It has been a strange freshman season for Bryson Tiller. The Kansas basketball forward has shown flashes of potential, but one significant thing is holding him back from being an outstanding player for the Jayhawks.
Tiller is having a fine first season at KU. He played in all 19 games, including starts in the last 16. He averaged 7.9 points per game, 5.7 rebounds, and 1.4 blocks in 24.6 minutes per game. Those are pretty solid numbers for a player who isn't required to score much, especially since Darryn Peterson started playing regularly.
Bryson Tiller needs to be much stronger at the rim for Kansas basketball
One area in which Tiller has struggled a bit is his three-point shooting. He went 4-for-4 from behind the arc in the second game of the season, but he's connected on only five of his other 30 attempts. He hit seven of his first 11 from downtown over the first four games of the season, but he's two-for-23 in the subsequent 15 games.
Still, this area isn't the one where Tiller needs to improve the most. Where Tiller needs to improve the most is finishing at the rim. He's six-for-10 and 240 pounds, but he often gets disrupted at the rim.
He also gets the ball ripped from his hands quite often on rebounds. Both of these concerns are due to strength, and that is something that can be fixed. When he learns to be more aggressive on the boards and gains more strength, he won't get pushed off the rim as much as he is now, and he'll be a better rebounder.
He also seems to avoid being physical, but that is something that can be coached up. He'll be more comfortable with that part of his game as his body matures and he gets stronger.
His three-point shooting will get better, too. His shot doesn't look bad, but occasionally he doesn't get his feet set, and he hurries the shot a little. Those things will get better with practice.
Tiller definitely has the skill set to be a stretch four that can also bang in the paint; he's not quite there yet. He's also got a pretty mid-range jumper that should also develop with experience and practice.
The future for Bryson Tiller is extremely bright. He is going to continue to be a fantastic supplemental piece of the current Kansas team, and it seems certain he will be a player who takes a big jump in production in his second year. He will be a significant player for the Jayhawks before his time is up at Kansas.
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