Tre Mann: A Star in the Making?
“Make ‘em pay for your offense. That’s why you’re out there,” Head Coach Mark Daigneault said to Mann early in his rookie seaosn. Indeed, the Oklahoma City Thunder selected him with the No. 18 overall pick in the 2021 NBA Draft for his upside as a dynamic scorer. And he did show that he could score.
As a rookie, Tre Mann experienced the usual ups, downs, and adjustments that one should expect when making the leap from NCAA Basketball to the NBA game. Most importantly, the former Florida Gator showed progress, and dare I say star potential, over the course of the 60 games he played.
The 6-foot-3 guard finished 2021-22 averaging 22.8 minutes, 10.4 points, and 1.5 assists while shooting 39.3% from the field, a respectable 36% from three, and converting 79.3% of free throws. While those numbers might not jump off the page, that’s not a bad start for a first-year player on a team with poor spacing.
Astute Thunder fans and basketball nerds will tell you that despite the numbers, Tre Mann is an exciting guard prospect and point to his ball-handling, his ridiculous change of directions, and his general ability to make defenders look silly.
Take a second to look at what Mann looks like with the ball in his hands, and you will see why some are raving about the guy. Ankle-breaking crossovers, stepback threes, off-hand scoop finishes. These are hallmark traits of some of the best guards currently in the NBA.
It’s worth noting that Mann also had an incredibly strong finish to the season. Over his last 5 games, he averaged 21.8 points on 46.5% from the floor on 17.2 shots, a blistering 43.5% from deep on 9.2 attempts per game, and 90% on free throws in 31.4 minutes per game.
This included an incredible performance versus the Boston Celtics, where the shifty guard exploded for a career-high 35 points, including seven threes and four assists, showcasing deep range capabilities and elite space creation against good defenders such as Derrick White and Jayson Tatum. To boot, Mann is one of a handful of rookie guards to score 35 points or more in the past 5 years. That list includes Luka Doncic, Trae Young, and Donovan Mitchell.
And as the Thunder search for a way to improve their offense in 2022-23 from what was an almost league-worst finish last year, one might ponder what the team needs to achieve this. Given the lack of scoring talent on the current roster, Tre Mann is a strong candidate to fill that void as a potent bucket-getter. If he continues on his current trajectory, the kid from Gainesville has a strong chance of making his case as the best scoring option next to star guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.
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