Tyler Harvey still scratching his way to the NBA
Tyler Harvey has always had to fight to get his chance in basketball at every level. The NBA is proving no different after his year with the Erie BayHawks.
Tyler Harvey has that bounce in his step. It is clear when he he feels like he is about to have it going.
The ball bounces a little higher. His step hops up a little higher. That familiar lilt to a scorer sets in.
Harvey has all that. He has been that way for much of his basketball career. Even when he had to fight to make his way onto the team at Eastern Washington, Harvey was a scorer at heart. He averaged 21.8 points per game as a junior in 2013 and then a national-best 23.1 points per game as a senior in 2014. He did it with lethal efficiency for such a high volume scorer — 57.3 percent effective field goal percentage his final year at Eastern Washington.
His size and maybe even his shot form were about the only things that kept him from reaching a bigger stage. Something was always keeping him down. That is Tyler Harvey’s story though, he has always had to fight for everything, everyone doubting his talent and ability.
Making the Magic’s training camp roster is just another hurdle to climb.
“The story of my life is scratching my way through,” Harvey said. “I’m going to keep my head down, keep plowing through and keep fighting through this. It’s all in God’s hands at the end of the day.”
Everything Harvey has gotten, he has gotten with his play on the court. The scoring accolades at Eastern Washington can be doubted, but they happened and got him to the next step — a crack at the NBA.
But even that has come with its pitfalls.
Harvey still had to work to become a complete player. After using 27.5 percent of Eastern Washington’s possessions in college, he was going to become a role player once again. He was back to the bottom of the totem pole.
His 3-point shooting would prove valuable but he would have to add other facets to his game. The Magic drafted him with their second round pick last season and sent him to Erie to play in the D-League for the entire year to mature a bit more.
A big part of that was so he could learn the professional game a bit more and expand his skills, including growing as a point guard and playing defense. The shot though had to remain consistent.
Harvey’s 2016 season was not fantastic though.
He averaged 11.9 points per game, but his shooting percentages all nose-dived from his college days. He had a 46.1 percent effective field goal percentage and shot just 34.6 percent from beyond the arc. He had a -0.9 offensive box plus-minus and a -2.8 defensive box plus-minus.
There was still work for Harvey to do as he arrived in Orlando for his second Summer League.
“My overall game has to improve, but definitely on the defensive end,” Harvey said. “At the next level, it’s tough on defense. I worked on that a lot this offseason and hopefully it shows out there.”
Harvey does look noticeably bigger physically. That has helped him some on the defensive end. He also seems to have the speed of the game down better. Things do not seem as rushed and he is able to pick his spots better.
Thoughts of Harvey turning into a chucker could easily be put to rest. He shoots when he is open and attacks when the lane is there or moves on.
Harvey is not a point guard. He needs to play off the ball still, but if he can get his shot to fall, that will make him a dangerous player.
The unfortunate part through three Summer League games is Harvey cannot find his shot. In Tuesday’s 84-68 loss to the Miami Heat (the Orlando Magic Blue are 0-3 so far), Harvey shot just 3 for 10, making three of seven 3-pointers for his nine points. He is averaging 7.0 points per game but shooting an icy 22.2 percent (6 for 27) from the floor and 31.5 percent effective field goal percentage. He is just 1 for 9 on 2-point field goals.
For a new coaching staff, all they are seeing is a player with immense shooting ability missing shots. That NBA skill — his scoring and shooting — is not coming through.
“For a guy like Tyler, his pathway to a successful pro basketball career at whatever level is he is going to have to make shots and be a spark plug scorer for somebody,” Magic assistant coach Chad Forcier said. “That’s his natural personality. He’s got to be able to get the ball to go into the basket more often. If he starts to do that, he has a better chance.”
None of that confidence seems to have left him. But there is definitely a bit of a cringeworthy experience in hoping Harvey will make that next shot.
The step up to the NBA — even going from D-League to Summer League — has been a rough one for the young player. Another year in the D-League could be in the cards or he could get his invite to the NBA. Life in the D-League is always full of uncertainty of when that chance will come, if it comes at all.
The D-League has helped him be ready for his chance when it comes. It was a good introduction to the pro game.
Harvey still has to prove himself worthy of that shot in the NBA. It will come with what he does best re-emerging. Even if he has to do it out of the spotlight once again.
“It was definitely beneficial,” Harvey said. “The pro game is a different game. I had a chance to play in Erie and learn a lot. You go through tough times, but you learn to get through them and get better every day.”
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As has always been the case throughout Harvey’s basketball life, he has to work and prove everyone wrong once again. And scratch his way to that next level.