Andrew Wiggins is Harrison Barnes

[jamesnamida]

a better harrison barnes would be a huge disappointment after two years of waiting for his ass. no matter where he is picked.

[Darko Miliminutes]

Can Kansas really afford to have another bust wing player?

Why can't they? Kansas is about winning NCAA titles not producing NBA stars.

All about recruiting though. If they aren't getting guys ready for the league, and drafted high, they lose appeal to the recruits.

Recruits care about getting to the NBA better and sooner.

[ratul]

Terrible comparison. Only similarity is that they both lack in creating shots for themselves. Wiggins is miles ahead of Barnes as an athlete and as a defender.

Maybe more MKG than Barnes

I'd disagree with that as well. MKG can't shoot anything, Wiggins has a dependable mid range game. And Wiggins is much much quicker than MKG.

Since when has Wiggins had a dependable mid-range game? MKG is pretty quick - that's why he was picked second

[Nolan]

Can Kansas really afford to have another bust wing player?

Why can't they? Kansas is about winning NCAA titles not producing NBA stars.

All about recruiting though. If they aren't getting guys ready for the league, and drafted high, they lose appeal to the recruits.

Recruits care about getting to the NBA better and sooner.

But for the most part Self doesn't build his teams around big name recruits whose first priority is the NBA. He goes after guys that are going to stay for 3 to 4 years.

[Joseph17]

Wiggins is a much better athlete. At the very least he'll be a lock down defender that could hit the 3 and score in the open court in the NBA. His worst case scenario is prime Shawn Marion with worse rebounding ability. With that you get a very good player and an excellent 2nd or 3rd option on offense.

[YC42Balla]

You mean, they're the same person?

[jmnvcavs]

Basketball IQ and work ethic with determine Wiggins future.

[hodgy#11]

I hope everyone thinks Wiggins will end up being a bust so he can fall to 20.

*21

Ibaka
Durant
Wiggins
Russ
Jackson

YES PLEASE

[Kabookalu]

Basketball IQ and work ethic with determine Wiggins future.

That won't be a problem for him. Wiggins' work ethic gets overlooked just because he doesn't tweet every time he goes to the gym, but really he has a fantastic work ethic.

http://insider.espn.go.com/nba/draft201 ... -nba-draft

Once Kansas began Big 12 play, Wiggins' 3-point shooting improved. While there's still more work to do, Wiggins showed off a more consistent jumper from everywhere on the floor in the workout I saw. He was particularly good from each corner, shooting 14-for-16 on 3s he took there.

Hanlen has been doing a lot of game film breakdown with Wiggins, trying to add some NBA moves to his already elite athletic talent. Hanlen has been showing Wiggins video of Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant, Tracy McGrady and Paul George and then taking several signature moves of each player and working with Wiggins on building those into his game. Wiggins looked especially lethal on a new step-back move he's been working on. He's so quick and so long, he gets incredible separation from his defender on the move. It will be close to impossible to guard if he can get it down.

"I normally never pull Jordan or Kobe video for players because, truthfully, they just can't do what Jordan or Kobe could do athletically," Hanlen said. "Wiggins is the first player I've trained who has that capability, athletically, to do some of the things those two have done. It's just a learning process for him now. He's gotten by on his athleticism his whole life. Now it's about really learning what makes players like that special from a skills standpoint and a mentality standpoint. He was hesitant at Kansas and as he improves his skills, I'm starting to see him develop confidence and a killer mentality that will be necessary at the next level. He's been like a sponge. The improvement over the past few weeks has been incredible. I think in a few more weeks he's going to blow people away in workouts."

His demeanor reminds me a lot of Derrick Rose, they have this kiddish ignorance to them, so some of the things they do can rub people off the wrong way or appear very outwardly awkward.

[noobcake]

The knocks on Wiggins handles are getting out of control. His dribble is already as good as most NBA SFs, and he showed rapid growth in that area between his junior year at Huntington and this past season. That is the last thing I'd worry about with him.

lololololololol

Wiggins has piss poor handles for a SF: http://grantland.com/the-triangle/ryen- ... nd-parker/

Wiggins is Barnes with even more hype. Had he returned to school, he would fall the same way Barnes fell. Players without legit NBA handles simply do not become stars.

[Tave]

The knocks on Wiggins handles are getting out of control. His dribble is already as good as most NBA SFs, and he showed rapid growth in that area between his junior year at Huntington and this past season. That is the last thing I'd worry about with him.

lololololololol

Wiggins has piss poor handles for a SF: http://grantland.com/the-triangle/ryen- ... nd-parker/

Wiggins is Barnes with even more hype. Had he returned to school, he would fall the same way Barnes fell. Players without legit NBA handles simply do not become stars.

Who said anything about a star? I'm talking about his skill in relation to other small forwards. In a league where the likes of Matt Barnes seems to find a starting job every year, how much ball handling do most SFs provide?

Those scouting reports aren't even internally consistent. Wiggins "gets by his man, beating the help" but "he can't dribble?" So what, he's just picking up the ball and running at the hoop? You don't get to the line as often as Wiggins did without some semblance of handles, it's impossible.

I watched a lot of Kansas this year. No, Wiggins does not display advanced hesitation moves. Yes, he is more comfortable going right than left. Yeah, his dribble is a little high. But he gets to his spots at will. He generally protects the ball well. He's got huge palms and transitions fine from the dribble to his shot.

Again, I'd worry more about his ability to finish through contact, which will be much more important to him than any array of fancy crossovers (and again, he's made massive improvement in that regard in the last 2 years) going forward.

I forgot though, I'm talking to the Supreme Commander of the Wiggins Hate Brigade here, so I guess rational discussion is out of the question.

2 years ago, it was "Wiggins can't shoot. What good is a shooting guard who can't make a jumpshot or hit a free-throw?" 4 years ago he was just an intriguing athlete scoring on put-back dunks. His growth has been extremely rapid and he continues to add and add and add to his game. He also seemingly takes pleasure in silencing the haters and playing above whatever garçon du jour (Randle, Parker, Smart, etc...) critics place in front of him during head-to-head match ups. I think he's going to thrive in the NBA where high-level athletes constantly push him to get better every game.

[E-Balla]

I'd take Smart over him easy. Maybe that's just me.

[Shock Defeat]

athletically Wiggins is on another level...he is on the same level as LeBron, Westbrook, Dwight etc. Elite athletes. Barnes is a good not elite athlete so they are different.

[Warriors Analyst]

The knocks on Wiggins handles are getting out of control. His dribble is already as good as most NBA SFs, and he showed rapid growth in that area between his junior year at Huntington and this past season. That is the last thing I'd worry about with him.

lololololololol

Wiggins has piss poor handles for a SF: http://grantland.com/the-triangle/ryen- ... nd-parker/

Wiggins is Barnes with even more hype. Had he returned to school, he would fall the same way Barnes fell. Players without legit NBA handles simply do not become stars.

Who said anything about a star? I'm talking about his skill in relation to other small forwards. In a league where the likes of Matt Barnes seems to find a starting job every year, how much ball handling do most SFs provide?

Those scouting reports aren't even internally consistent. Wiggins "gets by his man, beating the help" but "he can't dribble?" So what, he's just picking up the ball and running at the hoop? You don't get to the line as often as Wiggins did without some semblance of handles, it's impossible.

I watched a lot of Kansas this year. No, Wiggins does not display advanced hesitation moves. Yes, he is more comfortable going right than left. Yeah, his dribble is a little high. But he gets to his spots at will. He generally protects the ball well. He's got huge palms and transitions fine from the dribble to his shot.

Again, I'd worry more about his ability to finish through contact, which will be much more important to him than any array of fancy crossovers (and again, he's made massive improvement in that regard in the last 2 years) going forward.

I forgot though, I'm talking to the Supreme Commander of the Wiggins Hate Brigade here, so I guess rational discussion is out of the question.

2 years ago, it was "Wiggins can't shoot. What good is a shooting guard who can't make a jumpshot or hit a free-throw?" 4 years ago he was just an intriguing athlete scoring on put-back dunks. His growth has been extremely rapid and he continues to add and add and add to his game. He also seemingly takes pleasure in silencing the haters and playing above whatever garçon du jour (Randle, Parker, Smart, etc...) critics place in front of him during head-to-head match ups. I think he's going to thrive in the NBA where high-level athletes constantly push him to get better every game.

Using Matt Barnes as your counterpoint isn't helping your case here. Barnes is a decently capable point-forward
who is a pretty adequate passer and ball-handler for a few possessions a game.

[JoeyCrawford]

athletically Wiggins is on another level...he is on the same level as LeBron, Westbrook, Dwight etc. Elite athletes. Barnes is a good not elite athlete so they are different.

Lets settle down comparing his athletic ability to the likes of Lebron and Westbrook.

[jmnvcavs]

athletically Wiggins is on another level...he is on the same level as LeBron, Westbrook, Dwight etc. Elite athletes. Barnes is a good not elite athlete so they are different.

Lets settle down comparing his athletic ability to the likes of Lebron and Westbrook.

Why ? He definately is on that level.

[Sign5]

athletically Wiggins is on another level...he is on the same level as LeBron, Westbrook, Dwight etc. Elite athletes. Barnes is a good not elite athlete so they are different.

Lets settle down comparing his athletic ability to the likes of Lebron and Westbrook.

He's definitely on that level, that's why people say he has so much potential. Westbrook is dumb as rocks but because he's the athlete he is, it mitigates the lack of B-ball IQ he has and is still an elite player in the league.

I still remember how Westbrook torched the Heat on pure athletic ability in his rookie season, that's how I envision Wiggins being in his first year.

[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ApKiutu4lFs[/youtube]

On a side note, Prime Wade was just ridiculous.

[Sprewell4Three]

Wiggins is alot more athletic and quicker

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-N900A using Tapatalk

[Tave]

lololololololol

Wiggins has piss poor handles for a SF: http://grantland.com/the-triangle/ryen- ... nd-parker/

Wiggins is Barnes with even more hype. Had he returned to school, he would fall the same way Barnes fell. Players without legit NBA handles simply do not become stars.

Who said anything about a star? I'm talking about his skill in relation to other small forwards. In a league where the likes of Matt Barnes seems to find a starting job every year, how much ball handling do most SFs provide?

Those scouting reports aren't even internally consistent. Wiggins "gets by his man, beating the help" but "he can't dribble?" So what, he's just picking up the ball and running at the hoop? You don't get to the line as often as Wiggins did without some semblance of handles, it's impossible.

I watched a lot of Kansas this year. No, Wiggins does not display advanced hesitation moves. Yes, he is more comfortable going right than left. Yeah, his dribble is a little high. But he gets to his spots at will. He generally protects the ball well. He's got huge palms and transitions fine from the dribble to his shot.

Again, I'd worry more about his ability to finish through contact, which will be much more important to him than any array of fancy crossovers (and again, he's made massive improvement in that regard in the last 2 years) going forward.

I forgot though, I'm talking to the Supreme Commander of the Wiggins Hate Brigade here, so I guess rational discussion is out of the question.

2 years ago, it was "Wiggins can't shoot. What good is a shooting guard who can't make a jumpshot or hit a free-throw?" 4 years ago he was just an intriguing athlete scoring on put-back dunks. His growth has been extremely rapid and he continues to add and add and add to his game. He also seemingly takes pleasure in silencing the haters and playing above whatever garçon du jour (Randle, Parker, Smart, etc...) critics place in front of him during head-to-head match ups. I think he's going to thrive in the NBA where high-level athletes constantly push him to get better every game.

Using Matt Barnes as your counterpoint isn't helping your case here. Barnes is a decently capable point-forward
who is a pretty adequate passer and ball-handler for a few possessions a game.

Wow, dribbling for a few possessions a game, what a stud.

I think he's average for the position, and Wiggins' handle looks better to me, hence my statement. If you think Barnes has above-average handles, then I'd say that just makes my argument stronger, but we might be valuing them differently.

[NaturalBuns]

athletically Wiggins is on another level...he is on the same level as LeBron, Westbrook, Dwight etc. Elite athletes. Barnes is a good not elite athlete so they are different.

That's cool.
He could also be Gerald green..
Althetic as anyone but never could mold it