Film Room: Travis Perry

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It isn’t very often in the year 2023 that you get a surprise commitment. In fact, it is essentially unheard of. However, Travis Perry delivered a very welcomed surprise to the Big Blue Nation on Sunday afternoon as he committed to the Kentucky Wildcats. With five hats on the table including Alabama, Cincinnati, Ole Miss, and Western Kentucky the state’s all-time leading scorer chose to stay home and play for the blue and white. “At the end of the day I decided to stay home and play for my home state school,” Perry told On3’s Joe Tipton. “Growing up I played for the West KY Wildcats and now I’m excited to join the Kentucky Wildcats.”

While Perry is obviously a Kentucky native and that played a big role in the ‘Cats interest in him, and clearly his interest in the ‘Cats, this isn’t a token hometown commitment. The Lyon County High School star is a legitimate four-star recruit ranked #87 overall in the On3 Industry Ranking and #11 at the point guard position. You don’t simply score over 5,000 career high school points as he will before it is all said and done without being a real player. Perry has proven himself on the national level playing with Indiana Elite on the 3SSB Circuit as well. His offensive skill level and knockdown shooting ability will translate to the high-major level sooner rather than later. Perry looked at fellow Bluegrass native Reed Sheppard as an inspiration for that path to success.

“Going to Kentucky, you realize there are going to be a lot of high-level guys, five-stars, future first-rounders and lottery picks, competing against you every day. That’s something that works both ways,” Perry said in a recent interview with KSR. “You can compete and make a way, make plays, get a lot better from it or you can go in there and lay down. I’m not the kind of guy who would go in there and lay down. You want to go there and compete against the best competition, that’s something Reed has embraced.

“That has made me realize, if he can do it, why can’t I do that? That’s something that’s obviously intriguing to me. Some see it as a downside, I see it as intriguing to go in there and compete against those high-level guys every day.”

Travis Perry will join the Kentucky Wildcats with his eyes wide open. He could have taken more guaranteed playing time or NIL money elsewhere. However, he wanted to live out a dream of playing at Rupp Arena donning the Kentucky blue and white. Regardless of how it translates to the floor, that will help this experience work out positively for all parties involved.

Elite Shot-Making Ability

Above all else, Travis Perry is a shot-maker. While shooting an incredibly high volume, Perry made 44.9% of his three-point attempts last season. He was 52.3% overall from the field while averaging 31.1 points per game. Again, you don’t score 4,359 career points by accident. Perry will provide valuable backcourt depth as a guy who can be a knockdown shooting threat. Playing with other elite playmakers, such as fellow Kentucky commit Boogie Fland, will allow Perry to play to his strengths early in his career. If he can simply come in and make open three-point shots as a freshman he will find his way into a role for the Wildcats.

For Lyon County, Travis Perry is relied on to create his own shot a lot. That is the nature of not only being his teams best player, but the best player in the state of Kentucky. However, for the Wildcats, he will likely be shooting more off of the catch than off of the dribble. That makes some of his summer highlights with Indiana Elite more worthwhile. Here is a clip of him working off of a staggered double into a three-pointer on the left wing. This is a tough shot for a right-handed shooter. Perry’s footwork is excellent and he has a nearly perfect release. He is going to shoot the ball the exact same way every single time.

There is absolutely no wasted motion in Perry’s jump shot. From this angle you can really get a good look his mechanics. When he catches the ball it is a direct motion upward into his shot. A lot of players, even very good shooters, have a natural dip with the ball before getting to their release point. However, Perry quickly gets the ball to his head and delivers a beautiful shot. Everything from his feet to his hips to his hands are in perfect alignment.

Evaluating high school film can be tough because generally the prospect you are watching is significantly better than everyone else on the floor. That is why you have to find transferrable skills or plays that could actually take place in a game at Kentucky. Running Travis Perry through an Elevator Doors action certainly could be in Coach Calipari’s playbook. You can see how he gets his shoulders square to the rim despite running directly away from the basket. Also, again, he has such a quick release. He gets from catch to release point so fluidly and that is what makes his stroke so repeatable. The Lyon County star is going to make plenty of three-point shots in a Kentucky uniform.

Yes, it is going to be harder to shake up an SEC defender than this defender from North Laurel. However, Travis Perry is shifty enough with the ball that he will create some pull-up opportunities for himself at the next level. This is where the quick release comes into play once again. When he crosses over from left-to-right he is preparing to shoot before he even fully has control of the ball again. That final crossover takes him directly into his shooting motion as he nails the three-point attempt. The ‘Cats landed a BIG TIME shooter on Sunday afternoon.

Underrated Playmaking Ability

Playing alongside guys like Boogie Fland and Reed Sheppard will take some of the playmaking responsibilities off of Travis Perry early in his career. He will likely carve out his initial role based on his catch-and-shoot ability. However, having another capable playmaker providing backcourt depth will never be a bad thing. Perry is thought of as a pure scorer, but he is in fact a true point guard. He is shifty with the ball in his hands, plays through contact well with a strong frame, and puts pressure on the defense due to the constant threat of him shooting it. You don’t have to be lightening quick in a straight line or explosive vertically to be effective off of the dribble. Kentucky’s most recent commitment proves that.

As you can see, Travis Perry isn’t slow. He might not have the athleticism of Reed Sheppard coming in to Kentucky, but he can function at this level. In this clip you see him turn the corner off of the ballscreen and finish against size at the rim. When you are an elite level shooter it opens up more driving lanes.

Perry’s defender over plays at the point of the screen which opens up the opportunity to reject and drive it right. He hits the behind the back dribble, gets downhill, and uses the little hesitation around the three-point line to freeze both help defenders. That quick change of direction and ball handling ability can translate to the high-major level.

When you are an excellent shooter it forces defenses to fight over the top of ballscreens. Travis Perry is going to shoot it every time a defender goes under. Therefore, defenses are likely to cheat the ballscreen a little bit and try to starting getting over it before Perry actually makes his move. That is why he is so effective at rejecting ballscreens. Here you see him make the quick right-to-left crossover and gets his shoulder past his defender for the layup. That is a move he can make at Kentucky.

What Does All This Mean?

Kentucky added their third commitment in the Class of 2024 with Travis Perry’s surprise announcement on Sunday afternoon. Anytime you land a four-star guard that is one of the best shooters in the class it is a win. That is even more true when he is from within the boarders of Kentucky. The Lyon County star ultimately committed to Kentucky because he really wanted to be a Wildcat. He isn’t the biggest prospect or the most explosive athletically. However, he is a skilled guard that knows how to play and will immediately provide three-point shooting. Coach Calipari is always going to take that when he can get it. This is a very nice addition to what is rounding into a very good recruiting class for the ‘Cats.