Kellan Grady worked out for the Charlotte Hornets
We’ve talked a lot about TyTy Washington and Shaedon Sharpe‘s NBA Draft preparations, but Kellan Grady and Davion Mintz are also chasing their professional dreams. On Monday, Grady worked out for the Charlotte Hornets near his old stomping grounds of Davidson College. He was one of six players in the workout, along with Keon Ellis (Alabama), Michael Foster Jr. (G-League Ignite), Ron Harper Jr. (Rutgers), Brandon Horvath (Utah State), and Ziga Sama (Spain).
Afterward, Grady spoke with reporters about his careers at Davidson and Kentucky, which he believe prepared him for the next level in different ways. At Davidson, he was the star, accumulating over 2,000 points over four seasons. During his year in Lexington, Grady stepped into the role of volume shooter, making an SEC-high 41.5% from three. He also grew accustomed to playing around elite talent, which he hopes to do in the NBA. Right now, the range he’s hearing is late second-round or undrafted.
“I think one of the biggest things people overlook — my statistics were different [at Kentucky] — I played on a team with a lot of talent,” Grady told the Charlotte Observer’s Rod Boone. “We had six guys that scored 25 points or more this past year. And I was asked to fill a specific role, and be a shot maker, and make the right reads and drive close outs, and be a floor spacer, and hold my own on defense, and play good defense.
“And I think although my statistics look different, people overlook what that means because in the NBA, you’ve got 20 or 30 guys who are stars and have the ball a lot, and the rest of the guys in the NBA have to be effective and efficient in their role.”
Charlotte holds the 13th, 15th, and 45th picks in this year’s draft. Grady was plagued by plantar fasciitis issues down the final stretch of his season at Kentucky, but after working with a specialist, feels he’s playing his best basketball yet.
“I think this was, just to be candid, arguably my best workout I’ve had so far,” Grady told Asheebo Rojas of the Charlotte Post. “I shot the ball really well both from three and the mid-range in live play today. And I was able to get to the rim and put some high arching floaters off the glass and some of those underhanded finishes off the glass that I think showed that I can play in two- and three-minute sets and make good reads and be an efficient scorer.”
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