Analyzing the Opponent: Ryan Daly

Often times when heading in to a game, you rarely know what you’re walking in to in your opponents. During MAC play, we know all of the big names who have been around the conference, but outside of that we aren’t left with much knowledge. Starting today, we’re going to take a look at a player to watch from our opponents. Today we will be looking at Delaware Blue Hens forward, and reigning CAA Rookie of the year, Ryan Daly.

The Basics

Daly is a sophomore forward for the Blue Hens this year who according to Kenpom.com has played in 95% of minutes this season. In comparison to Buffalo, Jeremy Harris leads in percentage of minutes at just 83%. While only coming in at 6’5, Ryan Daly is featured at small forward, power forward, and even center. Despite being undersized for his position, he does seem to finish well inside, making a little over 40% of his two point attempts. He isn’t afraid to shoot the three but it is not his strong point, so look to find Daly inside tonight matching up with the bigger Nick Perkins.

Strengths

Oddly enough, his biggest strength is well, his strength. Daly is not a flashy player on the ball like a Davonta Jordan. He’s the type of player who will put his head down and take a straight line to the basket and try and make a tough shot. Because he plays the forward position but is a little under sized, you have to expect he’s very physical inside. He isn’t the strongest rebounder but look for him to be able to get steals in the paint when matched up with our bigs. Overall, I expect a physical, scrappy game with him, where whoever is matched up with him needs to play aggressive.

Weaknesses

From what I’ve observed, I’d say his biggest down falls are his speed and rebounding ability. He has one of the lowest rebound percentages on the team, surprising for an inside player. He also seems to be a slower than most of the Bulls, who love to get after it and run it for 40 minutes. If Buffalo starts with their attack first run the floor offense, I think they can take advantage of Daly’s inside ability and attack the rim. If they slow the game down, then they feed right in to his strengths and you will see why he was the CAA ROY.

Final Thoughts

Ryan Daly is a very talented player. There is no denying that, however his style may not match up well with the Bulls tonight. If he has to cover Nick Perkins, his strength goes out the window as there are very few people in that can move such a large player. If he decides to play with Jeremy Harris, I think Harris has the speed to take him to the rim and athleticism to shake him off. This is a tough match up overall for Daly, but he’s still my Delaware Blue Hens player to watch.