Andrew Wiggins - the next big thing

[niQ]

IF there was ever a player worth tanking for... this is it.

[Tave]

I think the knocks on his fine skills are overrated. It's a case of him being truly elite at some things but only great at others. He is clearly a freak athlete, and he does unbelievable things on the court given his size and age. When you see him dominating the game above the rim it's easy to pull the "good athlete, poor fundamental" card. Looking at him objectively, taking into account his age, size, rapid development, and current skill set, we are looking at a remarkable prospect. To be that young, that big, that fluid, that fast, that strong, that agile, and able to handle the ball at the speed he does, go to either side, hit shots from different spots and angles, attack the rim, finish, work the post a little, play good defense--that's a very rare combination.

At this stage, all prospects are works in progress; none of them are finished products. Some are more polished than others, but a guy like Wiggins is advanced enough given his size and athleticism that he looks like a consensus #1 to me. I don't think you need more than a couple minutes watching the kid to realize how special he is.

[dballislife]

i predict a lot of tanking next year, talent like wiggins comes along once or twice a decade

[toodles23]

Am I the only one who's not blown away by this athleticism? He's got a ridiculous vertical, but besides that, nothing about his athleticism really pops out at you. His speed and quickness didn't even stand out that much against other HS kids, let alone NBA players. Maybe I'm completely wrong here and haven't seen him play nearly enough, but he doesn't seem like an amazing athlete by NBA standards.

[Respect My Mind]

Why are people acting like he'd didn't already play at the Nike Hoop Summit on ESPN? Sure he was one of the better players there, but it wasn't like "OMG this kid has no equal" He could barely get by people with his dribble.

Like seriously, stop this stupid back and fourth about his game based on YouTube highlights. You can see what he really is below:



Edit: Video Starts at 28:00

[Choker]

Why are people acting like he'd didn't already play at the Nike Hoop Summit on ESPN? Sure he was one of the better players there, but it wasn't like "OMG this kind has no equal" He' could barely get by people with his dribble.

Like seriously, stop this stupid back and fourth about his game based on YouTube highlights. You can see what he really is below:

I guess it's not worth bringing up that he was the youngest player there? And I think he was nervous that game, didn't look like his usual self.

[Tave]

Am I the only one who's not blown away by this athleticism? He's got a ridiculous vertical, but besides that, nothing about his athleticism really pops out at you. His speed and quickness didn't even stand out that much against other HS kids, let alone NBA players. Maybe I'm completely wrong here and haven't seen him play nearly enough, but he doesn't seem like an amazing athlete by NBA standards.

He's explosive in every direction. Look at the way he attacks the rim from all angles, his lateral footwork, or his second bounce following a miss. Then realize you're watching a 15-17 year old kid who just hit a 10" growth spurt. He's an absolute FREAK.

[Goldtop]

idk, I didn't have that wow factor when watching those vids on the 1st page like the rest of the posters in here. 90% of the highlights were just him driving to the basket and dunking. If thats all he can do, judging by his size being pretty spindly, I wouldn't expect him to be able to do that regularly in the NBA with 7 footers guarding the rim. Being a perimeter player, I'd like to see some highlights of his shooting ability. Athletcism only gets you so far, unless you have supreme size, power, or speed to go with it, which doesn't really look like he has.

*I'm not hating, just my honest reaction from those videos, which is all I've seen of him.

[Tave]

Why are people acting like he'd didn't already play at the Nike Hoop Summit on ESPN? Sure he was one of the better players there, but it wasn't like "OMG this kid has no equal" He could barely get by people with his dribble.

Like seriously, stop this stupid back and fourth about his game based on YouTube highlights. You can see what he really is below:



Edit: Video Starts at 28:00

He was the youngest kid there and led his team to victory on an off-night. Not bad and only one game. It's not like he's been playing your normal high school basketball programs.

[Respect My Mind]

Why are people acting like he'd didn't already play at the Nike Hoop Summit on ESPN? Sure he was one of the better players there, but it wasn't like "OMG this kid has no equal" He could barely get by people with his dribble.

Like seriously, stop this stupid back and fourth about his game based on YouTube highlights. You can see what he really is below:



Edit: Video Starts at 28:00

He was the youngest kid there and led his team to victory on an off-night. Not bad and only one game. It's not like he's been playing your normal high school basketball programs.

You can still display superior skill and athleticism without actually making shots. Again, he clearly isn't a scrub but 17 year old Lebron would have destroyed out there.

[rockmanslim]

If you don't want to watch that entire Nike Hoops Summit game, here's a scouting vid of just the plays Wiggins was involved in.

[Respect My Mind]

If you don't want to watch that entire Nike Hoops Summit game, here's a scouting vid of just the plays Wiggins was involved in.

Good play but nothing special. Looks like an athletic Harrison Barnes

[rockmanslim]

If you don't want to watch that entire Nike Hoops Summit game, here's a scouting vid of just the plays Wiggins was involved in.

Good play but nothing special. Looks like an athletic Harrison Barnes

He didn't blow me away in that game either, but I don't want to make a conclusion based on one game. I want to wait to see what he does in college.

Shabazz Muhammad apparently looked all world in high school (I'm assuming, as I never watched him in HS), but in college he looks quite ordinary.

Maybe the same thing happens to Wiggins, who knows.

[peZt]

From yesterday. You can see his exceptional quickness and leaping ability.
http://recruitscoop.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=1462731

He will probably play in this years Nike Hoop Summit too, likely in a matchup with Jabari Parker. Can't wait to see that game.

[sisibilio]

I guess it's not worth bringing up that he was the youngest player there? And I think he was nervous that game, didn't look like his usual self.

Nervous or not, it was pretty clear, at least to me, he was the most talented player in the game.