KENTUCKY ATHLETICS

Kellan Grady, a two-time All-Atlantic 10 selection at Davidson before transferring to Kentucky, worked out for the Charlotte Hornets Monday.

Some names at Monday’s Charlotte Hornets predraft workouts were less familiar.

There were Keon Ellis (Alabama), Mike Foster (G League Ignite), Ron Harper Jr. (Rutgers), Brandon Horvath (Utah State), and ?iga Samar (Spain) at Spectrum Center. One name rang a bell, though: former Davidson and Kentucky guard Kellan Grady. And from his own account and others, the Boston native performed exceptionally well in the workout.

“I think this was, just to be candid, arguably my best workout I’ve had so far,” Grady said.

The countdown to the June 23 NBA Draft is on for the Hornets, who hosted their sixth round of workouts. Charlotte, which finished 43-39 last season and was 10th in the Eastern Conference holds the 13th, 15th (from New Orleans), and 45th picks.

Grady played four years (2017-21) at Davidson, averaged 17.4 points nearly two assists and four rebounds per game. He twice earned first-team All-Atlantic 10 honors before becoming a transferring to Kentucky.

“I was incredibly well-coached,” Grady said about Wildcats coach Bob McKillop. “One of the things I’ve been complimented on throughout this process, going through interviews at the combine in Chicago and etc., is my character and my ability to be coached, and a lot of that is a result of my parents but with me playing for coach McKillop and having that experience. And then being a primary scorer at Davidson… I was tasked to do more.”

At Kentucky, Grady was a starter but played more of a shot maker and floor spacer role in his one year in Calipari’s system. He shot 41.5% from three last season.
Since then, Grady has been fine tuning his shooting mechanics for NBA workouts with his agent and former NBA sharpshooter Mike Miller — and to no surprise — it showed in front of the Hornets’ scouts.

“I shot the ball really well both from three and the mid-range in live play today,” he said. “And I was able to get to the rim and put some high arching floaters off the glass and some of those underhanded finishes off the glass that I think showed that I can play in two- and three-minute sets and make good reads and be an efficient scorer.”

Grady also made a good impression on the other workout participants with how he played with them in the drills.

“He gets to his spots well, and he really plays off of us well,” Ron Harper Jr. said. “He’s a very versatile basketball player, he can guard a lot of positions.”

With a great showing for the Hornets and knowing the possibility of playing in the Charlotte area once again, Grady expressed his respect for the organization and the role of the city on his development. 

“I’m kind of a hometown kid just being very acclimated with Charlotte, and I was in this area for four very important years of my life. So, I’m excited about the opportunity,” he said.

Like the rest of Monday’s workout participants, Grady is projected to be a late second round pick or undrafted.

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