BYU basketball: Rating the Cougars NBA Jam style

BYU basketball has wrapped up its out of conference games, and now conference play is starting. If you are emerging from the cocoon of the BYU football season and ready for the hardwood, here is your complete guide to every regular on the Cougars’ roster.

BYU basketball has played 13 games of ups and downs. Head coach Dave Rose scheduled a balanced slate. The Cougars played tough games and easy ones, games on the road, at home, and at neutral sites. Compiling a 9-4 record, they beat the teams they were supposed to, and lost to the teams favored over them.

Coming into conference play, the dynamics of the BYU basketball team are going to change. They do every year, once they start going up against opponents that know them better. There’s also that feeling of starting afresh with conference play. That can rejuvenate a team to outperform their preseason mark.

This year things will be particularly different.

With the loss of Kyle Davis to a season (and career) ending knee injury, the re-addition of Corbin Kaufusi with his football season ending in a win over Wyoming in the Poinsettia Bowl, and the hovering possibility that Elijah Bryant will step in and fulfill some of his potential as a penciled-in starter before the season, a lot could change as conference play gets into swing.

While the team dynamics may change, the players we see now will largely be the ones battling the Zags in the Kennel. We also had previews of the back and front courts to begin the season. But 13 games has driven out much of the theoretical, and given way to a lot of minutes of real action.

Remember the Boomshakaka?. Given all that’s happened between now and their start in the basketball showcase all those months ago, it feels appropriate to revisit each player, complete with NBA Jam-style stats, in time for their WCC opener hosting Santa Clara on Thursday.

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LJ Rose

L.J. started the year seeming like a stop-gap to cover the Cougars’ lack of experienced while waiting for Bryant to get healthy. But as time has gone on, he seems more and more firmly entrenched as the starting point guard. Rose is a pass first, ball-security, run-our-stuff kind of point guard that has given this young BYU basketball team much-needed steadiness.

He has unfortunately been a bit more turnover-prone in big games (especially against USC), but his shooting numbers from 3-point land have improved of late. He nearly shot the Cougars into a victory against Illinois, upping his clutch stat in the process.

L.J.’s play style may lack flash, but nobody can argue with his beard game.

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Nick Emery

Emery returned as the sole guard with experience from last year, where he made a freshman-record 97 threes. Unfortunately, just like last year, it’s taken him awhile to get his stride from distance. In Emery tradition, Nick leads the BYU basketball team in steals, and frequently gets the other teams best scoring guard as his mark.

When he’s hot, he can score in a hurry. He also has an aggressive, crafty style of attacking the basket that keeps defenders from selling out to stop his deep shot. When the Cougars need a shot with five seconds left on the clock, Emery is their man.

Just don’t ask him to dunk it.

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TJ Haws

After a successful debut in the Princeton game, Haws struggled a little to find himself at the D1 level. But as the games wore on and he got a feel for competition, he has steadily improved for BYU basketball. If L.J. is the solid, workman-like point guard, TJ is the flashy, head-spinning, jaw-dropping kind that thinks the no-look pass is the standard approach.

Haws just doesn’t feel himself if he doesn’t do at least one move like a behind-the-back crossover, spin, leap, and then curl a pass somewhere per game. He also has shown flashes of killer offense, with jab-step three’s and mid-range fade-aways. With a good floater or two, he can be really dangerous once he gets more steady, especially from deep.

Unfortunately, he seems to be most dangerous when he’s got the ball in his hands. This is unfortunate because L.J. is starting at point, and Eric Mika is demanding a lot of ball time. As head coach Dave Rose tweaks the chemistry further as the season goes on, perhaps the mystery of how to best use TJ to his full potential will be unraveled as well.

Chris Nicoll-USA TODAY Sports

Yoeli Childs

Childs just keeps getting better for BYU basketball. He started as a young and springy backup for Kyle Davis, but as a starter with a jump in minutes, he proved he that he earned them. Yoeli has a couple different solid post moves, especially pretty deep righty hook.

But mostly, Childs has done well at making himself available – letting guards like TJ draw people in, and then pay it off with a thunderous wide-open dunk. Even his free-throw shooting, which suffered around 40 percent for much of the season so far, has made a recent jump.

And speaking of jump, Yoeli’s best qualities have much to do with his hops. Rebounding, put-backs, and blocking have all been substantive additions he’s made to the team. He and Mika as a duo form are formidable post protectors (soon to be bolstered by Kaufusi’s return). And Childs’ ability to keep in front of a guard on switches will take away a lot of tactics teams have used against BYU in the past, i.e. screening and slashing to the basket.

Chris Nicoll-USA TODAY Sports

Eric Mika

Everyone familiar with the BYU basketball program knew that Mika had a great freshman year, and has a high ceiling. Most just didn’t expect him to be this good, this fast.

At 6-foot-10, Mika is quick, powerful, decisive, and multifaceted. He can attack with either hand, bang in the post, face up and and hit a fade from the baseline or the elbow, and run the floor for an alley-oop. Eric leads the NCAA in fouls drawn per game, and shoots just under 80 percent from the charity stripe.

When doubled, Mika frequently makes better and better passes, maintaining calm, and re-posting to attack. He is a terror on the O-boards, and makes space to grab a carom for a put-back, frequently with the foul.

On defense, Eric occasionally has been prone to foul. Not always because he defends much differently game to game, but because what is considered a foul changes even from half to half. But Mika also leads the team in blocks, has been solid against all the big men he’s covered, and hedges well off of screens.

Eric Mika is this BYU basketball team’s bell-ringer. If his mid-range game continues to improve, don’t expect him to still be in BYU blue and white his senior year.

Chris Nicoll-USA TODAY Sports

Corbin Kaufusi

A lot of what Corbin will bring to this team remains a bit in question. Thanks to his time at defensive end, he is much heavier than he was a year prior. Coach Rose lists him currently at a whopping 283 pounds, up from a rough 238 last season. That is no small jump when you switch two digits. Add to that that “football shape” and “basketball shape” definitely have their differences.

But you can expect some things to be the same. Corbin is a freakish athlete, powerful and motivated. He has a great leap, lots of power, and will be just as open to dunk as Childs has been on a TJ dish.

Don’t forget that Corbin is also the most experienced big man on the team. He won’t be the offensive threat of Childs or Mika, but defensively in the post, he just might be even more imposing. He a lot of human, and might be vital in picking up defensive minutes against the Przemek Karnowskis of conference play.

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Steven Beo

Beo’s last-minute addition to the BYU basketball roster is seeming more and more like a victory for Dave Rose. An extra guard with solid shooting ability and aggressive defense has shored up some of what led to early season losses.

He’s been good for the Cougars in tight spots, and has been known to rip the ball out of a post player’s hands on a quick double. His role is to come off the bench and make life tougher for an opposing starter guard, and to this point, he’s done that well.

Chris Nicoll-USA TODAY Sports

Jamal Aytes

Aytes’ career has been marred by injury. He lost a lot of explosiveness that led him to be a highly sought after recruit out of high school. But instead of pounding the dirt, he evolved his game, and has become a reliable pinch big man for the Cougars.

Jamal put on more weight, and all of it muscle. He went from turn-over prone to careful and unselfish. He works on defense by getting his body low and using that power to keep taller bigs away from the paint. On offense, he works inside for the occasional post move, but his go-to is a baseline or five-foot shot with an incredibly soft touch. He also shoots a good percentage from the free throw line.

Jamal may not have his former burst, but if he continues to stay healthy and get minutes, both in games and in practice, he could get it back, and emerge as a backup big superior to the ones he’s battling against.

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Davin Guinn

A glue guy. A defensive stopper. An all-rounder. Guinn doesn’t really have a superlative in any category, but he’s not usually a liability, either. Davin is mosty likely to be used in situations where the starter at the 2 or 3 is in foul trouble, and/or they need someone to lock down a little on a taller guard. He can occasionally get hot from three, but his energy and his thirst to prove himself are mostly what has earned him minutes on the floor.

Mike DiNovo-USA TODAY Sports

Colby Leifson

Colby is a pure shooter. He fills the basket up in a hurry if left open. But the problem is, he hasn’t been left open, and doesn’t really have the tools to get open on his own.

When he shot isn’t falling, he’s found it tough to stay on the floor. Opposing guards know to stick to him around the 3-point line, as he has little other threat to him. He’s only an average passer and never attempted to slash to the basket. He’s also shown himself to be liability on defense at times, allowing opposing guards to dribble past him, and cause the rest of his team problems.

If he can get some open shots and some confidence, Leifson can be a deadly 3-point specialist. He’s just not there yet.

Shaw, #31, lower left. Chris Nicoll-USA TODAY Sports

Braiden Shaw

When Shaw started the season, it seemed he might be the Cougars’ basement big-man. But with limited experience on the floor and foul trouble has given him some important minutes, and he has shown marked improvement from last year.

Braiden’s not going to wow anyone with offensive power, having only one or two reliable close range attacks. Defensively, he does well enough to at least wear on a good opposing forward or center. But what he has shown is some aggressiveness on the offensive glass.

He first put showed his “Tip-master Shaw” persona against Utah State, scoring a flurry of points on tips and put backs late in the first half to to hold off a strong Aggie surge with Mika in foul trouble. He also works well in tandem with several of the bigs, especially Jamal Aytes.

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Payton Dastrup

A look at Dastrup’s high school film shows him to be a versatile big man with guard skills. He hit threes, had tight handles, and a lot of aggressive attack. There was a reason he originally committed to Ohio State.

Unfortunately for Payton, he also came the latest off of his mission for this group, and is still trying to work his way back into shape. This has cut down on his minutes. That doesn’t help him get acclimated to D1 speed of play any faster, and most often he is the last man off the bench.

But Dastrup’s skill set will be something to be reckoned with once he’s back to form. And if he’s half the competitor that he is a crowd rouser (both on the bench for the basketball team, and from the ROC section for volleyball and soccer games), then you haven’t seen the peak for Payton by a long shot.

Zach Frampton

A former Lone Peak teammate of Emery, Haws, and Mika, Frampton has been slowed of late with a broken hand. Before his injury, Zach was starting to show some underrated athleticism. Very quick and sure-handed, he didn’t put BYU in bad positions, and used his burst to bother opposing guards defensively.

Frampton has neither taken nor made many shots (0-2 total from the field), but once healthy, he may get some of the time that Steven Beo has earned with similar characteristics. He also appears to have avoided being photographed by USA Today. Bummer about that, Zach.

Elijah Bryant watches L.J. Rose drive against Colorado from the bench. Chris Nicoll-USA TODAY Sports

Elijah Bryant

At this point, a lot of Bryant’s playing statistics are still based on conjecture. An unexpected knee surgery just prior to the season has slowed him significantly. Coaches and observers of last year’s scout team claim he can be a dynamic point guard—an explosive slasher, rebounder, and 3-point threat.

Even though he’s at the end of this list and the Cougars’ bench, it wouldn’t take much to vault Eli near the top. By the middle of conference play, he may emerge as a real contributor and a mismatch at the 1 with his 6-foot-5 frame. It all depends on his health.

BYU basketball’s first conference foe is Santa Clara. The Broncos are the only team BYU has never lost to in conference play (12-0), but Jordan Brownridge poses a real threat as a scoring guard. BYU still definitely has the horses to win. Now it’s a matter of how they line up.

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