Couple things about Edey. Purdue has needed him to be in the game for 40 minutes, so he's had to play very conservative in terms of defense. If he's only playing 18-20 minutes per game and you don't care about him fouling out he's going to have a lot more blocked shots. Second is that while he's a Senior, he didn't start playing basketball at 5 years old. He started halfway through high school, which is why we've seen him continue to improve each year and it's reasonable to think he will continue to do so. Even with his last two games going for 40 and 37, I don't think we've seen the final product yet
I have seen mocks with him going 5th and 55th. I think whoever takes him will get a lot of praise once the season starts and we see him in action. People acting like you have to be fast and athletic to have success in the NBA have never heard of Jokic, Doncic, Gobert, etc. he plays the center position well and he is huge and strong.
@@norrinradd542 he is dominant because he is putting up monster numbers in college, yes. Most guys being picked in the draft are dominant college players, but end up being a role guy in the league. I think his role in the NBA would probably be setting screens, rebounding, and some post ups. Especially when you consider how much more space is in the NBA with the size of the court, a defensive 3 second rule, and the talent level of the shooters keeping defenders closer. Plus if you have seen Edey play in camps and FIBA matches you would know he can space the floor from deep as well. He just has not been asked to do that since he is so overwhelmingly strong and big compared to most college players. I think people are way too caught up in him not being the typical American freak athlete we usually see get hyped up pre-draft with mix-tape after mix-tape of them cherry picking fast break dunks.
@@BBallRambling remember JHS??? I'm not caught up on his athleticism, just my concerns are what Sheldon rubber stamped on video. Imo he's a 8-10 guy in the rotation... Not a lottery contributor.
@@BBallRambling Jalen Hood-Schifino ate Edey's lunch in the Big Ten tournament in 2022/2023 off of isolation plays designed to score around him. It worked. He's not a lottery talent. He's a great college player turned role player.
Great breakdown. But I think sometimes we overanalyze things. Defense is played with the intention of giving up something almost all the time. Contested twos are the least effective shots in the league. Drop coverage and most defenses are meant to give up contested twos and threes. Edey is doing a great job in these clips based on that premise. In almost every clip he’s forcing a tough two or running 3pt shooters off the line into help. The most high percentage shots are at the rim or uncontested catch and shoot threes. I’m not understanding what’s expected of him. Any better and he’d be a complete mismatch on both ends.
Brook Lopez repeatedly switched onto CP3 and Devin Booker in the 2021 Finals and got repeatedly "cooked" in midrange. Bucks still won the series because even elite midrange scorers are generally going to be less efficient than teams getting dunks/layups and open 3s. Note that Brook on the back end of his career is considerably slower than Zach Edey, but was still able to be effective through his length, smart positioning, and the defenders/scheme around him.
I think it's funny the footage you pick to point out Edey's defensive lapses are when he played 39 minutes, scored 40 pts & 16 rebounds. Leading his team beat to Tennessee 66 to 72.
I can see SA pairing Edey with Wemby if they get Toronto's Lottery pick. Or Toronto taking him at #6 or at #17 if they keep their Lottery pick. Memphis at #7, OKC at #12 are potential landing spots where he would fill a need and fit right in. The talent gap among the first round prospects in this draft isn't that wide. It's more about fit than talent with most of the prospects. I am not that high on Alex Sarr I don't think he'll be as good as Evan Mobley. I do think there will be some really solid players selected and the many of the top performing players may actually be from outside of the top 10 selections. Terrence Shannon is a sleeper pick of mine given his off court issues. He's a mature player who can step right in from day 1 and contribute if his off court issues are resolved by draft night. Kel'el Ware is a Dereck Lively type that I think can be effective as a rim runner-shot blocker. Some more sleepers: Tristan da Silva, Jaylon Tyson & Harrison Ingram.
@@jd3thegreat The Raptors VP of player development has hinted at potentially drafting Edey on Raptors Tonight. If it's at #17 then I can get with that or better yet if he falls to #31 and the Raps select him.
As a okc fan, okc would never draft edey and do not say we need size because that doesn’t matter okc don’t want players like edey plus the fit itself sounds good on paper but due to how okc plays it not really a good fit he just wouldn’t get any playing time in okc due to lack of fit because of okc system
@@Wrestle_Kingdom Edey would be a situational player like a pinch hitter in baseball- if used right he could be very valuable to the right team. Time will tell.
Edey was instructed to protect the rim give up the middle range !! hope NY gets him. Long and rebounds !! Not so many minutes but a quality player ! Solid Knick
Let him get with Wemby if you want to NBA...... It will get ugly for other teams as long as a good point guard is on the roster. I'm wanting to see a Castle / Edey combination; both are underrated .
Edey will have to worry mainly about centers if they do try to pull ED out for a pick and roll if he goes to the Spurs will just send Wemby for help. scorer which I think he could be in the paint or around the paint and makes he’s free throws
Never mind who Edey can’t guard but, who can guard Edey, 7’ 4” and 300 lbs. Can go left or right. His hook shots are getting so much better every year. All you nah sayers are looking at Edey from the most negative aspects. Match Edey up with another big like Holmgren or Wemby and the opposing team can forget about 2nd chance points and rebounds. I admit it is wait and see prospect. But, Edey’s upside could be game changing. I do hope so, because the NBA focus on the 3 pointer is getting soooo boring!
@@UtilitySports Edey scored the match-highest 37 points, 10 rebounds and 2 blocks against UConn . I would love to see Edey's stats if Clingan couldn't guard Edey. Maybe 50 points and 17 rebounds. Clingan is not a good example.
How many points did his team score with Purdue feeding him? Winning games isn’t about how many points an individual can score. It’s about scoring more than the other team lol
@@UtilitySports That's a great point Purdue's 34-5 season record speaks volumes about the effect of Zach Edey. Edey even helped get Purdue to the NCAA finals. UConn was a better team and beat Purdue - just like they beat every other team in the tournament, My hat is off to UConn. But, I could hardly blame Zach Edey for the Loss!!
Great review. I was thinking he would be in the TJD or GG spots last season if he had stayed in the draft. Happy if second round, maybe not so if you used a first rounder on him.
If Edey is available in the 2nd round, the cavs need to get him. Need a backup big that will force the oppenents to say out of the paint and allow the smaller guards, and guys like lavert, strus, and okoro to play more passing lanes.
I dont think you can look at anyone in this draft coming in as a starter. Pretty much everyone needs development to be a starter. Hes a legit backup center who has been well couched to be nba ready. He can come off bench when the marquee players you mentioned are in the lineup.😊
Im not high on Edey as a top 10 personally, but lets be realistic. I can see a fewteams he can beat out the teams current starting center or improve the size of a team needing a big. Hawks, bulls, wizards, Warriors and grizzlies could use him.
E. Scares shooters effects shoots does not need to be that close, players are scared of E. don't want him. I don't care about your ego if a 7'4" is running at you it's going to effect their shoot and there going to miss their shoot. He is a unique quality athlete, this is about the egos of small shooters who are afraid of him.
Drop coverage purpose is to allow mid range and floaters. In these videos, he's intentionally not contesting. Switch everything defense has resulted in highest offensive rating in NBA. Switching works when the 5 guys work as a unit seamlessly, not easy to do with changing rosters.
If you think most teams are switching regularly, you're not watching the game. How do you expect Edey to cover a PnP in drop coverage? The issue with drop is with high ball screens guys can rise into pull up 3's (think Dame, Steph, Anfernee Simons, etc.)
@@AndreInThe416 It's dumb to blame the big playing drop coverage when the team's really good defensively when the guards do their jobs but bad when they don't. Defense is a team activity. There might be a few freaks like Wemby who automatically dramatically improve their team's defense no matter what, but in most cases scheme, chemistry, personnel around you make a big difference.
@5:30 this is the same part of the brain where resides: Doctor every time I do this (weird exaggerated motion) with my arm it hurts Well then don't do that anymore
