Two years ago it was Bryant McIntosh. He ended up at Northwestern. Last year, it was Ryan Cline. Purdue. This year it looks like the guy that is going to blow up in the month of July might be Grant…
Two years ago it was Bryant McIntosh. He ended up at Northwestern. Last year, it was Ryan Cline. Purdue. This year it looks like the guy that is going to blow up in the month of July might be Grant Gelon.
Now, this might be to a lesser extent than Cline and McIntosh but in the same regard, Gelon has really put himself on the map during a pivotal month. After a great showing this week at the Adidas Invitational, Grant picked up his first offer from Western Michigan and tons of interest including some from a big in-state power.
Tom Crean was on hand to watch the sharpshooter from Crown Point (IN) a few times this weekend. The shooting display he put on was huge and he had multiple games with four or more three-pointers made. Gelon was 26 of 51 from three-point range for just over 50%. He scored 91 points in 7 games in Indianapolis and that kind of firepower will get most coaches talking.
Joining Western Michigan and Indiana are a slew of low major programs like Western Illinois, Furman, Montana State, Denver, Illinois State, Youngstown State, and IUPUI. Only a few months ago, the question was more about if Gelon could get DI looks during AAU. Now, it is more about how many and how high.
The obvious special element to the 6'6 Gelon is his shooting. Combine that with his height and you've got the beginnings of a special player. He's consistent in his shooting from game to game. In nearly every viewing I've had since December he has made multiple three-pointers during a game and did it efficiently. Not once has he not made any. It's consistent game to game but he's streaky throughout. He'll go off and maybe have one in the first half but he could turn around and hit three or four in a six minute stretch and win the game or get you back into it.
At the DI level, though, he's going to have to work on his defense. He isn't very strong yet but can and will get there in college and that should help. Grant will be strictly a role player as a shooter but could be a high-level one in much the same way Cline could be at Purdue. His role, make shots.
There are two more weeks to go in July, 10 days of games and he will now head to St. Louis for the Three-Stripes Alliance event which should provide some high-level matchups with potential games against Gateway and St. Louis Eagles. If he can continue to shoot like he did this weekend, he'll continue to receive plenty of interest and he should.