Who is Jerami Grant?
Who is Jerami Grant?
Written by Ryan Nickels (@rnickels26) on 03 November 2016
Written by Ryan Nickels
(@rnickels26) on 03 November 2016
New acquisition Jerami Grant provides depth to an already young team.
New acquisition Jerami Grant provides depth to an already young team.
The Oklahoma City Thunder made an interesting, yet not surprising move on October 1st when the team sent power forward Ersan Ilyasova to the Philadelphia 76ers in exchange for 22-year-old forward Jerami Grant.
Thunder general manager, Sam Presti, made the move to unload Ilyasova's salary in exchange for a young and cheap contract in Grant. We have seen Presti do this many times in the past to keep the Thunder under the luxury tax. So, Thunder fans, who is Jerami Grant?
Grant was drafted in the second-round in the 2014 draft, 39th overall, by the Philadelphia 76ers. Grant played his college ball under Jim Boeheim at Syracuse and averaged 12.1 PPG and 6.8 RPG in the 2013-14 season, his second and final season at Syracuse, according to sports.reference.com.
Grant also has a brother who plays in the NBA, Jerian Grant, who plays for the Chicago Bulls. The Grant brothers grew up in a basketball household, having their dad Harvey Grant and twin brother Horace Grant both play in the NBA.
In his first season with the 76ers, Grant played in 65 games, 11 in which he was a starter, and averaged 21 minutes per game, according to basketball-reference.com. Grant averaged 6.3 PPG in his first season and saw his numbers slightly increase in his second season.
In his second year in Philadelphia, Grant played in 77 games, 52 as a starter, saw his minutes increase to 27 minutes per game, and averaged 9.7 PPG and 4.7 RPG, according to basketball-reference.com.
As for this season, the forward saw his minutes decrease due to the abundance of forwards the 76ers have on its roster. The 76ers felt comfortable dealing the 22-year-old to Oklahoma City because Grant has continued to struggle shooting 3-pointers -- and as for Ilyasova, he is older but has the ability to space the floor with his capability to shoot the 3-pointer.
According to basketball-reference.com, Grant is a career 27 percent 3-point shooter; however, he brings athleticism to a team that will fit him perfectly. Playing with Russell Westbrook, Victor Oladipo, and Andre Roberson will help him mature as a player since these players thrive on their athleticism.
With Ilyasova now out of the picture in Oklahoma City, expect Grant to play the small forward/power forward position behind Sabonis. With his length and athleticism, Grant has the capability to guard both forward positions.
Oklahoma City is trying everything they can to fill the huge void left by Kevin Durant and it is no secret that the Thunder know how to develop young talent. We have seen it with Durant, Westbrook, James Harden, Serge Ibaka, Reggie Jackson, Steven Adams and others. Grant is still very young and has the chance to be very good under head coach Billy Donovan.
The Oklahoma City Thunder made an interesting, yet not surprising move on October 1st when the team sent power forward Ersan Ilyasova to the Philadelphia 76ers in exchange for 22-year-old forward Jerami Grant.
Thunder general manager, Sam Presti, made the move to unload Ilyasova's salary in exchange for a young and cheap contract in Grant. We have seen Presti do this many times in the past to keep the Thunder under the luxury tax. So, Thunder fans, who is Jerami Grant?
Grant was drafted in the second-round in the 2014 draft, 39th overall, by the Philadelphia 76ers. Grant played his college ball under Jim Boeheim at Syracuse and averaged 12.1 PPG and 6.8 RPG in the 2013-14 season, his second and final season at Syracuse, according to sports.reference.com.
Grant also has a brother who plays in the NBA, Jerian Grant, who plays for the Chicago Bulls. The Grant brothers grew up in a basketball household, having their dad Harvey Grant and twin brother Horace Grant both play in the NBA.
In his first season with the 76ers, Grant played in 65 games, 11 in which he was a starter, and averaged 21 minutes per game, according to basketball-reference.com. Grant averaged 6.3 PPG in his first season and saw his numbers slightly increase in his second season.
In his second year in Philadelphia, Grant played in 77 games, 52 as a starter, saw his minutes increase to 27 minutes per game, and averaged 9.7 PPG and 4.7 RPG, according to basketball-reference.com.
As for this season, the forward saw his minutes decrease due to the abundance of forwards the 76ers have on its roster. The 76ers felt comfortable dealing the 22-year-old to Oklahoma City because Grant has continued to struggle shooting 3-pointers -- and as for Ilyasova, he is older but has the ability to space the floor with his capability to shoot the 3-pointer.
According to basketball-reference.com, Grant is a career 27 percent 3-point shooter; however, he brings athleticism to a team that will fit him perfectly. Playing with Russell Westbrook, Victor Oladipo, and Andre Roberson will help him mature as a player since these players thrive on their athleticism.
With Ilyasova now out of the picture in Oklahoma City, expect Grant to play the small forward/power forward position behind Sabonis. With his length and athleticism, Grant has the capability to guard both forward positions.
Oklahoma City is trying everything they can to fill the huge void left by Kevin Durant and it is no secret that the Thunder know how to develop young talent. We have seen it with Durant, Westbrook, James Harden, Serge Ibaka, Reggie Jackson, Steven Adams and others. Grant is still very young and has the chance to be very good under head coach Billy Donovan.