Zach Edey, 7-4

[Big J]

Memphis should be Zach's #1 destination. Taylor Jenkins' system values screening, rolling, finishing, rebounding, and great positioning from the center. Less concerned are they with switchability, versatility, and shot contesting; most of those are covered by Jaren Jackson Jr and Marcus Smart. They made elite defenses out of Steven Adams and Jonas V.

But I fear they might prefer Donovan Clingan. But he has his own shortcomings that are equally concerning IMO - durability, conditioning, free-throw shooting, can be pushed around.

I also really like New York and Miami for Zach. Thibs will need a reliable backup if Hartenstein gets a better offer. He's a coach that'll value and get the best out of Edey. Miami as well because they use more zone coverages than anyone and they're known for making use of mature-aged college players.

After those teams, MIL, LAL, DEN, and OKC could use him as a backup. Spurs also? Washington needs a starting center as well. Help them tank for Flagg maybe?

With a weakside defender like JJJ supporting him, Memphis would definitely be a great location for him to land. Basically take over the Steven Adams role. Miami also would be interesting, cause they really need a decent backup C besides Kevin Love. And trust me, the heat have made due with slow footed centers in past couple years. Meyers Leonard, Omer Yurtseven, late career Cody Zeller etc. Bryant and Orlando do their best, but they either are a half sec too slow to react or get bodied by other centers.

He’s nothing like Steven Adams though. Adam’s is known specifically for his defensive play. Edey is not. Clingan is more like Adam’s then Edey is.

[lastb1ckman]

Memphis should be Zach's #1 destination. Taylor Jenkins' system values screening, rolling, finishing, rebounding, and great positioning from the center. Less concerned are they with switchability, versatility, and shot contesting; most of those are covered by Jaren Jackson Jr and Marcus Smart. They made elite defenses out of Steven Adams and Jonas V.

But I fear they might prefer Donovan Clingan. But he has his own shortcomings that are equally concerning IMO - durability, conditioning, free-throw shooting, can be pushed around.

I also really like New York and Miami for Zach. Thibs will need a reliable backup if Hartenstein gets a better offer. He's a coach that'll value and get the best out of Edey. Miami as well because they use more zone coverages than anyone and they're known for making use of mature-aged college players.

After those teams, MIL, LAL, DEN, and OKC could use him as a backup. Spurs also? Washington needs a starting center as well. Help them tank for Flagg maybe?

With a weakside defender like JJJ supporting him, Memphis would definitely be a great location for him to land. Basically take over the Steven Adams role. Miami also would be interesting, cause they really need a decent backup C besides Kevin Love. And trust me, the heat have made due with slow footed centers in past couple years. Meyers Leonard, Omer Yurtseven, late career Cody Zeller etc. Bryant and Orlando do their best, but they either are a half sec too slow to react or get bodied by other centers.

He’s nothing like Steven Adams though. Adam’s is known specifically for his defensive play. Edey is not. Clingan is more like Adam’s then Edey is.

I have my concerns with Clingan's health and high center of gravity, but yeah Clingan could also be good choice at the top of the draft for the grizzlies. We're looking at how Edey's tools can be used by an NBA team, he's not an unwilling defender at the college level and is definitely not scared of contact. Since he won't be expected to carry an entire offense on his back, I'd expect he'd be able to put his energy behind rim protection and rebounding in the nba. I'm talking about a mid to late first round pick, to all the good orgs that will develop and find use cases for him.

[FrodoBaggins]

Memphis should be Zach's #1 destination. Taylor Jenkins' system values screening, rolling, finishing, rebounding, and great positioning from the center. Less concerned are they with switchability, versatility, and shot contesting; most of those are covered by Jaren Jackson Jr and Marcus Smart. They made elite defenses out of Steven Adams and Jonas V.

But I fear they might prefer Donovan Clingan. But he has his own shortcomings that are equally concerning IMO - durability, conditioning, free-throw shooting, can be pushed around.

I also really like New York and Miami for Zach. Thibs will need a reliable backup if Hartenstein gets a better offer. He's a coach that'll value and get the best out of Edey. Miami as well because they use more zone coverages than anyone and they're known for making use of mature-aged college players.

After those teams, MIL, LAL, DEN, and OKC could use him as a backup. Spurs also? Washington needs a starting center as well. Help them tank for Flagg maybe?

With a weakside defender like JJJ supporting him, Memphis would definitely be a great location for him to land. Basically take over the Steven Adams role. Miami also would be interesting, cause they really need a decent backup C besides Kevin Love. And trust me, the heat have made due with slow footed centers in past couple years. Meyers Leonard, Omer Yurtseven, late career Cody Zeller etc. Bryant and Orlando do their best, but they either are a half sec too slow to react or get bodied by other centers.

He’s nothing like Steven Adams though. Adam’s is known specifically for his defensive play. Edey is not. Clingan is more like Adam’s then Edey is.

I disagree.

Clingan is more like Roy Hibbert/Walker Kessler - an active shot blocker that's a good finisher. Plays above the rim at times. Most of their value comes from contesting shots.

Adam is known more for his general physical play which translates to his rebounding and screening. He's also a solid finisher and average rim protector. But his game is largely below the rim and all about strength, leverage, and positioning. Most of his value is derived from helping his team win the possession battle.

And these are qualities more in line with Edey. And Edey can play above the rim and catch lobs too.

[azcatz11]

People saying to look at his combine numbers are using that as a crutch bc in game speed it's clear he's a lumbering big. It's great he has practiced combine drills but none of that translates to the actual game. JMO

[CptCrunch]

Edey has elite combine agility for his size. But he just looks slow in-game. Could be a processing issue in terms of reacting to play just a 1/4 to 1/2 second too late. The best defenders anticipate; if you react, you will look slow on defense.

The whole 'stone foot' is just a matter of moving too late relative to offensive player movements. Most if not all NBA players are fast enough in terms of agility if they can anticipate. 10-20% faster peak agility/peak sprint speed doesn't make a difference really on defense except in extreme cases (defensive savants who can recovery with freaky tools). Team defense is about getting in position on defense; man defense is about anticipating movements and have good defensive fundamentals.

[Big J]

Edey is like a prop comic. He has a gimmick that he’s rehearsed over and over and can pull it out and make an unsophisticated audience laugh. In the NBA you need to be able to think on the fly like an improv comic. It’s all about your ability to react to what is happening in real time. That Carrot Top **** won’t fly there.

[ItsDanger]

Edey has to play major minutes, 1st and 2nd option on offense, anchor entire defense. Does he potentially have flaws? Sure. But defending 2 on 1s in basketball constantly is an impossible task.

[DOT]

When Clingan was taken out with 8 minutes to go, Edey was at 22 points on 9-18 shooting, 4-6 FTA, .533 TS

That's not really great. His stats are inflated by scoring 9 points on 4 shots and 4 free throws vs Karaban, and then 6 points on 3 shots in the final 2 minutes which was basically garbage time

I think it showed Edey is gonna struggle against NBA sized Cs, especially if he doesn't develop counters or other moves

It hasn't really changed my evaluation of him, I think he's a situational guy who needs certain matchups to be productive.

[lastb1ckman]

When Clingan was taken out with 8 minutes to go, Edey was at 22 points on 9-18 shooting, 4-6 FTA, .533 TS

That's not really great. His stats are inflated by scoring 9 points on 4 shots and 4 free throws vs Karaban, and then 6 points on 3 shots in the final 2 minutes which was basically garbage time

I think it showed Edey is gonna struggle against NBA sized Cs, especially if he doesn't develop counters or other moves

It hasn't really changed my evaluation of him, I think he's a situational guy who needs certain matchups to be productive.

I mean, is that really struggling? Clingan is one of the top defensive big men in the country, and one of the few centers to even begin to challenge him size wise in the tournament and he still had 22 on him. What really hurt them was his teams inability to score outside of Edey and his vulnerability to the pick and roll. Other big centers aren't gonna be what hurt him, it'll be the athletic guards and small ball 5s.

[TheFire]

If a slow-footed center like Jokic can be 2 time MVP (soon to be 3), how can you be so sure that Edey's game won't translate to NBA? Edey is definitely more athletic than Jokic. This guy had a historic NCAA tourney run and there is no way he's not at least a top 10 pick in what is shaking up to be a very weak draft.

[TheSuzerain]

When Clingan was taken out with 8 minutes to go, Edey was at 22 points on 9-18 shooting, 4-6 FTA, .533 TS

That's not really great. His stats are inflated by scoring 9 points on 4 shots and 4 free throws vs Karaban, and then 6 points on 3 shots in the final 2 minutes which was basically garbage time

I think it showed Edey is gonna struggle against NBA sized Cs, especially if he doesn't develop counters or other moves

It hasn't really changed my evaluation of him, I think he's a situational guy who needs certain matchups to be productive.

Edey had two and-1's, so his "true" TS% was 55%.

Clingan got the best of him on a couple of reps (forced into difficult right handed hooks). To start the 2nd half though, Edey simply jagged a couple bunnies that didn't seem to have much to do with Clingan directly. One of those goes down, and he's at 1.2 ppp prior to garbage time or being guarded by a 4.

In the post up situations, I think he's got to trust his counters more. And he is overly methodical at times when he catches in great position.

I also think NBA Edey will certainly have a lot less true post-ups. More of the screen/seal game playing off of a guard (who will be 10x more talented than his current teammates).

[ItsDanger]

Pair Edey with an athletic PG that can create their own shot. Guy has been playing with short scrubs mostly. Nobody knows what it looks like with better talent around him. As example, if he was a starter, more offball with 1st unit, then higher usage with bench lineups. On defense, ideally requires a good help defense especially at the 4.

[FrodoBaggins]

Pair Edey with an athletic PG that can create their own shot. Guy has been playing with short scrubs mostly. Nobody knows what it looks like with better talent around him. As example, if he was a starter, more offball with 1st unit, then higher usage with bench lineups. On defense, ideally requires a good help defense especially at the 4.

Memphis is the absolute dream destination. Ja Morant would have Edey averaging the easiest and most efficient double-double of his life. Jaren Jackson Jr and Marcus Smart would provide the help defense and versatility.

[Big J]

Pair Edey with an athletic PG that can create their own shot. Guy has been playing with short scrubs mostly. Nobody knows what it looks like with better talent around him. As example, if he was a starter, more offball with 1st unit, then higher usage with bench lineups. On defense, ideally requires a good help defense especially at the 4.

Memphis is the absolute dream destination. Ja Morant would have Edey averaging the easiest and most efficient double-double of his life. Jaren Jackson Jr and Marcus Smart would provide the help defense and versatility.

Ja Morant would hate playing alongside Edey clogging the toilet and demanding the ball in the post. You would completely neuter Ja’s effectiveness.

[DOT]

When Clingan was taken out with 8 minutes to go, Edey was at 22 points on 9-18 shooting, 4-6 FTA, .533 TS

That's not really great. His stats are inflated by scoring 9 points on 4 shots and 4 free throws vs Karaban, and then 6 points on 3 shots in the final 2 minutes which was basically garbage time

I think it showed Edey is gonna struggle against NBA sized Cs, especially if he doesn't develop counters or other moves

It hasn't really changed my evaluation of him, I think he's a situational guy who needs certain matchups to be productive.

I mean, is that really struggling? Clingan is one of the top defensive big men in the country, and one of the few centers to even begin to challenge him size wise in the tournament and he still had 22 on him. What really hurt them was his teams inability to score outside of Edey and his vulnerability to the pick and roll. Other big centers aren't gonna be what hurt him, it'll be the athletic guards and small ball 5s.

22 on sub-par efficiency

That was in 32 minutes of play, which is his season average minutes. Overall, he averaged 25 points on 14 FGA, 11 FTA in 32 minutes (TS of .659) to 22 points on 18 FGA, 6 FTA (TS of .533). That's a pretty big drop off in production, and the problematic thing for Edey is he's gonna be facing guys near enough that size on most nights instead of it being just a one-off thing

It would be one thing if the game plan was to swarm Edey like what happened to him last year and force his teammates to help, but that wasn't the plan, they let Edey go at Clingan and Johnson 1 on 1, and it wasn't really working for Edey

Also, the reason why his teammates were unable to score outside of him is cause he wasn't scoring enough to justify more than single coverage. That's the level you need as a post player, you need to force opponents to double you, and Edey wasn't good enough to force that last night, meaning the perimeter defenders got to stay home and it suffocated the whole offense. And if Edey can't do that as a senior in college against Donovan Clingan, he's not gonna be able to do it on a nightly basis in the NBA like guys like Jokic and Embiid

Then you combine that with as you said his struggles in PnR defense, and it's gonna be hard for him to get consistent minutes as a net positive.

[FrodoBaggins]

When Clingan was taken out with 8 minutes to go, Edey was at 22 points on 9-18 shooting, 4-6 FTA, .533 TS

That's not really great. His stats are inflated by scoring 9 points on 4 shots and 4 free throws vs Karaban, and then 6 points on 3 shots in the final 2 minutes which was basically garbage time

I think it showed Edey is gonna struggle against NBA sized Cs, especially if he doesn't develop counters or other moves

It hasn't really changed my evaluation of him, I think he's a situational guy who needs certain matchups to be productive.

I mean, is that really struggling? Clingan is one of the top defensive big men in the country, and one of the few centers to even begin to challenge him size wise in the tournament and he still had 22 on him. What really hurt them was his teams inability to score outside of Edey and his vulnerability to the pick and roll. Other big centers aren't gonna be what hurt him, it'll be the athletic guards and small ball 5s.

22 on sub-par efficiency

That was in 32 minutes of play, which is his season average minutes. Overall, he averaged 25 points on 14 FGA, 11 FTA in 32 minutes (TS of .659) to 22 points on 18 FGA, 6 FTA (TS of .533). That's a pretty big drop off in production, and the problematic thing for Edey is he's gonna be facing guys near enough that size on most nights instead of it being just a one-off thing

It would be one thing if the game plan was to swarm Edey like what happened to him last year and force his teammates to help, but that wasn't the plan, they let Edey go at Clingan and Johnson 1 on 1, and it wasn't really working for Edey

Also, the reason why his teammates were unable to score outside of him is cause he wasn't scoring enough to justify more than single coverage. That's the level you need as a post player, you need to force opponents to double you, and Edey wasn't good enough to force that last night, meaning the perimeter defenders got to stay home and it suffocated the whole offense. And if Edey can't do that as a senior in college against Donovan Clingan, he's not gonna be able to do it on a nightly basis in the NBA like guys like Jokic and Embiid

Then you combine that with as you said his struggles in PnR defense, and it's gonna be hard for him to get consistent minutes as a net positive.

I think you're really overthinking this TBH. The sample size is way too small to really take anything away here. This game meant no more than when Edey crushed Derrick Lively Jr last season:

https://www.espn.com/mens-college-basketball/boxscore/_/gameId/401486751

[DOT]

Yeah, small sample size, whatever, the issue is he didn't answer any of the questions about him

He matched up poorly against a team with NBA size and was a liability on defense against NBA concepts

You can point to the box score after he padded his stats, but he did not look like anything more than a rotation player to me. I agree there's really nothing to compare him to in the NBA, I think he is more skilled than Boban, but I think he's closer to Boban than Steven Adams or Rudy Gobert

I see a guy who's a big body who can score on smaller guys but will get exposed in the PnR against guards who can shoot off the dribble. He probably makes the rotation for a long time, but he needs to up his post game so he isn't a one trick pony in order to be more than that.

[2weekswithpay]

it's finally over. Let the hype die a deserving death. The guy succeeded because he had no rivals (until tonight) like he'd see at the next level. He can't defend in space and he's got a 5 inch vertical so unless guys are taken it right to him he's essentially useless as a shot blocker. Let's put this to bed. He's going to be at best one of the worst starting centers in basketball but more likely, a guy you can get 15-20 mpg off the bench as a foul merchant and absorber. Clingan didn't do anything special and just his size was enough to slow Edey down. Edey just lacks skill which is noteworthy given he's been playing college basketball for years. Like, what is this dude doing in the offseason to work on his game? Those back to the basket moves are laughable. He never bothered to develop a 15-18 footer let alone three which might improve his future chances. He shouldn't be drafted in the first round.

This ain't it brother

Edey scored 37/10 and got Clingan and Jackson into foul trouble.

His team was getting dominated by the dribble drive and off ball cutting, I seen Gobert give up a ton of points off this last year for the Wolves if your perimeter defenders can't keep anyone out the paint and you aren't communicating. This is the same Gobert who's now the favorite for DPOY. Why can't you just give credit to UCONN who has the superior team.

He did an excellent job protecting the paint. Clingan couldn't score on him and Jackson buckets were dunks from the flares. It's like you weren't watching the game.

So much wrong in this.

This was a good film for what Edey does well, where he needs to improve, and areas that could happen in the NBA and what needs to be adjusted. These are coaching moments.

Two plays in the first 5 minutes of the game. Cam Spencer can get a foot in the paint whenever he wants because Loyer can't stay in front of him. Edey doesn't commit to stopping Spencer on the first play and Spencer scores using a good ball fake. Second play Edey has to contest because Loyer gets knocked off balance and he gives up a dunk to Clingan.

[Mark_83]

Edey has elite combine agility for his size. But he just looks slow in-game. Could be a processing issue in terms of reacting to play just a 1/4 to 1/2 second too late. The best defenders anticipate; if you react, you will look slow on defense.

The whole 'stone foot' is just a matter of moving too late relative to offensive player movements. Most if not all NBA players are fast enough in terms of agility if they can anticipate. 10-20% faster peak agility/peak sprint speed doesn't make a difference really on defense except in extreme cases (defensive savants who can recovery with freaky tools). Team defense is about getting in position on defense; man defense is about anticipating movements and have good defensive fundamentals.

I think you're right, it could be a processing issue. He looks slow in reacting because he seems to react more than read or anticipate plays which can buy you extra time. So while he can move fast in drills where the movement patterns are linear and predictable, when he has to make sudden, unexpected changes of direction it takes him a while to plant and gather. He's like an ocean liner. When it reaches full speed in a single direction its pretty fast relative to its size, but when it has to make a sudden quick turn its hella slow and you end up hitting an iceberg if you don't see it ahead of time.

[CptCrunch]

Edey has elite combine agility for his size. But he just looks slow in-game. Could be a processing issue in terms of reacting to play just a 1/4 to 1/2 second too late. The best defenders anticipate; if you react, you will look slow on defense.

The whole 'stone foot' is just a matter of moving too late relative to offensive player movements. Most if not all NBA players are fast enough in terms of agility if they can anticipate. 10-20% faster peak agility/peak sprint speed doesn't make a difference really on defense except in extreme cases (defensive savants who can recovery with freaky tools). Team defense is about getting in position on defense; man defense is about anticipating movements and have good defensive fundamentals.

I think you're right, it could be a processing issue. He looks slow in reacting because he seems to react more than read or anticipate plays which can buy you extra time. So while he can move fast in drills where the movement patterns are linear and predictable, when he has to make sudden, unexpected changes of direction it takes him a while to plant and gather. He's like an ocean liner. When it reaches full speed in a single direction its pretty fast relative to its size, but when it has to make a sudden quick turn its hella slow and you end up hitting an iceberg if you don't see it ahead of time.

And to add:

Defense is more about basketball IQ as opposed to tools. That's also why NBA teams can't just grab the best 6'8" pure athelete very year as defenders. NBA players become great defenders when 1) they have sufficient tools AND 2) have enough basketball IQ, or gets enough reps in the league contributing in other ways to get enough defensive reps.

People like LeBron who was an okay defender when he was enough become great defenders because the man knows every play of every team.

Players like Curry who are literally chairs on defense during their youth can become average defenders late career as their basketball (defensive) reps rack up.

Then you have defensive savants like Dort or Mobley, who are all-NBA defenders from their first year due to their basketball IQ on the dfensive side. Neither of them are elite atheletes for their size.

Of course I don't need to mention all the athletic studs with tools, but never become defenders. The most prominent case these days is the failed Wiseman and failing Duren. Duren has the tools of a god, but the defensive IQ of a drunk squirrel. Wiseman is just Wiseman, possibly the lowest basketball IQ player in the league.

Edey seems to me like someone who has the tools, and the offensive basketball IQ to develop his defensive instincts. But the question is if he will offer teams enough value during his first contract to get a second contract. A non-defender 7'4" player whose only skill if post offense with 1.5 moves - right hook, or right hook fake into drop step doesn't seem like the type who would get enough reps to develop in the NBA.