Two and a half hours.
That’s how long it takes to get from Asbury Park, New Jersey – the hometown of LSU freshman Naz Reid – to New York City, and back again to Asbury Park, round trip, via the Garden State Parkway. It’s about half the time of a flight from Baton Rouge to Newark, the nearest airport to Asbury Park.
But Reid’s not much of a traveler. He’s a self-described “homebody,” and that LSU was able to land the five-star forward was primarily a product of Will Wade and his staff’s ability to make Reid feel at home away from home.
So, upon his arrival to LSU’s campus this summer, Reid invested two and a half hours every day with LSU’s coordinator of basketball operations Brian Merritt in his favorite home away from home – the gym – hoisting up shot after shot after shot.
And, increasingly as the summer progressed, make after make after make.
“I would go shoot 1,000 shots with Coach Merritt,” Reid says. “It really depends on how fast the shot tracker is going, but (it) usually (took) two and a half hours.”
By summer’s end, Reid’s make totals had nearly doubled.
“In the summer, it was about 320 (makes),” he says. “It went up to about 600.”
As fall prepares to turn into winter, Reid’s investment of time is yielding massive dividends on the court. The 6-foot-10 freshman, through three games, has knocked down 6 of 14 from deep, including a 4-of-6 barrage in LSU’s 97-91 win over UNC-Greensboro on November 9.
$pace Cadet #44 #Sha #Moni #Gma @theunguarded
A post shared by Naz Reid (@hollywood.naz) on Nov 14, 2018 at 7:05pm PST
In that game, Reid scored 29 points, showcasing not just his range from beyond the arc, but also a variety of skills – passing, ballhandling, and, yes, shooting – uncommon for a player of his size.
That’s because, well, Reid wasn’t always this size. From seventh grade to ninth, he shot up 10 inches, from 5-foot-9 to 6-foot-7.
“I wasn’t always this tall. I just happened to grow, and I’m thankful for it. When I started playing basketball, I was about 5-9,” he says. “I was one of the shortest guys on the team, and I was always playing up. So I was always on the perimeter more than inside . With the growth spurt, it helped me a lot. Then I was able to transition my game from the outside to the inside. Now I’m able to do both.”
There was only one downside to the upshot.
“My knees were in pain,” he jokes. “I know that.”
The pain appears worth the payoff, particularly for Wade, who knows he has, in Reid, a rare talent.
“He’s like having (point guard) Tremont (Waters) at the center position,” Wade says. “He can pass, he can shoot. He can do everything. Enjoy him. You won’t see him long. This will be it. Enjoy watching him. He’s a very, very good player. More than that, he’s an awesome kid, an awesome person. He loves LSU, and he loves being in Louisiana.”
Reid may very well be a one-and-done level talent, but he says his focus remains on the task at hand in Baton Rouge.
His actions support his words. Late in the UNC-Greensboro win, Reid dove to the floor for a loose ball that helped the Tigers pick up a critical stop on the way to a victory over an NCAA Tournament team from a season ago.
Like a summer spent in the gym hoisting shots, that’s the price Reid knows he must pay to get where he wants to go.
“As of right now, I’m just focused on getting to the tournament,” he says. “If I get a chance to be one and done, I’ll be glad and thankful for it. But, hustle plays like that are something we’ve w orked on. If you want to win the game, it’s something you have to do.”
In the meantime, Reid maintains the green light from his coach to shoot from just about anywhere on the floor.
“If it goes in,” he jokes.
If it doesn’t? Well, Wade has a plan for that, too.
“He will have the green light early,” Wade says, “and then if they’re not going in we’re going to go in the post. He has a little of a non-traditional post game. We like to put him on the wing and let him back the defender down from the wing as opposed to just throw it to him on the block. It’s a little bit of a different type of post-game. It’s more of a pro type post-game. Kawhi Leonard and all the guys in the NBA do it. It’s a different way of posting up, but he understands if the first couple of threes don’t go in, we’re going to the post and going to the paint.”
Leonard is just one of the pros Reid has modeled his game after. He’s also studied tape of DeMarcus Cousins, Kevin Durant, Anthony Davis, and even Joel Embiid, picking up tidbits here and there and adding them to his game.
The influence of pros is evident in Reid’s game. If he keeps playing like he is when the lights come on – and working like he has been when they’re off – he’ll soon be playing alongside the players he’s emulating.
“That’s where the game is trending,” Wade says, “That’s how it is in the NBA. The big guys are stepping out and making shots. They’re able to make plays. That’s how it is at that level and I think that it’s trickled down to college and trickled down to lower levels. That’s how it works. It moves down.
“I’m just glad that we have one of them that can do it.”