens better, especially in pick-and-roll situations. Kalinoski does help well, though he will often rotate or scramble too far, leaving his man with a good look at the basket if he can get the ball.  He is a good rebounder for his position, having a good knack for where missed shots will go and getting to the ball quickly, which often gives him a chance to start the team in transition. Overall, Kalinoski has a good idea what he needs to do on defense; he just needs to work on being more physically able to do them at the next level.

The Next Level

Kalinoski has the skills to be a good pro point guard, especially with the combination of his patience, vision, passing, and shooting ability, but where he plays, and how often, may come down to his ability to defend his position. He has good size for the point guard position, and can even be play off the ball, as a small shooting guard in certain line ups. Kalinoski’s ability to play at a quick pace will open up more options for him, and he should be able to play at a high level overseas, or in the D-League, early on in his career. If he can develop his defensive ability, I see no reason why he can’t be a star wherever he plays next.