School: Ole Miss
Year: Senior
Height/Weight: 6’2, 195 lbs
Strengths:
Ever since his freshman year, Breein Tyree has consistently taken on larger roles year by year. This includes this year as the departure of Terence Davis opened up a door for both Tyree and teammate Devontae Shuler to lead. For the 2019-2020 season, Ole Miss has struggled to find a winning formula, but that hasn’t stopped Tyree from showing everyone that he can still hoop.
I wish there were a lot more players like Tyree out there. The first thing you realize watching Breein Tyree is the amount of hustle he brings every minute of every game. Offense or Defense, on ball or off ball, it doesn’t matter, he busts his tail to help his team win.
When you tune into an Ole Miss game it is easy to realize how the Rebel offense is tailored to get him looks to score. Tyree is a smooth operator and loves to put pressure on defenders ideally to find a way to get near the rim. Standing at 6’2 he has a really solid frame with big shoulders. Tyree uses his frame to shield defenders when attacking downhill and occasionally gives defenders a shoulder nudge to create room for the shot.
He excels out in the open floor as well and is quick with the ball in transition. In the half-court he’ll show that quick first step and some bounce at the rim.
Tyree can finish with either hand and absorbs/adjusts to contact well to try and finish. If getting to the rim isn’t an option Tyree looks to use some sort of dribble move, normally a cross over or behind the back to garner enough separation for him to get his feet set and pull-up. Operating off-ball, Tyree looks to curl off of screens for a one dribble pull-up. This is also something you see on Ole Miss’s out of bounds sets.
Tyree shot 45% from the field, over 37% from three and over 80% from the FT line his junior year. His improvements since his freshman year are a good indication that his shot will translate to the next level and it’s especially impressive because Tyree shoots a lot of shots off the dribble even beyond the three point line.
On the defensive end, Tyree excels at beating attackers to a spot and using his chest to make them change their path. His active hands, tenacity, and quickness to jump passing lanes has made him a threat to turn defense into quick offense
Weaknesses:
The first potential weakness for Breein Tyree is that there are serious questions on how he can run and facilitate in an offense. I think there is a concern for his ability to pass off the dribble as he struggles to get passes out quickly. His style of play is as a score first guard and he has never averaged more than three assists per game which is very concerning because he needs to be able to play the point at the next level standing at 6-2. Tyree doesn’t handle defensive pressure really well and he will get stripped for a turnover or throw a poor pass to a teammate quite often. He lacks good vision for a point and it is something he will need to prove to scouts that he can do to make a case come draft season.
The second concern I have for him going forward is that I am not sure how much of his scoring style will translate to the next level. I believe he will be able to use his dribble moves and create separation from the mid-range and back, but I think there are questions on how often he can really get to the rim. While he is a more explosive athlete than others, I haven’t seen outlier level explosiveness for a smaller guard. He may have to rely a little more on craft at the next level.
Earlier I discussed the level of hustle that Tyree brings to a team and how his ability to jump passing lanes and recover is impressive, but I am a little worried about how well he will be able to guard from the point of attack. He does a great job of using his body to stop attackers, but he could use better footwork getting around screens. He’ll need to work on his ability to keep up with taller guards or guards with elite handles. I think he could provide the same time of intensity as Nico Mannion would with a slightly better output.
Tyree has a good ability to pull-up and when he does, his jumper is released at a high point but his motion seems a bit elongated. It may not be a weakness as Tyree has made shots at a good clip over his basketball career, but I think how well he gets it off at the next level may be something to monitor.
Future Outlook:
Breein Tyree is a clutch player and tough shot-maker that will give you top notch effort on both sides of the basketball. I believe that he can be a guy that could come off the bench and look to score you some points but will need time to work on his ability to run point in the G-League. Offensively, he needs to work on his vision and on defense he needs to work on getting around screens and his quickness guarding quick guards. He may never be a big plus defender, but his hustle and offensive ability may make up for it.
Overall, Tyree’s scoring prowess may give him a look in the mid to late second, but I think he may be a nice Undrafted Free Agent that will be fun to watch in the Summer League and has the potential to work his way onto an NBA roster sooner rather than later.
