What the Indiana Pacers would get if they drafted Kansas wing Gradey Dick
Gradey Dick has flown under the radar a bit in the pre-draft cycle despite being a projected lottery pick by nearly every draft expert.
ESPN projects that the Kansas wing will go 11th overall to the Orlando Magic in their most recent mock draft. Yahoo Sports has him going in the same spot while Bleacher Report has Dick going ninth overall to the Utah Jazz. He has a chance to be a top-10 selection, but his name is seemingly discussed less than others.
There's a couple factors at play causing that, but the leading ones appear to be a perceived lack of upside and less defensive talent than other top prospects. Those are certainly knocks on Dick's resume.
But there is a reason he is projected to go in or near the top-10, and it all starts with his outside shooting ability. The six-foot-eight-inch perimeter player knocked down 40.3% of his 206 three-point attempts for the Jayhawks this past season. He is an excellent outside shooter, and he projects to remain one in the pros.
What the 19-year old does that makes him a lottery talent, though, is leverage that outside shot into other opportunities. When defenders run him off the foul line, he has a move or two he can go to and create a shot for his team. That means opponents have to stay close to him at all times, or have nearly perfect closeouts, to slow him down entirely. In the absence of that defensive attention, Dick finds a way to have a positive impact with his spacing and shooting skills in basically every game.
The Kansas native gets his threes up quickly, so it's tough to defend him off the ball. He requires constant monitoring. He also is a decent rebounder and mobile-enough defender. There are many reasons that an NBA team, especially one that already has shot creation, would consider drafting the Jayhawks star.
The young wing's ability to read the game props up his defense. He is at least in the right spots most of the time, and his solid steal rate shows that he helped get stops when he was around the action. He isn't a lost cause on the less glamorous end of the court.
That said, Dick's defense holds him back as a prospect and is a big part of why he isn't slotted in the top eight or so in many mock drafts. He doesn't have the necessary combination of strength and speed to contain many players, which was a problem for Kansas at times this past season. He is young and will get better on defense, but he has a long way to and could get targeted in important games.
Dick also shot just 61% at the rim this past season, 1.5% below average per CBBAnalytics. Despite being a strong shooter with counters, the wing doesn't put much pressure on the rim unless there is a ton of space to do so. His playmaking isn't anything to write home about, either.
The sweet-shooting forward is held back from the discussions about the top eight or so players in the 2023 NBA Draft because of his defense and perceived lack of upside. Having a floor of being an excellent shooter could be appealing for teams, but if he is a one-way player his whole career, it's hard to see exactly what his big role will be on winning teams, especially early in his career.
Dick can push the play in transition and is a proven outside shooter. That makes him a decent fit with the Indiana Pacers, who own the seventh overall pick in the 2023 draft. But even though the Jayhawks product can really shoot it, he may not be the best fit for the blue and gold.
Truly, he wouldn't be a bad fit anywhere. Every team has a continuous goal of acquiring more outside shooting, and Dick can provide that. But his defense needs a lot of work, and the blue and gold are looking to acquire defensive talent this offseason. The draft prospect and team may just not be a good fit.
Many organizations would be lucky to have Dick. He would fit well alongside Tyrese Haliburton and the Pacers potent offense. Shooting is always important. But his defensive upside is too low for Indiana to consider the Kansas forward with their best pick. It would be a surprising selection, even given the talent level that has been seen from the young forward.
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