FAYETTEVILLE — Daryl Macon was sitting around at home on a random summer night, up late at 3:30 a.m. with a mind that wouldn’t shut down.
“I was just up thinking, ‘What can I do to get better? What can I do to get what I deserve?’” the Arkansas senior guard said.
He wound up grabbing his keys and heading to the Razorbacks’ practice gym, situated across Leroy Pond Drive from Bud Walton Arena. Unsurprisingly, he didn't have a whole lot of company.
That wasn’t an isolated incident. He also spent a night at the gym, sleeping on a couch in the locker room after getting up extra shots.
His desire to better his game became something of an obsession, one fueled by a yearning to prove he is one of the best players in the nation. He received additional motivation when the preseason SEC media poll and all-conference teams were released.
“I see that they picked us sixth and didn’t want to pick me for All-SEC teams, so this is how I’m going to play from here on out,” Macon said after scoring an effortless 17 in the Red-White game. “So at the end of the season, they won’t have a choice.”
He isn’t the only one with that motivation. Like Macon, guard Jaylen Barford entered his name into the NBA Draft this spring and then decided to return to school for his senior season after receiving feedback.
Arkansas will lean heavily on their scoring and playmaking ability with the hopes of making a repeat trip to the NCAA Tournament. The Razorbacks will need both to impact on a nightly basis.
Macon and Barford could make up arguably the best backcourt in the SEC this season, but they aren’t satisfied with that billing.
“My mindset is that we have the best backcourt in the country,” Macon said. “Not just our league, in the country. I think me and Jaylen worked a lot harder then what people think.”
The late-night trips and overnight stays at the gym give that statement credence. And it’s not like Barford, who agreed with the nation’s-best-backcourt assessment, was a sloth this summer. Armed with feedback telling him to improve his perimeter shot, he set a lofty daily goal for knocking down 3-pointers.
“I tried to make at least 400,” he said.
Motivated by having a successful senior season and putting himself on the draft radar, he upped the ante in those workouts and reported for fall practice in much better shape than he was a year ago.
“I just tried to stay in the gym as much as possible,” Barford said.
Macon and Barford could vie to be the SEC’s top-scoring duo this year.
Both established themselves as explosive scorers last year, but they go about filling it up in different ways. Gone from last season's team are Dusty Hannahs and Moses Kingsley, meaning Macon and Barford will likely have to assume more of the scoring responsibility.
There's reason for confidence that both will be ready and able for a bigger workload.
Macon averaged 13.4 points on stellar efficiency a year ago, shooting 45.3 percent from the floor, 38.7 percent from 3-point range and 86.6 from the line, all strong numbers for a guard.
His 62.6 true shooting percentage ranks second to Vanderbilt’s Riley LaChance among returning SEC guards. All due respect to LaChance, Macon is capable of doing much more with the ball in his hands.
He has a smooth shot with a quick release that allows him to get it off while being tightly guarded. He uses a herky jerky handle with hesitations and in-and-out dribbles to freeze defenders and give him space to pull up. He’s a crafty finisher around the rim and possesses good athleticism.
Last year, he ranked in the 94th percentile nationally as an offensive player, according to Synergy Sports tracking data. He was in the 99th percentile coming off dribble hand-offs, the 92nd percentile coming off screens, the 89th percentile as a pick-and-roll ballhandler, the 82nd percentile as a spot-up shooter.
Wowza. His efficiency may dip this season as defenses devote more attention to him, but he is one of the most skilled offensive players in the SEC.
Barford averaged 12.8 points per game last season. He hit just 26.6 percent from 3-point range, but spent the summer working on his shot and overall basketball IQ, the two areas his draft feedback indicated he needed to show the most improvement.
There is reason to believe Barford will be a better shooter as a senior. His 75.2 percent free throw percentage is evidence of his ability. Last season, he often got stuck with the ball in his hands with the shot clock dwindling, leading to him forcing up bail-out shots and hitting just 4 of 30 on jumpers in the final four seconds of the clock. Take some of those away or hit a few more and his percentages jump up.
But Barford made and will continue to make his hay with his ability to finish at the rim, especially in the open court. He was a terror on the break last year, shooting 61.8 percent as a transition ballhandler, which put him in the 90th percentile of college players. His ability to hang and finish at odd angles allowed him to get shots off in the paint over rim protectors, while his strong upper body paved the way for a team-best 16 and-1s.
He was elite when driving to his left off spot-ups last year, ranking in the 93rd percentile nationally. He was in the 94th percentile when he pulled up for off-the-dribble jumpers after coming off ball screens, sporting a gaudy 62.5 effective field goal percentage on a move that puts an immense amount of pressure on opposing pick-and-roll coverages.
Barford averaged 16.4 points over the course of the final 11 games. Macon averaged 14.1 over that same period of time. Forecasting the duo to combine for more than 32 points a game this year isn’t far-fetched.
They’ve proven they score. For them to better their odds of getting a shot at the NBA and to have a larger impact on what Arkansas hopes will be a repeat trip to the NCAA Tournament, they’ll have to go about improving and showcasing other aspects of their game.
They, along with the rest of the roster, must be locked-in defensively on a more consistent basis after Arkansas ranked 11th in defensive rating during SEC play last year. Star players can be prone to defensive lapses at times as a result of their offensive workload, but both guys will be guarding the ball much of the time. The Razorbacks need them to be focused and they’ll need to prove to pro scouts they can defend at a high level.
Both will need to show more in the playmaking department, balancing their need to score while leveraging their gravity on offense to create looks for others when defenses inevitably hone in on them.
Macon averaged a team-high 2.2 assists per game last year, but has the skill to push 4 this season. Barford finished with just one more assist (72) than he had turnovers last year, but he showed flashes of being a playmaker. The Razorbacks expect to see those more often this year, especially given how easily he can get into the paint and draw help.
“I think it was just the trusting part, for me and Daryl, coming from junior college and having the ball in our hand most of the time,” Barford said. “Learning how to trust each other and trust our teammates helped out a lot.”
Early results from the Hogs' first exhibition game were encouraging, with the duo combining for 11 assists.
At the team ceremony in April, Barford and Macon, along with Moses Kingsley, won the Apple Turnover Award for being the team leaders in the department. Not unexpected for three guys who had the ball in their hands a lot, but both Barford and Macon had similar speeches while accepting the award.
"I wouldn't have so many turnovers if these guys would catch the ball,” Macon said.
“Some of these guys on this team can not catch the ball,” Barford said. “They'll fake you out. I don't know what they're thinking. Especially Moses Kingsley.”
They made the jokes in a good-natured manner, but there is some truth to the statements. Arkansas’ bigs were often unready for dump-off passes, particularly Macon’s when he drove and tried to lay it off for what should’ve been layups. Perhaps with Daniel Gafford, the super-athletic freshman center, some of those wraparounds can be alley-oops instead.
Barford and Macon will be leaders on this team, the product of their abilities and elder statesman status. Both impact the team psyche in different ways.
Barford, for example, has taken it upon himself to ensure freshman guard Khalil Garland stays in good spirits despite being sidelined with a medical issue. Sometimes that means joking with him. Sometimes it means checking with him to see how he’s doing.
“Just try to be that big brother to all the young guys,” Barford said.
Garland isn’t an isolated case, either.
“He has such a bubbly personality,” coach Mike Anderson said. “You never know if he’s kidding or if he’s serious. But one thing that he does, he reaches out. He has that aura about him and these kids, they gravitate to him.”
Macon’s swagger and prove-them-wrong attitude will give Arkansas an edge if it takes on the Little Rock native’s personality. He doesn’t lack for confidence in the slightest.
In one mid-October practice, assistant T.J. Cleveland was putting the team’s guards through a shooting drill, with players taking turns firing above-the-break wing 3-pointers. While Macon was line, he turned to long-time trainer Dave England, sitting on the TV table at halfcourt, to tell him he was going to make his next shot. Nothing but net.
Minutes later, in another drill, he hit two more 3-pointers. He swished both from 25 feet and turned again to England, banging three fingers to the side of his head in a Carmelo Anthony-esque celebration as he made a proclamation.
“I’m not playing with you, Dave!”
That same sentiment applies to Arkansas’ opponents this year.
“I have a chip on my shoulder right now,” Macon said. “I have a point to prove.”