Utah Jazz: 5 options for pick No. 52 in 2018 NBA Draft
By Mason McFee
3. Devonte’ Graham, PG — Kansas
The 2017-18 Big 12 Player of the Year. A Naismith Player of the Year Award finalist. A Wooden Award finalist. These are just some of the many impressive accolades Kansas point guard Devonte’ Graham accrued during his four years with the Jayhawks, but his literal seniority to the rest of his peers may actually be his biggest advantage.
It’s true that Devonte’ Graham is one of the older prospects in this year’s crop of potential draftees, the kind who almost always get selected late in the first round, but mainly in the second round. That’s fine; it’ll just give Devonte’ Graham more motivation, and that should terrify opposing NBA teams.
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Graham never shot below 38.8 percent from 3-point land during his time at Kansas, and with the exception of his freshman season (where he shot 42.5 percent from deep), has always attempted 4.5 3s or more per game.
Graham averaged double digits in scoring in three out of his four seasons at Kansas, with his freshman season (where he only averaged 17.8 minutes per game) being the only exception.
After his freshman season, Graham averaged no fewer than 32.6 minutes per game; including this past season where he played 37.8 minutes per game — or put differently — all but about two minutes of the game.
For his career, Graham averaged 1.9 turnovers per game. He did average 2.8 turnovers per game this past season, but that should be more attributed to his higher minutes and usage rate rather than a knock on his game.
Graham may not be the flashiest of picks, but he’s one of the safest and offers one of the highest floors, but still with a solid ceiling. For Utah, there are worse options to be had.