VCU senior Troy Daniels will work out for NBA scouts May 22-23 at Barclays Center in Brooklyn.
RICHMOND, Va. – Troy Daniels made a career out of connecting on long shots. So what’s one more?
Daniels has been invited to an NBA workout May 22-23 at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, N.Y. Representatives from all 30 NBA teams are expected to attend.
“It’s time to get a job now. This is a lot different than college,” Daniels said Thursday. “It’s a great feeling. “It’s something that you dream about when you’re younger and it’s finally coming true now.”
Despite his sharpshooting credentials – Daniels ranks second in school history in 3-pointers (251) and owns the top two single season marks – the senior from Roanoke, Va. likely faces an uphill battle. He’s currently not expected to be drafted and is not listed among the top 100 NBA prospects by NBADraftExpress.com, NBADraft.net or CBS Sports’ Jeff Goodman.
But Daniels, who will graduate from VCU Saturday with a degree in criminal justice, says that won’t be a deterrent. He’s says he’s been working out twice a day, fine-tuning his skills and hopes to grab the attention of scouts and executives in Brooklyn. He’s also recently worked out with former Ram Eric Maynor of the Portland Trail Blazers, who typically spends much of his offseason in Richmond.
Over the years, as VCU Basketball has gained steam, so too have requests to have Rams throw out first pitches at baseball games. I’m still waiting on first puck drop calls. I know a spike is coming soon. Anyway, here we examine each Rams’ performance on the diamond.
Shaka Smart (Chicago Cubs, 2011)
Shaka Smart isn’t a large man by any means, but that didn’t stop guys like Billy Wagner from bringing the heat. Unfortunately for Smart, it kind of did. No matter, Smart has pretty good form here as he paints the inside corner. Good snap on the arm. I think he’s falling away to the left a bit, but that’s something the coaching staff can correct during side sessions. Bonus/demerits: Bonuses for throwing from the rubber, throwing to a VCU guy (Sean Marshall), being at Wrigley Field, the custom jersey (is he wearing No. 91? Channeling Dennis Rodman?), and singing “Take Me Out to the Ballgame.”
Former Ram Eric Maynor is averaging 4.2 points and 2.9 rebounds per game in four NBA seasons.
Nobody knows the NBA’s Northwest Division like Eric Maynor.
The former VCU star – the Rams’ all-time leader in points and assists – was dealt Thursday prior to the NBA’s trade deadline from the Oklahoma City Thunder to the division-rival Portland Trail Blazers. Maynor was originally drafted by the Utah Jazz in 2009, meaning when he slips on his Blazers’ jersey this week, he’ll have played for three-fifths of the division in four seasons. Denver and Minnesota, you’re on the clock.
Maynor struggled this season after tearing his ACL last year. After three solid seasons as Russell Westbrook’s steady backup, Maynor saw his minutes evaporate in favor of second-year man Reggie Jackson. Maynor did not play in any of the Thunder’s three most recent games and has logged double-digit minutes once since mid-December. He’s averaging 2.8 points and shooting .313 from the field, down from his career marks of 4.2 points and .395 shooting. Maynor’s assist-to-turnover ratio is still a desirable 2.5-to-1, however.
So, it was probably time for a fresh start for Maynor, who heads to a 25-29 Portland team that is currently 10th in the Western Conference. The Blazers desperately needed an upgrade behind All-Star point guard and odds-on Rookie of the Year favorite Damian Lillard. Lillard’s current backups are journeyman Ronnie Price and former Duke standout Nolan Smith. I would consider Maynor, who can still run an offense, a considerable step up from both Price and Smith.
It could also serve as an audition of sorts for Maynor, whose original rookie contract expires at season’s end. There’s always a market in the NBA for point guards with 3-to-1 career assist-to-turnover ratios.
I want to thank the Oklahoma City Thunder for everything the last 3 years……appreciate all the love n support from the fans as well……
Juvonte Reddic finished with 24 points and 10 rebounds Saturday.
RICHMOND, Va. – If Saturday night’s 84-57 win over George Washington is any indication, VCU is ready for its stretch run. It was the Rams’ final game before a pressure-packed five-bout gauntlet to close out the regular season, and VCU looked a lot like the team that was blowing opponents off the Siegel Center floor earlier this year.
It was a perfect storm for VCU (21-5, 9-2 A-10), really. It was Havoc meets the Peach Fuzz Boys. The Rams’ relentless defensive pressure, combined with George Washington’s inexperience, gestated into 25 Colonials’ turnovers. VCU was more than happy to trade those miscues in for 27 points, an advantage that proved insurmountable.
George Washington, in the second year of Mike Lonergan’s rebuilding project, started four freshmen Saturday night. Those four rookies combined for 17 turnovers, including eight from Joe McDonald. After that, there were few stats that mattered. The pace and tone of the game were squarely in VCU’s favor, and from there, it was a day at the races.
Junior Juvonte Reddic found open space all evening and made his first seven field goal attempts, five of them highlight-quality dunks. On the Rams’ first offensive possession of the game, Reddic used a back screen to get free and caught a high-arching lob from Darius Theus with his right hand and threw it down for a thunderous slam. It was a play that set the tone for night.
Sophomore Treveon Graham is averaging 16.1 points per game this season, including 19.0 in league play.
There were few dissenters when Treveon Graham – a chiseled 6-foot-5, 215-pound walking icebox – was dubbed “The Freight Train”. Like a speeding locomotive, Graham is difficult to stop once he begins moving in one direction, no matter what is in his tracks. Like a train, he’s also strong enough to pull several times his own weight. Graham has been known to put the VCU offense on his back from time-to-time.
Maybe that’s why VCU Coach Shaka Smart didn’t mind laying the weight of high expectations on Graham’s sturdy shoulders. If anybody could bear an extra load, it was him.
During the recruiting process, Smart told Graham he had the ability to become the leading scorer in school history, that he could top Eric Maynor’s record of 1,953 points. What may have sounded like a typical recruiting pitch to some was actually just typical Smart. When the VCU coach puts his belief in someone, he’s all-in. It’s confidence-building and goal-setting rolled into one tidy delivery.
If those expectations are too much for Graham, he has a funny way of showing it. Through 22 games this season, he’s leading the Rams and is seventh in the Atlantic 10 in scoring (16.1 ppg) and is second on the team in rebounding (6.1 rpg). He’s seamlessly stepped into the Bigfoot-sized shoes of Bradford Burgess with aplomb.
Sophomore Treveon Graham leads the Rams in scoring (16.1 ppg) and is second in rebounding (6.0).
Treveon Graham’s rapid development has helped mold VCU into a contender for an Atlantic 10 championship and is making Shaka Smart (who all but predicted this) look clairvoyant. In short order, the sophomore from Washington, D.C. has become the Rams’ best scorer and a rugged rebounder. At 16.1 points per game, Graham ranks seventh in the A-10 in scoring, the only underclassman in the top nine.
So, nobody’s disputing that Graham has been good – very good – this season. But I would argue that what you’ve seen through 22 games this season has been historically significant. Prior to this season, just eight VCU sophomores had averaged 15.0 points per game, and none since Dom Jones in 2001-02.
In VCU’s infancy in the 70s and 80s, the Rams churned out an impact sophomore every year or so, from Charles Wilkins to Gerald Henderson to Ren Watson to Calvin Duncan. But somewhere along the way, either VCU or college basketball (or both) changed. Sure, there were solid contributors as sophomores, but the truly elite, impact second-year players became pretty rare. More
Former Ram Larry Sanders (center) is averaging 8.0 points, 8.4 rebounds and 3.0 blocks per game this season.
It looks like Larry Sanders is starting to figure out this NBA thing.
The 24-year-old former VCU star and current Milwaukee Buck is enjoying a breakout season. Selected 15th overall in the 2010 NBA Draft, Sanders is beginning to deliver on the promise Milwaukee saw on film and in workouts.
Through a quarter of the season, the 6-foot-11, 235-pound center was averaging career-highs of 8.0 points and 8.4 rebounds per game. Sanders is shooting 54 percent from the floor, and as of this writing, his 3.0 blocks per game average was tied for the league lead.
Last season, Sanders averaged just 3.6 points and 3.1 rebounds per game. But a strong preseason and training camp earned him increased playing time from Bucks’ Coach Scott Skiles. Sanders responded with 10 points and seven rebounds in an opening-night victory over the Boston Celtics.
On Nov. 30, Sanders recorded his first career triple-double with 10 points, 12 rebounds and 10 blocked shots in a loss at Minnesota. His 10 blocks tied the franchise record, set by Hall of Famer Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. Abdul-Jabbar later took to Twitter to congratulate Sanders.
Congratulations @larrysanders of the Milwaukee Bucks for tying my single-game franchise record 10 blocked shots. Great job!
Doesn’t look like Eric Maynor’s surgically repaired knee bothered him on this shot. He finished with seven points and three rebounds in Oklahoma City’s 86-84 loss Thursday.
