How Jared Bynum has Elevated His Game Over the Past Month
“I can’t be more appreciative or happier to have a coach like him on my side and having my back. So, I’m really glad I chose to play for him and come to Providence. It really has changed my life..."
Let’s start with the numbers. Over his last five games, Jared Bynum is averaging 19.2 points, 4.4 assists, 3.2 rebounds and 1.8 steals per game.
From an advanced statistical perspective during that stretch, Bynum is in the 99th percentile in the country in points per 40 minutes (25.2), effective field goal percentage (69.0%), and fast break points per game (3.8).
Bynum is shooting 61.5% from 3-point range over the last five games, a number that (unsurprisingly) ranks him in the 99th percentile over that stretch. But here’s the rub, he’s scoring 4.8 points per game in the paint, and taking just under four free throws a game and making those at 84.2%.
Bynum and Villanova’s Eric Dixon would appear to be the frontrunners for the league’s Most Improved Player award (and let’s face it, this is the Big East so they’ll probably split the award at season’s end). Here’s a look at Bynum’s leap from last season:
2020-21: 26.9 minutes, 5.8 points, 3.6 assists, 1.9 rebounds, 31.% from the field, 67.6% at the free throw line, 11.9% from beyond the arc
2021-22: 25.9 minutes, 11.6 points, 4.2 assists, 2.7 rebounds, 45.4% from the field, 80.0% at the free throw line, 46.0% from beyond the arc
In conference play, Bynum is putting up 14.8 points, 4.5 assists, and 2.8 rebounds on .492 shooting from the field, .811 at the free throw line, and .511 from three.
Jaw-dropping as they might be, this story is about more than numbers and statistical improvement. It’s about how Bynum is doing it and how he got there.
Followers of Providence basketball were split on Bynum prior to this season: there were those who hoped he could be an effective game manager — a low turnover, pass-first point guard who hopefully could shoot just well enough so that he couldn’t be left by himself.
Many others saw an undersized guard who dribbled too much, missed his first 18 three pointers last year (and didn’t get much better from deep as the season wore on), and looked like a miss on the recruiting trail for Ed Cooley. It would have been a sizable whiff for a Friar staff that relies so heavily on its point guard, and had such success in developing them over the past decade.
Ed Cooley apparently heard it all, and addressed his point guard’s development following Bynum’s latest outburst — 25 points, seven rebounds, and six assists in an overtime win over DePaul on Saturday night.
“I want to talk about that (Bynum’s growth) for a second. We sat here a year ago, via Zoom, everybody was down on Jared. Everybody was down on Jared. (They) didn’t trust that kids develop — didn’t trust that everybody struggled through a pandemic year. I’m proud of Jared because he’s making a believer of himself, first and foremost — he’s making a lot of people look dumb, and I’m really proud of that,” Cooley said.
“Never, ever, ever underestimate somebody’s development, their mindset, their internal, just, want. These kids work their butt off… everybody who has a comment, that’s all you’ve got is a comment because you don’t see the work these kids put in.”
Sure, this was an example of a coach standing up for a player in a world in which media and social media can be loud, unrelenting, and impatient, but Cooley also demonstrated his belief in Bynum throughout his struggles last season.
In the final game of the regular season last year, Cooley put the ball in the hands of Bynum, not All Big East guard David Duke, in a tie game with the chance to knock off Villanova in the closing seconds.
Bynum has felt that trust from Cooley since his recruitment as a transfer from St. Joe’s: “He never stopped believing in me, even when I was going through some tough times, or through all the injuries or bad games — even the good games, he’s always believed in me. He’s a guy that never changes up on you. Once he tells you he loves you, and trusts you, and believes in you, he really means it.”
“I can’t be more appreciative or happier to have a coach like him on my side and having my back. So, I’m really glad I chose to play for him and come to Providence. It really has changed my life and my basketball career.”
Great piece Kevin.
Great article Kevin, this is why we never give up on players!