Myke Henry helped rally the Memphis Grizzlies to victory on Monday night. Is his breakout game a sign of great things to come?
Sometimes I dream
That he is me
You’ve got to see that’s how I dream to be
I dream I move, I dream I groove
Like Myke
If I could Be Like Myke.
When I saw that the Memphis Grizzlies had signed Myke Henry to a two-way contract, I reacted similarly to most people.
Who the heck is Myke Henry?
Despite limited minutes, Henry made his presence felt on Monday night against the 76ers. He tallied 12 points and 3 threes as he helped rally the Grizzlies from a 15 point deficit. Not only did he have an incredible night, but he also briefly caused our personal twitter to become his personal fan account.
We are now a Myke Henry fan account
— Beale Street Bears (@BealeStBearsFS) January 23, 2018
All things considered, it wasn’t bad night for a player in just his 2nd NBA game.
However, his play does raise an important question: Who exactly is Myke Henry? Is he a hidden gem in the mold of Dillon Brooks, or is he just another journeyman who will remain in the G-League after this season?
After all, it wouldn’t be the first time that a new member of the Grizzlies had a great game in one of their first appearances, only to not be on the team the next year.
A Brief History
Even though they may never be very good in the NBA, most NBA players were great players in college basketball. Strangely enough, Myke Henry is not one of those players.
Henry initially went to Illinois for two years where he only averaged 3.2 points per game. After transferring to DePaul after his sophomore year, he averaged 12.9 PPG for his last two years of college. Not bad for an NCAA basketball player, but certainly not notable for an aspiring NBA player.
In 33 games for Rayos de Hermosillo, Henry averaged 17.6 points, 5.7 rebounds, and 2.8 assists. However, he shot a very poor 21 percent from beyond the arc.
After a solid stint internationally, Henry played for the Oklahoma City Blue, the Thunder’s G-League affiliate. His solid international play carried over as he averaged 15.7 points, 5.2 rebounds, 2.2 assists and an impressive 1.9 steals. Most importantly, he was far better from beyond the arc, shooting 36 percent.
Certainly, Myke Henry was not a great college basketball player. Fortunately, he appears to be a late bloomer who is ready for real NBA basketball.
A/N: Finding Myke Henry’s basketball history was like trying to find the Ark of the Covenant. Even with the beautiful tool known as the internet, it took a lot of digging to find anything about him. Honestly, i think we collectively hallucinated him, and he doesn’t exist.
A Huge Opportunity
The Memphis Grizzlies may or not be trying to tank, whatever that really means. Regardless, this is a year of huge opportunity for the team’s young players, including Myke Henry.
Even though he is still inexperienced, Henry has the tools to grow into a player that the Grizzlies need. He has good size for a shooting guard at 6’6, 238 (!!) pounds. Also, he has long arms that allow him to bother opposing guards. Add in a solid jumpshot and good explosiveness, and you have the makings of a solid NBA player.
Needless to say, Myke “Michael Jordan Jr.” Henry was impressive in his debut at the FedexForum, Only time will tell if he can build on it to become a legitimate NBA player.