Caleb Grill credits Mizzou coaching staff with preparing him for pre-NBA Draft process
COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)
With the NBA Draft about two weeks away, former Mizzou star Caleb Grill is continuing to grind through the pre-draft process, in hopes of hearing his name called in Brooklyn, New York.
The Kansas native put his skills on display in both the Portsmouth Invitational and G-League Elite Camp, before beginning individual workouts with teams across the country. Grill said, so far, he's worked out for the Boston Celtics, New Orleans Pelicans, Phoenix Suns, Portland Trail Blazers, Los Angeles Clippers and Golden State Warriors.
His most recent workout came on Monday, in the Warriors facility.
"As a kid, everybody always dreamed of being in this opportunity. I just can't thank the people who have helped put me in this position to fulfill a dream I've had since I was a little kid enough," he said in a press conference. "I'm just taking it all in and being a sponge. Everywhere I'm going, you learn different stuff from different people."
Grill still has three or four more workouts on the books, as he's lining up a time to compete for the Orlando Magic, Brooklyn Nets, Dallas Mavericks and possibly the Indiana Pacers, once their playoff run is complete.
He said the best piece of advice that he's gotten through this pre-draft process is to stick to what got him there in the first place: his innate ability to shoot the basketball. Grill was a spark-plug off the bench for head coach Dennis Gates in the 2024-25 campaign. The SEC's Sixth Man of the Year averaged 14.2 points per game, shooting at a 49 percent clip from the field and 42 percent from 3-point range. He led the Tigers with 74 made 3-pointers in his final collegiate season.
"One thing I've learned from going to each of these workouts is play to your strengths, don't play your weaknesses. Teams know what you're good at and so just continuing to do what's got me here and keep trying to do that to the best of my ability," he said.
Shooting has always been a strong-suit for Grill, but he said one thing he wants to hone in on is his defense. In a new league, with a lot more developed talent, he said it will be vital that he keeps his strength and IQ up on the defensive side of the court.
Although Grill didn't spend his entire college career at Mizzou, his two years in Columbia were career-altering. The guard credits Coach Gates and his staff with preparing him for the position his now, with lessons off the court.
"I would give Coach Gates a lot of credit," Grill said. "He built me into a better player from my first year at Mizzou to my second year at Mizzou. One thing he really got me better at was my leadership skills and being a better teammate. He told me it wasn't about getting better on the basketball court of what's going to help elevate me to the next level. It's going to be my leadership skills and learning from Coach Gates, one of the best leaders I've been around, and his coaching staff are phenomenal leaders and I had so many high-impact people throughout that program who helped made me such a better player from year one of the year two at Mizzou. Just continuing to build those habits to the next stages of my career."
Grill is going through the pre-draft process with his former teammate, Tamar Bates. The duo has made sure to talk at least once a week throughout this lead-up to the NBA Draft, as both look to represent for the black and gold.
"Mizzou really helped us for this situation, just the style they play and just our knowledge of the game of basketball has helped translate us to these workouts. I feel like me and him had both talked and we felt like we've been doing a really good job throughout this process and we've given a lot of credit to Coach Gates and his staff for helping prepare us for this moment," Grill said.
The NBA Draft will tip off 7 p.m. CT on Wednesday, June 25. You can watch the first round on ABC 17.
