Rylan Griffen's Physical Growth, Progression a Key Cog in Alabama Basketball's Future
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — As Nate Oats and Alabama Basketball get set for another season of lofty expectations amidst a deeper-than-ever SEC, they'll be hoping to find a few new offensive catalysts after the departures of Brandon Miller, Noah Clowney, Charles Bediako and Jahvon Quinerly amongst others.
Helping to lead the charge? None other than sophomore guard Rylan Griffen, who after an up-and-down freshman year, is looking to take a step forward in 2023-24.
“He’s shooting the ball really well,” Oats said on Monday. “He’s much more comfortable in our system. He’s much more comfortable speaking up. You know, when you come in as a freshman, he played in high school last year, it’s a lot different. Now that he’s played in college, he’s comfortable with how we play. He’s comfortable speaking up, talking to the younger guys. He’ more aggressive attacking the rim. He’s better on defense. His overall growth has been really good.”
Griffen, who has grown an inch from last season's 6-foot-5 to 6-foot-6, has taken the offseason to add tweaks to his game — working with the Crimson Tide's new assistant coaching staff consisting of Austin Claunch, Preston Murphy and schematic guru Ryan Pannone.
“There were like little tweaks with my shot that Coach [Ryan] Pannone has been helping me fix as well as my dad,” Griffen said on Monday. “Just listening to them two and staying consistent with my shot. Last year, there were some little things that I did, and of course, taking good shots. That’s something I’m focusing on this year.”
As for the inch of growth, Griffen was reluctant to say that the newfound height would change his play style.
"It didn't affect my game too much," Griffen said. "I think what affected it more was getting bigger - physically. [...] I guess I got lucky with the inch. My dad was pretty tall. My mom’s short, but my grandfather was tall.”
One potential tweak in Griffen's game could be consistency from beyond the arc — particularly in the corners. As a freshman, Griffen struggled from the pockets of the court, shooting a mere 27% from the left side and 19% from the right side.
While Griffen was quick to defer its merits, a little extra length won't hurt when SEC-sized wings and lengthy guards are flying in to alter his shot from the interior, and it will allow him to reach a shot release point not many players can handle when factoring in strength and conditioning coach Henry Barrera's vertical jump improvements from the offseason — which could indicate a potential hike in field goal percentage across the board.
Another area the Richardson, Texas native hopes to improve upon is his leadership ability — seeking to take a bigger role in the vocal department as the team scrambles for new faces to rise to the occasion.
“I’ve never really been a leader vocally,” Griffen said. “In high school, I didn’t lead vocally. I didn’t really talk last year. It was an adjustment. It wasn’t very comfortable at the beginning and I struggled with it, but I think I’m getting better now and just trying to lead. I just watch the coaches, see how they lead, how they talk to certain players – different than they talk to other players. Stuff like that because I’ve got to be able to communicate with all my teammates and come at them respectfully and the right way.”
While there's much still to improve upon from last year, Griffen appears equally equipped as any player to take a massive step forward. If he can live up to the offseason's expectation, Griffen and the Crimson Tide could find themselves in position to hoist yet another SEC Championship trophy come March. Maybe even two.
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