Randy Foye

Overview: A scoring combo guard who has yet to live up to the expectations that came with being drafted 7th overall and traded for Brandon Roy. Spends a lot of minutes at the point and acts as a shoot-first facilitator of Minnesota’s offense. Has good size and strength for the point guard position, and is probably more aptly described as ‘smooth’ than overly athletic. Excellent shooter from standstill positions or off the dribble. Relies very heavily on his jump-shot and thus has never been known as a particularly efficient offensive option. Has a big heart and likes to take responsibilities in the clutch. Came from a tough upbringing and has a swagger to his game similar to many NYC-area guards. Still trying to find his niche in the league. Must improve his defense, playmaking skills and ability to get the basket. Clearly not a great fit in the backcourt next to Rashad McCants, as both are much more comfortable as jump-shooters than they are as slashers. Can be very effective in the right system, but needs to find the right coach and teammates.

Offense: Primarily a jump-shooter, especially after coming back from a knee problem that sidelined him for over half of his sophomore campaign. Relies heavily on the pick and roll as a huge source of offensive production. Shifty player with strong hesitation moves. Capable of punishing players that go underneath the screen, and does a solid job finding the open man passing off the dribble. Doesn’t get to the basket at a good enough clip, does a poor job finishing once there and draws fouls at a fairly poor rate. More likely to pull up from mid-range than he is to go all the way to the basket. Ball-handling skills are good with his right hand, but defenders like to force him to his left, where he is noticeably slower and less effective. Not super explosive off the dribble, struggles to turn the corner at times and is not an incredible leaper finishing around the rim. Doesn’t take the ball strong enough. Like many young players still adapting to the length and athleticism of NBA big men, needs to do a better job seeking out contact and not getting cute with his finishes. Can play off the ball, but is more effective with it. Team’s half-court offense tends to lack some fluidity with him at the helm at times. Not a selfish player and is capable of finding the open man, but has a tendency to over-dribble at times.

Defense: An average defender at best, despite his superior size and strength at the point guard position. Not particularly intense or fundamentally sound. Has a laid back demeanor that serves him well offensively, but makes him look lackadaisical on the other end. Lateral quickness appears to be average when attempting to stay in front of very athletic slashing guards, uses his hands too much and often gets caught flat-footed on the perimeter. Struggles in particular on the pick and roll, showing just awareness and not being physical enough trying to fight through screens. Gets posted up when attempting to defend shooting guards in a small backcourt, and often lets players have his way with him down there. Like everyone on his team, needs to make significant improvements on this end of the floor, but definitely has the tools to do so if he puts his mind to it.

Though Foye didn’t have much to prove in the Summer League, he may have shown the most NBA-significant development of any player in attendance. After having a relatively difficult time adapting to the NBA 3-point line during his rookie season, Foye’s 3-point stroke looked strikingly different in the Summer League. In contrast to how he shot last season, Foye now shoots the 3 with significantly less elevation, and the result has been more consistency. It is clear that he put in a lot work in the offseason, and it appears that it is paying off.

Foye didn’t show a great deal of new things in his game, but his dramatically improved outside shot will turn him into a completely different player offensively. Last season, Foye could be found pulling up off of screens from deep, yielding very mixed results. During the Summer League, Foye hit a few outside shots coming off of screens, but made a killing spotting up and knocking down catch-and-shoot threes. Although he won’t be receiving passes from Kevin Garnett next season, it is only a matter of time until Al Jefferson garners doubles teams down low, opening Foye up on the perimeter. Now that defenders have to respect him on the catch, Foye should have significantly less trouble getting past him man, which will allow him to utilize the floor skills he is known for. Not to perpetuate the comparison, but Foye’s outside jumper now looks eerily similar to that of Chauncey Billups.

Foye will come into this season as something of a go-to-guy for Minnesota, as he will probably be asked to carry quite a bit of the load offensively. For this reason, Foye will have every opportunity to develop the consistency and poise that he will need to be an upper-level NBA point guard. Foye didn’t put on much of a show passing the ball, but he was coupled in the Timberwolves’ backcourt with Rashad McCants, who put in a significant amount of time running the point. Unlike many of the developments here in the Summer League, those that Foye has made will translate to the NBA immediate if he maintains his consistency.

Jonathan Givony: It seems like you have a lot of workouts underneath your belt already. Maybe more than anyone else in this room so far. How many have you had so far…six?

Randy Foye: Eight.

Jonathan Givony: So is that the strategy? Just leave no stone unturned? Make sure there is no doubt in anyone’s mind as to where you should be drafted? A lot of guys here haven’t done even one workout yet.

Randy Foye: My main focus was just to get out there and start working out for teams and show them what I’ve got. I didn’t want to just wait around…because obviously I’m not a [smiling] Tyrus Thomas or LaMarcus Aldridge so I just wanted to get out there and start working out for certain teams to show them what I’ve got. I just wanted to show them that I am in shape and everything.

Jonathan Givony: What have you been able to show teams that they haven’t seen already during the season?

Randy Foye: A lot of people tend to question my point guard skills. But once they see my workouts and see how I handle the ball…and then watch more tapes to see how I handle the ball in game-situations, they see that I am more of a point guard than a two. I think that’s something that has been coming out a lot now…that he is more of a point guard.

Jonathan Givony: Has that been an emphasis for you in two on two stuff…showing that you are point guard….people know that you can score, but are you trying to show the other stuff you can do?

Randy Foye: Well when I play, I stick to what I can do. I am a point guard, I think pass first and shot second. But obviously I had to adjust to what my team needed me to do.

Jonathan Givony: How did you prepare specifically for the NBA draft? With a trainer?

Randy Foye: I trained with a trainer. I took two weeks off to get myself back into shape. Getting a lot of shots up, working on my ball-handling and working on certain testing that I know I would have to do.

Jonathan Givony: Who has impressed you the most so far? You’ve had eight workouts… that can be as many as 30 guys you’ve worked out with. Has anyone impressed you in particular that you’ve gone up against?

Randy Foye: J.J. Redick. Every time me and J.J. played on a team we’ve played well together. A lot of people look at J.J. as being just a shooter, but he is more than just a shooter. He can do other things. He did everything pretty well.

Jonathan Givony: What do you see your range being as far as the draft goes?

Randy Foye: I think that all the teams I’ve been working out for. Anywhere from 4 to 14. But it doesn’t really matter where I am drafted as long as it’s the right fit.

Reporter: What is the right fit?

Randy Foye: I think I can play at two different paces. I can play up and down, and I can also play in the half-court, in the pick and roll. I think that any team fits my style of play.

Reporter: Talking to some scouts here in Orlando, they are kind of torn as to whether you are a point guard or a shooting guard. How do you see yourself?

Randy Foye: I see myself as a point guard. It’s kind of hard, because a lot of people that haven’t seen me, they’ve haven’t seen me handling the ball and controlling the ball at the end of games. I look at that. That’s a point guard. I am making big-time decisions. I’m not just taking shots, I’m making decisions when the game is on the line. I can play any position. I can adjust to any position. You play me at the 3, I will adjust to it. Whatever the team needs me to do. I don’t believe in a pure point guard or a pure shooting guard…I am a basketball player. A guard.

Jonathan Givony: The four guard system at Villanova…do you think that helped you show the scouts what you can do…or did that hurt you?

Randy Foye: I think it helped me. Because Kyle played the point guard at the beginning of the game, and I was the backup. Kyle played 27 minutes a game, so those 13 minutes, when he wasn’t on the floor, I was the point guard. That might not seem like a lot now, but when you look at my assist to turnover ratio when he wasn’t on the floor, it was pretty good.

Jonathan Givony: How did the measurements go for you? You are listed at 6-4…did you measure out at 6-4 in shoes?

Randy Foye: No. In shoes I am 6-3. They just made it look good at Villanova [laughs].

Jonathan Givony: Seems like there was a lot of that going on at Villanova this year, huh?

Randy Foye: I am close to 6-4. I worked it out I was like this far [holds fingers very close apart] [laughs]. It wasn’t even an inch. It was like right there at the top. 6-3 and…

Jonathan Givony: Get on your tippy-toes a little? [laughs]

Randy Foye: Na, na not at all.

Reporter: Do you think there is too much made of this size thing, about whether or not you are big enough to be a 2-guard? It seems like you are just a basketball player.

Randy Foye: I don’t see myself as a 2-guard. Like I said, I play point. I know I can play point, and point guard is my true position. I see myself as a basketball player that is able to play any position.

Reporter: So you are saying that size doesn’t…really…matter.

Randy Foye: It’s all about having heart, and toughness. You can have the biggest guy, but if he doesn’t have any heart, there is no use for it.

Jonathan Givony: Do you think that your background growing up without your parents…how has that molded you into the guy you are right now terms of toughness and heart…that seems like something that might have had an impact on the player you are right now.

Randy Foye: I’m just humble. Everything that happened in my past just humbled me. I am the same person. I don’t think that anything is going to be able to change me. Money…celebrity status…you can’t change me. I know where I came from and I know what it takes to get to certain situations. That’s being a blue-collar hard worker and person. And that’s one of my biggest things, just not to change, what happened in the past just try to stay the same, just try to be honest.

Strengths
A prototypical NYC-style combo guard, Randy Foye is considered one of the best pure scorers in college basketball. If deemed to have serious point guard potential for the NBA, Foye has excellent size for the position at 6-3. He is a very smooth athlete, possessing a couple of different gears he can go to, solid leaping ability, good strength and excellent body control in the lane.

Offensively, he is an attractive prospect because of how versatile and advanced a scorer he is. Foye is first and foremost a slasher, mostly thanks to his outstanding ball-handling skills and the way he can create space for himself to get his shot off. He is absolutely fearless taking the ball to the basket, and finishes strong in the toughest of situations, even with contact. Foye has all the crafty moves needed to create offense for himself, using hesitation moves, a strong crossover, excellent footwork, heads fakes and the threat of his perimeter shot. He’s terrific at changing gears and keeping his man on his heels, showing excellent improvisation skills and never being predictable in what he’s going to throw at you next. His first step isn’t incredible, but his 2nd are 3rd are much better than what you would expect, as once he gets going he just overpowers his way into the lane.

Once in the lane, Foye has excellent body control and really knows how to use his strength to his advantage, contorting himself, using the glass and scoring even in the most awkward of situations. His excellent leaping ability helps him out greatly here, as he hangs in the air for extended periods and can finish in a variety of ways. He gets to the free throw line over five times a game and never shies away from challenging players much bigger than him in the paint.

One of Foye’s biggest strengths has to be considered his mid-range game. He has no problem stopping on a dime after creating his own shot and elevating for a smooth looking jump-shot, whether he’s leaning in, fading away or using unorthodox floaters and runners to score from 8-10 feet out. He’s also very good coming off screens for the catch and shoot. Foye consistently surprises you here with his ability to knock down tough shots with ease, both spotting up and after creating off the bounce.

A part of his game that appeared to have improved greatly this year is 3-point shooting, as he was shooting right around 40% for the first few months of the season. Being more of a volume shooter, he regressed significantly down the stretch, but still showed the ability to knock shots down especially when he has space on the perimeter and isn’t forcing the issue. Unlike from mid-range, he’s significantly better on the catch and shoot than he is off the dribble, and has shown deep range here on a number of occasions this season. If a shot he thinks he can make is available for him, Foye will pull the trigger with no hesitation whatsoever, for better or for worse. He’ll never be the type of player for whom confidence will ever be an issue.

Defensively, Foye is usually just as aggressive as he is on the offensive end, possessing nice footwork and good lateral quickness. He’s willing and able to get right in his man’s grill to play tough pressure defense, stick his nose in for the charge, or come up with his fair share of steals thanks to his hands and anticipation skills. His strength and tenacity help him out greatly in this area too, as he’s the type of player that just will not be backed down without a fight. This shows up in the rebounding department as well, where he is extremely aggressive and has kept his undersized team in many games solely off the way he would help take care of the glass. This is where his toughness and leaping ability really become evident, as he likes to sky straight into the air off two feet and rip a rebound away from anyone regardless of their size.

Foye by all accounts has a winner’s mentality and appears likely to carve out a niche for himself for a long time in the NBA thanks to his aggressive style of play, his excellent attitude and the heart he shows on the court. His upbringing was not the easiest, growing up in a rough part of Newark, losing his father at age 3 and his mother at age 6, but this appears to have only made him a stronger person. His intangibles appear to be solid, particularly his leadership skills.

Weaknesses
Despite being listed at 6-4 starting his senior year, it’s not easy to find many people who actually believe he’s that tall. The only question is, how much shorter? That wouldn’t be a problem if Foye showed more point guard skills, but he doesn’t, so this is a legitimate concern.

Foye is a scorer first and foremost, not a shooter and certainly not a playmaker. He is not a very creative passer, showing average court vision in half-court sets and having a tendency to slash to the hoop with his head down. Although he can do basic things like drive and dish or hit the open man coming off a curl, he is infinitely better creating shots for himself than he is for others. It’s not that he’s selfish. That’s just the type of player he is, as well as Villanova’s style of play, and his role within the offense.

He’s the type of player that is very dominant offensively, needing the ball in his hands excessively to make things happen, but at times showing poor decision making skills in the process by forcing the issue, particularly in his shot selection. When his shot is on then he’s absolutely money, but when he’s not…

Although he is certainly a pure scorer, calling him a streaky pure scorer would probably be a more accurate way to describe him. He’s regularly shown the ability to explode for 10-12 points in just a few minutes this year, but rarely has been able to consistently pace himself throughout an entire game. Nowhere was this more evident than in the NCAA tournament, where in nearly every outing he would score 20 points in one half (the first or second) and then be almost completely silent the next (or previous one).

Something that was touched on in the strengths section is his perimeter shooting ability. Foye is about as streaky as they come here too, coming up with numerous 1 of 8, 2 of 8, and 1 of 6 type stinkers from beyond the arc this season that absolutely killed his percentages. He is much better on the catch and shoot, but don’t let anyone tell him that since he’ll take contested fadeaway threes off the dribble all the time, indeed averaging nearly eight 3-point attempts a game despite his 35% average from this range.

Defensively, Foye doesn’t have a whole lot of experience guarding point guards, as he’s the biggest of Villanova’s 4 guards that all start and play over 28 minutes a game. He’s been asked to defend small forwards and power forwards this year much more than he has point guards or shooting guards. Although his potential looks good in this area, he’ll probably be asked to show plenty of this part of his game throughout the draft process.

Competition
Foye plays in the toughest conference in America in terms of competition night in and night out, the Big East, and was named player of the year in the conference as the 2nd leading scorer (after Quincy Douby). His team Villanova had a fantastic season, being ranked in the top 5 almost the entire year and making it to the Elite Eight where they lost to Florida. On the season Foye averaged 20.5 points per game, 5.8 rebounds and 3 assists compared with 2.2 turnovers. He shot 41% from the field, 35% from beyond the 3-point arc and 79% from the free throw line. Foye had a bit of a shaky NCAA tournament (see links: NCAA tournament articles) shooting the ball (31/80 FG, 9/32 3P), but much of this has to do with the fact that two of ‘Nova’s starting guards, Kyle Lowry and Mike Nardi, were almost complete non-factors throughout the tournament and Foye was forced to shoulder the offensive load. This is part of the reason he only had 4 assists compared with 11 turnovers in the Wildcats’ 3 crucial games before exiting.

Outlook
There’s no question that Foye is a fantastic college basketball player and a very likely candidate to carve out a niche in the NBA for a long time. The only question is what role that will be in, and therefore how highly do NBA teams picking in the 1st round value that in this draft. What teams will likely ask themselves is whether he can be a starter, and if so, at what position? His skills seem to be better suited for an excellent 6th man type who can come off the bench and put up points in a hurry without having to worry too much about running his team’s offense, but the extreme lack of legit point guards in this draft means that teams might decide to label him a playmaker and hope they can teach him how to run their offense and get everyone involved. If teams think he has starting PG potential, he is likely to be drafted anywhere from 8-14, but if projected as more of a reserve, look for him to go anywhere from 10-20.

On the flip side, although he does not fit the mold of your typical point guard or shooting guard prospect in terms of his combination of size and skills, that's not as bad a thing as it used to be. Foye does appear to fit the direction of what the NBA is rapidly turning towards with the rule changes that eliminated hand-checking and made the life of scoring guards infinitely easier. It’s reached the point that nearly half the teams in the NBA have gone towards playing two smaller guards on the perimeter (usually one point and one combo) for at least parts of games, which forces defenses to change their game plan and has made the term “combo guard” much less of an insult that it was in the past. The success of combo guards like Dwyane Wade and Gilbert Arenas at the forefront, followed by players like Mike James, Jason Terry, Ben Gordon, Cuttino Mobley, Jamal Crawford, Juan Dixon, Fred Jones, Eddie House, Salim Stoudamire, Charlie Bell and many others backs this up. If GMs and especially coaches see potential in Foye to be a 6th man or 3rd guard in this mold that can come off the bench and allow his team to change the flow of the game with his offense, especially right away considering how polished he is already, his draft stock and tailor made role in the NBA will be secure. If they view him as a tweener who will have to be converted into a point, he could run into some problems.

Randy Foye again was the only player who showed up for Villanova, but this time it wasn’t enough for a victory. He came out and scored points early, posting 7 of his team’s first 12 in a variety of ways. As he has proved throughout the NCAA Tournament, he possesses a nice combination of shooting and slashing ability with very smooth athleticism to boot. On the defensive end, Foye was left guarding post players much of the time due to the 4 guard lineup that his team runs. He held his position about as well as he could be expected to, and collected 7 rebounds against the bigger Florida front court, once again showing just how tough a player he is.

The main reason Foye didn’t move himself into the stock up category is the fact that foul trouble allowed him an audition at the point guard position. He has played off the ball for most of the season, and a lot of people project him into the NBA as somebody who can play both the point guard and shooting guard positions. Foul trouble gave him this opportunity, but Foye bombed his audition miserably. He didn’t create any ball movement, instead keeping the ball in his hands excessively and more than once took contested shots early in the shot clock. For the game, Foye couldn’t muster up even one assist to compliment the great scoring numbers. Foye finished up his college career by carrying his team, but also displaying some deficiencies that cause a bit of concern at the next level, especially once he’ll undoubtedly measure out shorter than his listed height of 6-4.

]Without Randy Foye, it is safe to say that Villanova would have had no shot whatsoever at beating Boston College. As he’s had the tendency to do with his overall streakiness throughout the year, Foye started off the game cold, and didn’t get his first field goal until there was less than 5 minutes remaining in the first half. Most of his early shot attempts were outside shots that just weren’t falling, and Foye appeared to be playing passive. With the half winding down, he decided to start driving to the hoop, and became much more aggressive. From there, Foye took the game over, at one point scoring 16 points in a row for Villanova over a 14 minute span. Late in the second half with the game on the line, he continued to carry the load for his team. Foye scored the last 6 points in regulation, as well as 5 more in overtime to capture the victory.

Against BC Foye displayed why he is such a valuable commodity, and the most important of Villanova’s guards. His combination of shooting and slashing is very rare for a player who plays such good defense to boot. Foye proved today that he could score taking the ball all the way to the hoop as well from outside the three point line, but the majority of his points were scored with an advanced mid-range game which included a number of floaters and jumpers over taller players. He also used his penetration ability to get open looks for his teammates when he was able to draw extra defenders his way.

In the NBA, Foye projects as a combo guard, and it would help him if he could show at least somewhat of an ability to run an offense like a point guard would. His shooting and mid-range game will translate to the pros immediately, however, and the team that drafts him will be getting a guy who can contribute right away. Randy Foye has at least one game remaining to continue to show scouts what an outstanding competitor he is, and if he can play again like he did against BC, his value will continue to rise.

Some might be surprised to not find a 24 point performance in the “Stock Up” column, but considering where Foye is projected to be drafted as well as the position he is expected to play in the NBA, his showing in this game confirmed many of the concerns scouts have about his potential at the next level.

Foye actually started off the game quite well, knocking down a number of contested 3-pointers created for him by Villanova’s guards, as well showing outstanding tenacity and ball-handling skills slashing his way into the lane and finishing strong. He kept Villanova in the game in the first half mostly with what he did off the dribble, creating repeatedly and bullying his way into the lane while getting to the rim at will. He scored 18 points in the first 15 minutes of the game, and then capped off his outstanding first half by knocking down an extremely difficult jump-shot as time expired. Throughout the first half Foye looked strictly like a shooting guard, though, not getting anyone else involved in the game, driving with his head down and showing absolutely no point guard skills even when he was manning the position.

He was almost silent in the 2nd half, scoring only 2 points until he came up with a huge bucket off a slashing move in the paint with just over a minute left in the game. Not only did Foye look like a shooting guard in this game with his single assist compared with 7 turnovers, he looked like an extremely streaky one at that. Two huge free throws that he missed with 35 seconds remaining had the potential to end his fantastic career at Villanova on an extremely sour note, but his fellow streaky teammate Allan Ray would not let that happen by taking care of business over the remainder of the contest.