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I can not see a thread about the Bahamas phenomenon.

Strong defender and athletic marvel. Inconsistent shooter but high upside.

His performance during the Olympic qualifiers last summer was outstanding for a high schooler, playing alongside Hield, Gordon and Ayton.

https://www.fiba.basketball/en/events/fiba-olympic-qualifying-tournament-2024-valencia-spain/teams/bahamas/369505-valdez-edgecombe-jr

So far for Baylor he is posting top notch numbers for stocks. Showing strong defensive versatility as well as good vision offensively. He is also a beast attacking the rim, displaying his first class athleticism.

His shooting from 3 needs work a lot of work though...

He has superhero athleticism.

His handle is abysmal, his BBIQ isn't great, and he isn't making any jumpshots.

Saw some Gary Payton II comparisons that are reasonable.

He's pretty old already so I don't know how comfortable I feel about projecting a guard who can't dribble at all yet as being even an average offensive player in the NBA.

HadAnEffectHere wrote:He has superhero athleticism.

His handle is abysmal, his BBIQ isn't great, and he isn't making any jumpshots.

Saw some Gary Payton II comparisons that are reasonable.

He's pretty old already so I don't know how comfortable I feel about projecting a guard who can't dribble at all yet as being even an average offensive player in the NBA.

Yah, summer Olympics had me hoping that maybe we were going to see some major progress with the jumper, but it looks like it was just a hot streak. Spaced out floor will make his athletecism pop more. I get more athletic GP3/Melton depending on how the handle comes. Not bad for late-lottery or mid-first, but it will take outlier development for him to be where *I* had him after the Olympics. Right now he's back in the late lottery where I had him before.

I bought his stock after those Olympic Qualifiers (which objectively IS higher level competition than college bball). At times he was carrying that Bahamas team that featured Ayton/Hield/Gordon. He really looked like the best player on that team, and he overshadowed Jeremy Sochan in the Bahamas-Poland game. I'm not ready to give up on him just yet.

He will look differently in the NBA due to the spacing. It's inevitable/style of play.

Chuck Everett wrote:He will look differently in the NBA due to the spacing. It's inevitable/style of play.

He's PG sized and just can't dribble at all though.

HadAnEffectHere wrote:

Chuck Everett wrote:He will look differently in the NBA due to the spacing. It's inevitable/style of play.

He's PG sized and just can't dribble at all though.

Yeah he doesn't look 6'5, more like 6'3. An undersized 2 with a weak jumper isnt that interesting to me.

tontoz wrote:

HadAnEffectHere wrote:

Chuck Everett wrote:He will look differently in the NBA due to the spacing. It's inevitable/style of play.

He's PG sized and just can't dribble at all though.

Yeah he doesn't look 6'5, more like 6'3. An undersized 2 with a weak jumper isnt that interesting to me.

If you see him as a finished product then I am not going to quibble with either one of you. I mean, if you think he is shorter Hamidou Diallo, then it is what it is (and if NBA teams feel that way he will have a sharp fall in the draft.

But we live in a world where Malaki Branham, Blake Wesley were first round picks and undrafted players like Lindy Waters and Scottie Pippen Jr are better. All about how much he's willing to work because he's such a plus athlete, you at the very least take a flier.

I have VJ as a top 8 or top 12 guy, I just don't think his future is anything more than defense-first guy next to a Luka or LeBron type who can hit spotup threes and attack closeouts for dunks and get transition dunks. And the amount of teams that have a really tall PG who can support a PG-sized wing who can't dribble is not a lot...

He would fit great in OKC if he learns how to shoot. OKC is absolutely his dream fit.

HadAnEffectHere wrote:
He would fit great in OKC if he learns how to shoot. OKC is absolutely his dream fit.

If he learns how to shoot he's a great fit anywhere.

HadAnEffectHere wrote:He has superhero athleticism.

His handle is abysmal, his BBIQ isn't great, and he isn't making any jumpshots.

Saw some Gary Payton II comparisons that are reasonable.

He's pretty old already so I don't know how comfortable I feel about projecting a guard who can't dribble at all yet as being even an average offensive player in the NBA.

He is kinda like Amen, Ausar but with more proven record pre-draft. Better shooting, less passing chops than Amen but more than Ausar.

He is unfortunately small at probably closer to 6'3" or 4" without shoes. Some random substack is listing his wingspan at 6'6" which is not ideal. If he had a 6'9" wingspan, we would be in business.

Amen/Ausar are like a billion times smarter and have the height to play PF though.

Amen and Ausar were much worse shooters, but VJ still isn't really close to good as a shooter.

Shooting aside. He's been very good with racking up blocks/steals. Impressive stuff

God Squad wrote:Shooting aside. He's been very good with racking up blocks/steals. Impressive stuff

Call him FAANG.

EvanZ wrote:

God Squad wrote:Shooting aside. He's been very good with racking up blocks/steals. Impressive stuff

Call him FAANG.

I had to use google to find out wtf Faang was lol. VJ is a stock king and a sneaky good defender. It's the jumper, passing and size that give me pause. The jumper can be worked on, but I'm unsure about the latter.

He reminds me a bit of Oladipo back in the day. Just physically and on defense. VJ would need ot develop his driving game a lot obviously.

I understand the limitations. He looks to have poor length, he doesn't have the strongest handle and the shot is inconsistent. But his springiness and quickness is MJ esque and he's got a super high motor. lf the handle comes along, a big if, he's got some D-Wade upside. Even if not, we're looking at impact of like Marcus Smart. I'm a fan.

It seems VJ is starting to shoot the 3 with more consistency.
?s=46&t=GWeuz7j_sc5cBYZzdD92Tw

Another strong performance by VJ...

Frichuela wrote:Another strong performance by VJ...

Read on Twitter

I don't like that he jumps into some awkward-looking drives/shots, but these are the flashes you like to see.

VJ is a stock monster.