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Meet Jaden Bradley, whose 'Silk' nickname brings Raptors a great draft pick originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
Jaden Bradley's high school coach called him "Silk."
One of his AAU coaches called him "that guy."
From the moment Bradley took to a basketball court as a youngster in Rochester, N.Y., then through high school in North Carolina, then in college from Alabama to Arizona -- the point guard has been the type of player who calls for impressive description.
Bradley's game might not bring down the rim, but it wins basketball games.
And he's now bringing that game to the NBA with the Toronto Raptors, who picked him with the No. 50 overall pick in the 2026 NBA Draft on Wednesday night.
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Who is Jaden Bradley?
Bradley is one of the most polished point guards in a draft full of point guards.
He used up his college eligibility, so he isn't a one-and-done, and he isn't viewed as having the high upside of the point guards chosen in the top-10.
But when Bradley is on the floor, he gets to the spots he wants. He sets up his teammates. He scores in the mid-range and at the basket.
It was clear even in middle school.
“He practiced against our varsity players, and what’s crazy, as a seventh-grader, made Division I players better,” his high school coach Che Roth once told the Democrat and Chronicle. “Had he been able to play, I’ll say we’ll have more rings on our fingers and more banners in our gym, because he’s just that good.”
Even before then, Bradley did things that his youth coaches described as being "normal" for him even though it would've been exceptional for anyone else.
Bradley's game may not have grown in a way that made him a first-round pick, but it stabilized in such a way that he's about as safe a second-round pick as there is.
Almost certainly, Bradley will be a reliable point guard in the NBA in some capacity.
Those who've known him for a long time knew that would always be true, and now Bradley's journey officially begins.
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