Who can make the fans rise? Sprinkle it from three? Cover it with jumpers and score so easily...The Tandy-Man. Oh, the Tandy-Man can. The Tandy-Man can 'cause he mixes it with points and makes the win look good...
Jacksonville State's fifth year combo guard Dekeyvan "Kyky" Tandy has been torching the Conference USA so far this season, averaging a staggering 18.5 points per game through eight games. What's so interesting about Tandy is that this offensive explosion seemingly came from thin air, as he spent four years at Xavier where he simply didn't perform. Now, to be fair, he had to face his fair share of trials and tribulations during his time as a Musketeer. He faced injuries throughout his entire Xavier career, peaking during his third season where he only played five games. He also never seemed to gain the trust of (now fired) head coach Travis Steele. He actually entered the transfer portal at one point before returning to Xavier for another season, but after seeing just how great he's been in Jacksonville he probably should've gotten out of Cincinnati sooner.
pc: via Jacksonville State University Athletics
Tandy is the clear offensive centerpiece for this Gamecocks squad. Not only does he lead them in scoring by a wide margin, he also leads them in field goals and three-pointers attempted and made. He truly is a special offensive talent, as not only is he one of the best deep threat shooters in the nation, but he can score any way he wants. I want to take a look at this three-level scoring and show just how impactful Tandy can be at the next level.
Let's start with his most intriguing offensive trait, his three-point shooting. He truly is one of the top shooters from beyond the arch in the nation, shooting 36% from deep while attempting 8 per game. 48.6% of his total workload has come from three, a staggering rate when you consider that the rest of his team only combines for 10 attempts from three per game.
Here you'll see Tandy after taking the ball up the court. He accelerates to the left before using a step-back to create space. What's so interesting about this clip is that he really isn't known for creating his own shot from three. He's an excellent catch-and-shoot operator, but while watching his film I didn't see much of this from him. However, from this clip you can tell that he's capable of creating his own shot from deep. You'll see later, too, that he has no issue creating his own shot from the mid-range or on the drive, so my best guess is that he just prefers to catch-and-shoot from beyond the arch.
Here are some examples of that catch-and-shoot acumen that I'm talking about. He has an incredibly quick release, making it difficult for defenders to get a decent contest on his shot. In addition to that, he elevates using his 48 inch vertical (You heard that right...48 inch vertical) to make up for being shorter than most of his opponents.
All three of those clips showed catch-and-shoot threes. However, he beats his defender in a different way in each clip. In the first he comes off of a screen and gets set while catching the inbound pass, setting himself up for a wide open three. In the second he simply elevates over the defender who was just a step too slow to properly contest the shot. Finally, in the third, Tandy out-runs his defender while trailing the play, then his shot release was just too quick for the defender to catch up with him and contest the shot. Tandy shows in these clips that he's an elite off-ball offensive weapon, getting to his spots and knocking down shots at an impressive rate without needing the ball in his hands.
Feel free to watch this highlight reel. I didn't feel the need to clip everything out of it, but it's basically three straight minutes of Tandy knocking down threes from everywhere on the court.
Something else that makes Kyky a very valuable player is that he's an incredibly capable shooter not only beyond the arch, but also a few steps inside it. His shooting acumen translates in the mid-range, but in this facet of the game he is far more hands on. This is where his shot creation skills have truly revealed themselves. About 27% of his workload comes from this part of the court, his second biggest chunk of scoring.
Here's a clip of Tandy chucking up your average mid-range jumper from the free-throw line. His quick release translates here with none of his superb shot mechanics faltering. Nothing too special with this play, but just wanted to convey that Tandy doesn't change things up too much from this part of the court.
Now onto some fun stuff. I have two examples of Tandy getting creative with his shot creation. I'm not even sure if you would call this first shot a layup or a jumper, but I chose to go with the play-by-play and throw it into the mid-range category. Starting off in the corner, he is forced toward the baseline and into a second defender. Most players would get flustered in this situation before passing out to a teammate or turning the ball over. Instead, Tandy pulls a spin move out of his bag to beat the second defender before hoisting up a bank shot while still on the move.
The next clip is of a simple floater, something that Tandy uses regularly in his game. What impressed me about this play was his ability to stun not only one, but two defenders. He uses an inside-out dribble to back both defenders off of him, leading to an uncontested floater which turns into an easy bucket.
The last thing I really want to dig into when it comes to Kyky Tandy's game is his finishing around the rim. For a small guy he plays big around the hoop, finishing through contact and making all sorts of circus shots. Like I mentioned earlier, he takes advantage of his inhuman jumping ability to make up for his height. I think his finishing ability is the second best part of his game, and I wish he would drive more than he does, as only 17.5% of his workload comes via layups and dunks. Either way, take a look at some of these impressive takes.
Here you see him use that spin move again, but this time he allows his momentum to keep carrying him towards the rim. At the point of the shot Tandy absorbs the contact from the rim protector before using said contact to create space and make the shot.
Here he spins AGAIN, but this time he comes to an almost complete stop to stun his defender before accelerating toward the rim and finishing the reverse layup. By the time the big man tries to step out to stop Tandy, he has blown past him and gotten into his shooting motion. That speed is deadly when he gets a step on his opponent.
This final layup is the most impressive one I've seen from Tandy this season. It may not look like an incredibly impressive drive at first, but he really does use multiple tactics to get the bucket. First he takes advantage of the screen to get the defender on his hip. He then crosses through the lane to the opposite side of the big man to get him on his heels. He then finishes with a circus shot through contact, and probably should've ended up on the line (where he shoots 100% by the way).
That's all of the actual film I will go over, but here's a short list of a few more of Tandy's strengths:
Solid perimeter defender (Averaging 1 steal per game)
Never gets into foul trouble
Decent passer when he wants to be
Good rebounder for his size
Now onto everyone's least favorite portion of these, the weaknesses. Every player has them, and it's important to acknowledge these if you really want to evaluate Tandy's game. However, I won't dig too deep into them so you don't think I'm too much of a pessimist.
Height... he may be 6'2" on a good day
Age, he's a fifth year player and he'll be 23 in December
He has proven to be injury prone
He's turnover prone and not the best decision maker
His shot selection can be iffy at times
Somehow is unable to get to the line despite shooting 100% from there
Questionable effort on the defensive end
I'm not going to say I'd overlook the last four items on that list, but I always worry less about weaknesses that can be fixed over time. The big issues on that list are the first three bullets. I really don't think he's 6'2". My guess is that he's right at 6 feet. He is very short considering he plays more like a two-guard than a one, which is why I wish he would develop more as a passer this season. Secondly, he is old from a prospect perspective. I will say, though, that he spent the majority of his time at Xavier recovering from injuries instead of developing. Now he's at a school without a solid development program. I have to assume that once he goes up to the pro level he will finally have a solid development team around him. Finally, we still have to assume that he's injury prone. Until I see him go a whole season with regular play and no injuries I won't buy that he isn't injury prone. Everything else he can figure out with time and effort.
As a prospect Tandy is very interesting. He is too old and not polished enough to get drafted. He would have to elevate to being a top scorer in the nation to be a true draft prospect. With that being said, when you can shoot the three as well as Tandy can you may have a spot in the league. All I know is that he is a professional basketball player, no doubt about that.
(all clips via Jacksonville State University Athletics)
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