Ignore this 3+D NBA Draft Prospect at your own risk

New on Raptors Draft Watch: In a league starving for 3-and-D wings, Carter Bryant brings both — and he’s only scratching the surface.

Marquee names typically dominate every draft cycle. These blue-chip prospects top the headlines, and getting them could be a franchise-altering moment. The cream-of-the-crop prospects have the following: viral mixtapes and box scores to support the oozing potential that talent evaluators associate with their take.

The Arizona Wildcats freshman’s mixtape will likely be shorter than a standard cartoon show episode, and perhaps a good chunk of that will show what he can do outside of scoring, and that’s why it’s easy to overlook a player like Carter Bryant.

Consider his freshman stats:

• Games Played/Started: 37/5
• Minutes: 19.3
• Points: 6.5
• FGA/M: 2.2/4.8
• FG%: 46%
• 3PA/M: 1.1/2.8
• 3P%: 37.1%
• Rebounds: 4.1
• Assists: 1.0
• Steals: 0.9
• Blocks: 1
• Fouls: 2.3

We can’t even call the numbers above “not flashy stats.” If anything, these are the numbers of someone who should probably consider going back to school for one more year and getting more reps under their belt. However, the winning teams in recent memory have usually had elite wing role players who can fit in anywhere, guard multiple positions, and knock down open shots, especially on the perimeter. At 6’8” with a 6’11” wingspan, armed with a solid fundamental base, motor, defensive instincts, and floor awareness, Carter Bryant could very well be an “Elite Role Player Wing Starter Pack.”

Mock Draft Range

Best rank: 12 / Worst rank: 25

(Per Hoopshype’s Aggregate Mock Draft 6.0)

The upside to Bryant as a prospect

Bryant comes in as a low-maintenance role player wing who has a good understanding of the game and his role on the floor. It’s rare to see young prospects play hard and effectively on the defensive end when they don’t get touches on the offensive end. Bryant, on the other end, could go several plays without getting a shot up, but his commitment on the defensive end would not waiver.

Bryant’s size, length, and nearly NBA-ready body enhance his defensive versatility. He can guard shooting guards up to power forwards, and he might be able to hold his own when switched with point guards. Aside from his wingspan, he possesses solid defensive lateral quickness and a good feel for the game defensively, enabling him to make sound decisions, such as when to press tightly, give space, and play the angles while defending the ball. Off-ball, he plays the passing lanes well and makes the right reads on rotating, knowing when and how hard to rotate and close out if needed.

While Bryant hasn’t showcased much offensively, Bryant’s floor should be a “3+D Wing.” The fact that he has a nice, compact, and repeatable shooting form and shot 37% from the perimeter (albeit on a small sample size) bodes well for the possibility that he can be this type of player. At the bare minimum, you have a reliable 3+D wing that you don’t have to fix to teach how to shoot to earn the “3+D” designation. If that’s the only thing that Bryant could be, and peak as a starting level 3+D on a winning team, that by itself is a positive outcome for a mid-lottery selection.

However, the biggest wildcard here is whether Bryant develops a decent offensive package — Can he improve as a movement shooter? As a 3+D player, being able to provide more than spot-up shooting can be huge. Bryant’s already demonstrated that he can consistently cut to the basket and finish around the rim. Can he get better as an off-ball player-movement type play finisher? How about self-creation? While Bryant’s handle isn’t something that will consistently create an advantage for him at the NBA level (it was barely used and barely worked at the collegiate level), would tightening it and adding more self-creation tricks to his repertoire improve his offensive utility? Then, he can potentially provide secondary (bench lineups) or tertiary creation.

Bryant barely started, didn’t get a lot of touches, and was relegated to a role player during his freshman campaign despite being a top 20/30 player in high school. While he may have had a rocky start as a freshman, coach Tommy Lloyd knew that he needed Bryant on the floor when it mattered.

Things he needs to improve on

Carter Bryant likely did not have the freshman season he had anticipated. He started his freshman campaign erratically — the unforced turnovers, shot selection, and defensive lapses early on probably earned him a short leash under coach Tommy Lloyd.

Bryant’s handle either gets him in trouble or doesn’t afford him enough separation or advantage to do something consistently. The handle, plus his subpar footwork, limits what he can do with the ball, and let’s not even talk about counters. The combination of the above makes him very predictable offensively, and understandably, Coach Lloyd shied away from asking him to create some offence. Bryant’s shooting could use some tweaking, as his slow shooting motion requires all the parameters to align perfectly for him to take and make perimeter shots. The closeouts are much more aggressive at the NBA level, and the defenders chasing him are longer and faster, so he would need to speed up that release on top of getting used to increasing the volume while maintaining efficiency.

At times, watching Bryant’s games at Arizona can be frustrating. He’s very passive offensively, especially as the season went on. I’m not sure if it’s by design that he’s just an accessory on the floor for certain play sets, or if he’s on a timeout, or if he’s worried about making a mistake, but it’s disappointing to see him not be more aggressive in quite a few pockets of the game.

For someone who played as a role player in Arizona, there were times when Bryant was getting beaten by opposing players on 50/50 balls, whether it was to finish a defensive possession, crash the boards, box out, or grab an offensive rebound or a putback. It remains to be seen whether this is simply a matter of processing, slow reaction time, or inconsistent effort, but this aspect of his game rears its ugly head, especially on the offensive end.

There may also be an aspect of “your character is your destiny” here. Maybe it’s not just in Bryant’s nature to be aggressive, and he’s fine being a low-usage role player. There’s nothing wrong with that, but that limits his upside despite being a solid “Wing Starter Pack.”

Bryant’s fit with the Toronto Raptors

In a vacuum, it’s a “choose your own adventure” in terms of what Carter Bryant could be. I mentioned above that he’s an “Elite Role Player Wing Starter Pack,” and that could be an understatement. His best-case scenario could be a Khris Middleton-type wing, or he could be a Jaden McDaniels-type, who’s a little bit more of a low-usage player on the offensive end. It’ll come down to where Bryant ends up and how he sees himself developing in the NBA.

There are always plenty of roster spots for 3+D role players, and Carter Bryant’s ability (or “comfortability”) in settling at the 5th Beatle on the offense makes him a seamless fit. The team already has too many players who would often want to “massage the ball” — Immanuel Quickley, Brandon Ingram, RJ Barrett, and Scottie Barnes will likely get the lion’s share of the ball for most of the game. Bryant’s ability to defend multiple positions makes him an upgrade over someone like Jamison Battle. If coach Rajakovic needs more length and defense, he’s an instant upgrade over Gradey Dick.

On coach Rajakovic’s ball and player-movement-happy offense, Bryant might get more touches, if not more opportunities per possession, compared to how Arizona’s Tommy Lloyd treated him. Make no mistake — Lloyd’s mandate is to win, and he’ll play the players that he trusts more. On the other hand, one of the reasons Rajakovic was brought in was for player development purposes. Rajakovic will ensure that Bryant gets to smile and receives the assuring hug and pat on the shoulder or back whenever necessary.

However, the Toronto Raptors’ “goal post” has moved significantly over the past few months; who knows if the team’s roster will remain as is or if the team will end up trading for Giannis Antetokounmpo and/or Kevin Durant. Regardless, it remains to be seen if coach Rajakovic will still be able to give someone that long of a leash to learn and make mistakes, especially if he’s pressed to win a game. Fortunately, if Carter Bryant can excel at the same role as he did in Arizona in limited minutes, he can break into any team’s rotation.