Potential draft target for the Rockets? Darius Days has shined for LSU

It is never too early to get to know the prospects entering the league next season. For the Houston Rockets, it’s worth knowing Darius Days.

It is never too early to get to know the prospects entering the league next season. For the Houston Rockets, it’s worth knowing Darius Days.

The LSU Tigers sophomore was a highly-touted commit for the program, rated as No. 62 overall recruit in the Class of 2018. During his first collegiate campaign, Days had the best offensive rating among any freshman for LSU since KenPom began calculating the metric back in 2002. He is flying under-the-radar for most mock drafts but is playing like a future pro.

While he stands at just 6-foot-6, over his last five games he has actually spent approximately one-quarter of his minutes at center for the Tigers. He may be a natural wing but much like Houston’s P.J. Tucker, he is capable of playing as a small-ball five.

His shot chart as a freshman was perfectly desirable for the Rockets, who prefer to take only shots at the basket or three-pointers. That is where 85.2 percent of where his shots came from during his first year at LSU.

Especially considering how often he took shots from downtown, he clearly has some confidence in his shooting game. Last season, he averaged 1.12 PPP (86th percentile) on jump shots taken in a set offense.

The forward was 8-for-16 (50.0 percent) on jumpers during pick-and-pop opportunities in 2018-19, which is where a lot of his plays will come at the next level.

Before the 2019-20 season began, Days spoke about how he will get more of these looks either near the rim or beyond the arc as a sophomore (via 247 Sports):

“I feel like I’m gonna take more shots in the game. Like you said, I feel more comfortable playing this year and coach just told me when you’re open, shoot it … [Our offense will be] faster, more shooting, more getting to the basket. The hole won’t be so cluttered. Coach has the court spaced out in the five-out offense we’re running this year. So, it’s gonna be pretty good.”

This year, once again at a ridiculously high-rate, 83.9 percent of his total attempts have either been at the basket or from three-point range.

Days is shooting 85.0 percent on two-pointers and made all but one of his first 24 attempts at the rim — where is now shooting 88.9 percent. He is a dominant finisher near the basket, which has been his best trait as a prospect.

That has worked out well for the program as the Tigers have scored 149.5 points per 100 possessions with Days on the court, which is third-best in the NCAA.

It is what has made his head coach Will Wade tell him that his program “needs” him on the court, adding that the scoreboard moves in a positive direction when Days is playing.

Among all players who have been on the court for at least 65 percent of all possible minutes, he ranks No. 12 overall based on points over replacement per adjusted games at their usage rate. Based on Player of the Year ratings for BartTorvik.com, he is currently Top 5 among sophomores.

Similarly, his offensive box plus-minus sits fourth-best in college basketball.

Overall, the sophomore is averaging 1.31 points per possessions for LSU. According to Synergy Sports, that ranks in the 99th percentile. When looking at all D1 players who have finished at least 90 possessions this season, only three have been more efficient than Days.

Houston still has the rights to their own first-round pick and while Days may not yet be a Top-30 selection, continued play at this rate could put him in that conversation. Otherwise, he could be a potential trade-target in the latter half of the draft or an undrafted free agent worth pursuing.

The 20-year-old from Gainesville, Florida (the same hometown as Rockets legend Vernon Maxwell) has thrived in a fast-tempo offense at LSU and he seems like a natural fit for Houston.

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