For this article, I interviewed Day’Ron about his journey and skills. I will reference that interview often. You can find it here.

After winning a Class 4A title as a high school junior, Sharpe transferred to the famous Montverde Academy. That 2019-20 roster boasts an incredible six NBA alumni. Four of them went in the 2021 draft: Cade Cunningham 1st overall, Scottie Barnes 4th, Moses Moody 14th, and Day’Ron at 29th. Caleb Houstan was picked 32nd the year after, and Dariq Whitehead 22nd the year after that. Suffice it to say, that is talent few other teams can match. Day’Ron asserts that no other high school could compete with them from any year. With a 25-0 record and 24 of those victories by double digits, they have as good a case as any team.

Sharpe went to UNC for college under the tutelage of Roy Williams. That squad possessed an imposing collection of talent as well. Armando Bacot, Garrison Brooks, and Leaky Black formed an impressive defensive trio in the starting group with a freshman backcourt of Caleb Love and RJ Davis, two future All-Americans. That left Sharpe as one of the first off the bench. Another future NBA talent, Walker Kessler, could only get nine minutes per game. And it wouldn’t be the last time Day’Ron had to sit behind more experienced players.

The 2021-22 Brooklyn Nets team that Sharpe was drafted to felt like a who’s-who of 2010s greats. Headlined by the trio of Kevin Durant, James Harden, and Kyrie Irving, this team was built to contend. Their frontcourt included LaMarcus Aldridge, Blake Griffin, and Paul Millsap. Of all the greats on this team, Sharpe credits James Johnson as the most impactful veteran for his career.

By his own admission, Day’Ron didn’t have his mind right upon entering the league. He wasn’t the first to be there or the last to leave. He didn’t value winning the way he should have. Johnson took the rookie big man under his wing, taught him how to build good habits, and instilled a desire to compete. Four years later, Day’Ron is looking to pass that same spirit to a Nets team rebuilding from the exodus of Durant, Irving, and Harden.

It’s safe to say that Sharpe has dealt with as many changing circumstances and expectations as any fourth-year player can. Most importantly, he’s seen how to stick in this league in many ways. In this article, I’ll break down Sharpe’s strengths and limitations, potential growth areas, and look to the future for this restricted free agent to see where his game can fit best. Let’s dig into it. As usual, all stats I list are per Cleaning the Glass.

Offensive Overview

Sharpe set many career highs offensively this past season. He posted the most points and assists per game of his career. His free-throw percentage also jumped nearly 20 points to 79%. The underlying stats are more noteworthy to me. He took more midrange shots and upped his percentage from 37% to 44%. Sharpe tripled his three-point attempts and increased his percentage as well, from 25% to 28%. Most importantly, his assist percentage and assist-to-usage rate went up with his increase in usage rate.

Individual improvements are essential, but team context is everything. Brooklyn was 6.6 points per 100 possessions better on offense with Sharpe on the floor. That wasn’t due to some massive increase in efficiency, free-throw drawing, or taking extra care of the ball. It was due to Sharpe’s foremost skill.

Offensive Rebounding

When Day’Ron is on the floor, Brooklyn’s offensive rebounding rate increases by 10.8%. That’s the highest on/off OREB% mark of any player in the league. His offensive rebounding rate of 15.4% was a 98th percentile mark in the league. He brings it all: hustle, positioning skill, physicality, and jump timing.

These extra possessions Sharpe creates are immensely valuable. We’ve seen it as a theme throughout these playoffs. When efficiency bogs down and set plays go out the window, that guy who can create a second and third chance at the rim skyrockets in importance. Few players in the league create those chances the way Day’Ron can.

Rim Finishing

This is where things get spottier for Sharpe. In all four years, Sharpe has shot in the low 60s around the rim. He’s never been above the 28th percentile for bigs. Some of that is owed to the nature of his role; constantly tipping the ball around the rim leads to many misses. But there are also controllable aspects. Day’Ron has issues with loading his feet, finding proper positioning, and reading the rim protection.

I don’t expect Sharpe to suddenly become a 75%-ish rim finisher by cleaning up technical aspects of his game. He’s still going to have a lot of tip-ins go awry, and it’s in his nature to try relentlessly to get that final putback. Still, some work on positioning and loading his jumps would significantly improve these numbers.

Screen Actions

The 2024-25 season saw a ton of improvement for Sharpe in screen actions. He has a lot of utility on and off the ball, and sets great picks that free his teammates in a variety of situations.

I came away very impressed with his DHO game. Not only did he set strong screens, he made good passing reads and had a good sense of when to keep the ball and self-create.

His role as a DHO hub was crucial for a team lacking structure. So many new faces searching for offensive roles and identities. Sharpe’s ability to pass, screen, and make himself available for passes significantly raised this group’s floor. A play finisher learning to create those plays for others brings immense value to any team.

Odds and Ends

Most of Sharpe’s offensive value comes from screening, cutting, and offensive rebounding. He’s still finding ways to show skill in other areas, and I’m encouraged by his development as a shooter. He shoots an easy ball and the results have continued to perk up.

Day’Ron told me that the skill he is looking forward to developing the most is his shooting. Becoming an all-around contributor to the offense is paramount to his development. Another way he finds to contribute is in transition. Despite his hulking frame, Sharpe can move quickly in the open floor.

Watching his offensive talent grow with each passing game is a treat. At only 23 years old, it’s hard to put a definite ceiling on his growth, but I see him in the mold of Steven Adams with extra skill. Elite second-chance creation and screening talent can get you far. Adams grew a lot as a passer, but the shooting never materialized. Sharpe may find a way to be more of an outside shooter and DHO keeper threat. It’s the kind of offensive contributor many teams will be looking for.

Defensive Overview

Brooklyn posted a better-than-expected defense for a team that felt like an island of misfit toys. They finished 20th in total defensive rating, largely due to head coach Jordi Fernandez’s instilled competitive factor. The Nets deployed an aggressive style of defense designed to throw other teams off their game, and Sharpe was part of that equation.

With Day’Ron on the floor, the Nets had a 111.7 defensive rating. That’s a 77th percentile mark. Of course, a lot of this came from his best all-around skill.

Defensive Rebounding

Sharpe’s defensive rebounding rate isn’t as stellar as his offensive rebounding rate. A 63rd percentile mark is nothing to sneeze at, to be sure, but it begs questions. Those are largely answered by this Brooklyn rebound scheme, where Sharpe’s job was to find the best offensive rebounder and wipe them out of the play. His determination to box out was apparent on the tape.

I truly enjoyed his determination to box out the league’s most imposing players. Day’Ron said his favorite matchups are Ivica Zubac, Jonas Valanciunas, and the Pistons duo of Isaiah Stewart and Jalen Duren. It’s not just effort here, it’s technical prowess. He works hard to get inside positioning and push as far back as possible. In the worst-case scenario, he gets positioning and refuses to lose ground. Sharpe also uses a good leg bend to make any OREB attempts over his back futile. If he loses inside position, he’s excellent at pushing his man under the rim to reduce their rebounding radius.

There’s more meat on the bone with his defensive rebounding numbers, but the technique and effort are sound. The defensive scheme employed in Brooklyn on ball screen actions can explain some of this gap.

Pick-and-Roll Defense

As previously mentioned, Sharpe had three coaches in three years. That was before the hiring of Jordi Fernandez. Jordi brings a defensive style that maximizes Brooklyn’s athleticism. Bringing in an extra degree of unpredictability helped their defense punch above their weight and win some games they weren’t expected to. That included some aggressive ball screen coverages, with Day’Ron square in the middle of it. The blitzing and showing came with mixed results:

Often, the lineups came with Cam Johnson in the corner rotating to shut off the roller. He’s plenty capable of being a rim deterrent at his size, but that’s not the issue here. Problems arose from Day’Ron’s recovery speed and the angles he chose. This was not an athleticism concern – he’s got that in spades. It’s a question of decisiveness and efficiency in my mind. Before this season, Day’Ron spent far more time in drop, something he’s alright at doing. He does have a block-hunting problem that’s shown up in past tape. Plays like this one were all too common:

But there are the flashes of brilliance, where he chains it all together: play recognition, urgency of movement, precise angles and timing. And they look beautiful.

I don’t mean to imply that things will simply click someday and Day’Ron can become a consistently great ball screen defender. It requires a lot of reps and hard work to get there. But reps and hard work don’t get you superb athletic gifts. Pairing that hard work with Sharpe’s natural talent will take him a long way. It’s an area I’m confident he can build in.

Rim Protection

Sharpe encounters the same problems protecting the rim outside the action as he does in the action. He’s inconsistent with his footwork, load times, and chases blocks too often. I don’t want to harp on that further; instead, I will look at the possessions where things come together. Those are a sight to see.

When his feet are organized and his jump is well-timed, Sharpe has an innate ability to locate the ball at all angles. That kind of ball tracking and length covers up a lot of gaps as a rim protector. With more consistent footwork and positioning, in addition to cleaning up the windows in which he chooses to go for a block, he could be a serious asset at the rim.

Odds and Ends

I also enjoyed Sharpe’s transition defense. He loves getting out and running to commit the right fouls at a minimum. At best, he can contest multiple shots and get some impressive blocks.

I’d like to see more of that engagement off the ball in the halfcourt. He was too prone to losing cutters and being late to recognize off-ball screeners, which is a common issue for young players at all positions. The good thing is the engagement shows up in other areas; Sharpe needs to show the same commitment to stopping easy buckets that he shows when a rebound is up for grabs. That’s easy to translate with the right mindset.

Future Outlook

At 23 years old, Sharpe’s restricted free agency will be an interesting watch. The Nets have a lot of cap space, but things are in flux. They have Nic Claxton paid up as a true center, so the idea of paying two bigs that shared the floor for just 29 possessions (+31 net rating, just saying…) is worth inspection. However, trade speculation around Claxton has continued for years and could come to a head this offseason. There is a real chance Sharpe could leave elsewhere or end up back in Brooklyn as a starter.

These NBA playoffs did him a lot of favors. Physical rebounders and screeners like Steven Adams made a huge statement in the era of shooting and small ball. DHO runners and gap fillers like Isaiah Hartenstein have proven immensely valuable. Sharpe’s work ethic will jump off the page for any team interested in his services, and his desire to improve his skill set is noteworthy. As is, an elite rebounder who sets nasty screens and operates within the flow ot the offense has a lot of utility. An improvement as a paint protector, shooter, and rim finisher could take him to a new level. Watch out for Day’Ron.

The post Finding a Role: Day’Ron Sharpe appeared first on Swish Theory.

As Orlando’s afternoon sunshower came to an end just after 7pm Wednesday night, two AAU squads prepared to face off in a Fall Ball scrimmage: The SFA Rams out of Dover, Florida, visiting the Oak Ridge Elite Pioneers.

For SFA, Landyn Colyer and Traevon Koch shined, along with Oak Ridge’s Jalen Reece, Jamier Jones, and Zay Mosley all standing out with electric play.

Future college basketball players going back and forth trading smooth pull-up jumpers, clean rim finishes, smartly forced turnovers, and highlight breakaway slams before Oak Ridge pulled away in the second half.

Scouting Report

Landyn Colyer

4-Star 6’6″ Wing and self-described Tall Guard Landyn Colyer (#1, SFA) showed off incredible tough shotmaking skills, knockdown 3pt range, cerebral two-way instincts and a positive team-first mentality communicating with his teammates.

Landyn opened up the game splashing a deep-range 3pt jumper off the give-and-go handoff, then followed it up by countering with drives off handoffs into a few fadeaway leaners in the midrange, converting tough shot after tough shot. The soft touch shooting at his size is impressive. Resetting with a gather dribble and spin move under the basket also showed good fundamental footwork and more clean finishing in the paint.

Colyer racked up tons of deflections, usually able to use his frame and length to contest shots and poke the ball away without fouling, leading to many turnovers and missed shots for his opponent, while showing a knack for making multiple heads up plays to save loose balls before falling out of bounds.

Keeping the ball moving, not over-dribbling, looking to score or pass when the next man is open shows good connector skills.

Sprinting to a fallen teammate to pick him up after they drew a foul, putting his arm around teammates to talk about how to improve going forward, dapping up and hyping up teammates who walked by, Landyn clearly cares about his guys and brings a positive influence as a leader.

An anonymous basketball scout raves about Landyn Colyer’s game and team-first mentality: “An elite player who can do it all. Great athlete, very smooth & nice shooting stroke and form. Good vision. Very unselfish and is all about winning as a team.”

Traveon William Koch

6’3″ Combo Guard Traevon William Koch (#0, SFA) in the Class of ’25 looked to score every chance he got, showing nice start-stop body control driving to the rack; clean finishing at the rim on reverses, layups, floaters, AND1s, and an alley-oop slam; tight hesitation handles creating space; and a smooth jumper off the dribble when finding room to pull up.

Koch flashed his hops and timing again when he got up for a big block from behind on a drive, not giving up on the play after his man got to the rim.

Traevon stayed hunting his own shot, and while usually converting, sometimes missed open teammates cutting to the rack. Staying aware of where his teammates are and which spots they’re moving to could help stack up assists and create easy shot opportunities for others when Traevon draws multiple defenders his way, like when he found the open corner 3pt shooter off a jump pass from the midrange, deciding to give up a good shot for a great one.

Traevon showed how much he cared about his team, helping teammates up who had fallen to the ground, and talking to his guys in the huddle about how to improve the next time out.

Jalen Reece

4-Star 6′ Point Guard Jalen Reece (#2, Oak Ridge) in the Class of ’25 of the FL Rebels popped out in this game with incredible two-way feel, making winning plays on both ends, forcing turnovers, converting at the rim in transition, splashing pull-up jumpers, creating advantages for himself and others, while constantly looking to set up teammates for the lob pass alley-oop.

Reece showed nice body control decelerating and finishing at the rim, attacking the rack for the bump-and-finish AND1 through contact, driving strong to the rim with a smooth up-and-under finger roll finish through contact, converting tough shots near the rim falling away from the basket, using quick first step burst and tight ball control to get into the paint anytime he wanted, or stop on a dime for a stepback jumper off the dribble.

Jalen flashed nasty handles, masterful control of his body and the ball, digging deep into his bag to weave through multiple defenders with hesitations, spins, behind the back, any dribble move you can name, while using incredible vision and decision-making awareness to stay looking for teammates for alley-oops and drop off no-look dimes, especially in transition.

Forcing too many turnovers to count, Reece racked up deflections throughout the game, with multiple steals as point-of-attack defender at the top of the key, one leading to a 2-on-1 alley-oop to Zay Mosley, and trapping a defender alongside Jamier Jones for the forced turnover.

Reece drilled jumpers from everywhere: the catch-and-shoot 3ball, the stepback middy pull-up, the contested deep jump shot off the dribble, with a clean finishing package in the paint.

Jamier Jones

4-Star 6’6″ Small Forward Jamier Jones (#1, Oak Ridge) was your explosive high-flyer of the night, folks.

Whether he started with the ball on the perimeter or ran the floor on fast break outlets, it did not matter; Jamier stayed ready to throw it down on somebody’s head. Breakaway slams, speedy quick burst first step, dynamic athleticism led to strong takes to the rack, where Jones was too strong and too twitch-quick for anyone in his path.

Good timing and ball instincts led to rebounds, good post-up positioning and boulder shoulder moves led to backdown buckets, and constant rim-rolling led to dunk after dunk.

Watch out for this wrecking ball of energy if you’re standing in his way; you might just get posterized.

Zay Mosley

6’7″ Forward Zay Mosley (#4, Oak Ridge) crashed the glass with reckless abandon; there was no keeping him away from any rebound he wanted.

Bullyball down low on the boards resulted in possessions where Mosley could rack up multiple offensive rebounds in the same possession until the rock had no choice but to go through the net.

Smart two-way feel using his height and length to contest opponents, keeping his hands straight up without fouling, grab-and-go mentality after forcing the turnover, looking up for the open teammate leaking out on the break, will translate to every level.

Showing strong hop step spinning footwork fundamentals on the block, Mosley could become a powerful play-finisher whose engine never turns off.

Interview with 4-Star 6’6″ Wing Landyn Colyer and SFA Head Coach Jaleel Sanders

Landyn Colyer

Did any current or former players inspire your game?

I have a couple NBA players that I look after: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Devin Booker, Jayson Tatum, people like that I just try to model my game after them.

Are there any certain skills you try to pick up individually from them watching film?

I really like SGA’s pace, so I really try to work on my pace like that; and Devin Booker has a really crisp midrange jump shot, so I try to get my one-dribble pull-ups like him.

What sort of moves do you spend the most time on during practice?

I’d say consistently shooting, being able to catch-and-shoot, shoot one or two dribbles, especially getting to the rack, getting to the basket.

Are there any skills that you’re hoping to develop over the next few years that you might not possess today?

Ball-handling in general, honestly. Being able to be a confident point guard at my size, being a bigger guard (6’6”), is really vital at the next level to be able to play multiple positions

How would you describe your approach, your mindset, preparing for the game? What mentality are you bringing?

Kill mode. Kill everything in front of me. Just dominate. Try to be the best on the court at all times. Compete at everything you do. Try as hard as I can to win the game to help my team.

What interests you outside of basketball?

I’m really big on family. I hang out with my family a lot when I’m outside of basketball, things like that. I also like to take moments by myself and just rest, take the time to myself in my free time. But occasionally I like to hang out with some of my friends, I play a little bit of video games. (His favorite game these days? NBA 2K)

Head Coach Jaleel Sanders

What is your goal as the coach of these young players during a vital time in their development?

Just to make sure they’re getting the best out of these guys. The ultimate goal is to put them through college, give them an experience to prepare them for school and help them grow as young men, not just athletes, we want them to be really good citizens in the community. So those are some of the biggest things for their development, as far as mentally, physically, emotionally getting these guys prepared for that next level of life.

What sort of player development do you like to focus on most during practice?

We focus on all the simple things, simple things help you win, basketball’s a simple game. So we work on fundamentals, so strictly fundamentals: shooting, passing, playing defense, backdoor cuts, also just communicating. Working on communicating, working on defense, is putting our guys in the best position to win the game and actually learn the game of basketball.

What mentality do you see in Landyn, what do you really notice that he brings to the game?

He has this willingness to always want to listen and learn; he always wants to learn; he always wants to get better. He has this drive about him that’s different from a lot of other kids. He wants to play at the highest level that there is, that’s with most kids, but he’s not just talking about it, he’s trying to do it. He’s putting the time in, he’s putting the work in, he’s also big on his development. He’s being a great teammate, talking to guys, letting them know, ‘hey, we need to do this better’’. His communication is good with his guys, his teammates, he’s a pretty good leader.

How would you describe Landyn as a person off the court?

Silly. Goofy. He’s one of those guys who’s always trying to figure out how to uplift guys. Joking around with his teammates. He’s very laid back but also outgoing as well in his own way. So he loves to joke around with his guys, respectfully. He’s uplifting them, joking with them, keeping guys laughing, keeping them on their toes.

The post Meet Landyn Colyer – Scouting SFA vs. Oak Ridge appeared first on Swish Theory.