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Unsure how many college basketball buffs there are on this board, but one of the biggest storylines this year has been Zach Edey’s dominance. His game is perfectly tailored for the 1990s style of play, with more offense being run through the post.

In any given year in the 1990s, where would rookie Zach Edey rank amongst centers - and does he have the shot of making an all-star team?

I am envisioning a cross between rookie Shaq and rookie Wembanyama.

IMHO people definitely overreact with this 'game perfectly tailored for the 1990s'.

It would've been easier for him in the 90s for sure - but we had several senior college players destroying the NCAA (with much higher average level of play) just to disappoint more or less in the NBA at that time, because they simply lacked athleticism. Stacey King was a freak in college and backup big in the 90s on NBA level.

I'd go with Al Jefferson type of career as his upside, uninspiring ~top5 pick bust as a floor.

The Master wrote:IMHO people definitely overreact with this 'game perfectly tailored for the 1990s'.

100% agree, people act like all you need to do back then is to be big and play in the post. I see a lot of comments that Jahlil Okafor would have been a star in the 1990s, when realistically he would be weak bench big at best.

70sFan wrote:

The Master wrote:IMHO people definitely overreact with this 'game perfectly tailored for the 1990s'.

100% agree, people act like all you need to do back then is to be big and play in the post. I see a lot of comments that Jahlil Okafor would have been a star in the 1990s, when realistically he would be weak bench big at best.

If Jahlil Okafor was as good of an interior defender as Edey he'd still have been in the league.
Edey actually has some extra value beyond just being in the low post, I feel very comfortable saying he'll be at worst a dependable back up big for a long time in the league, and he has considerable upside as well.

You mean how good would Edney be considered in a league where big man defense was even more important than it is today? He would be rated higher than today both offensively and defensively, possibly enough to be the presumptive top pick in a draft like this one but that's different than saying he would definitely work out.

NBA Draft Room wrote:At 7-4 and over 300lbs he’s a bit bigger than Boban Marjanovic. On defense he can contribute by clogging the lane and altering shots but could also get lost in the up and down speed of the league. His elite length and size will always be a factor around the rim.

He might be the next Yao Ming, he might be the next Georghe Muresan. Having watched Georghe Muresan start for Washington for a couple of years, I can safely say that size isn't everything. Being slower than everyone else in the league so that Greg Ostertag can put the ball on the floor and drive around you was an issue back in the day as well.

70sFan wrote:

The Master wrote:IMHO people definitely overreact with this 'game perfectly tailored for the 1990s'.

100% agree, people act like all you need to do back then is to be big and play in the post. I see a lot of comments that Jahlil Okafor would have been a star in the 1990s, when realistically he would be weak bench big at best.

The hyperbolic narratives can be out of control, but I do think Edney would be a good starter in the ‘80s and ‘90s because he has good basketball instincts both offensively and defensively. His limitations on movement and shooting wouldn’t be killers in those eras. I think he can carve out a role for himself even in today’s league as well.

Okafor never had good basketball instincts nor BBall IQ. He struggled defensively even in high school, when you would think his massive physical superiority would make him a better defender. I do think he would be playable in the ‘80s and ‘90s because the demand to make rotations by a big were much less AND slow rotations didn’t lead to easy baskets at the rim nor wide open threes. Okafor couldn’t make a rotation to save his life nor defend at all in space, things he wouldn’t be tasked to do to such an extent in the ‘80s and ‘90s when he could depend on his size and strength much more. He was actually a good post scorer.

penbeast0 wrote:You mean how good would Edney be considered in a league where big man defense was even more important than it is today? He would be rated higher than today both offensively and defensively, possibly enough to be the presumptive top pick in a draft like this one but that's different than saying he would definitely work out.

Big man defense and responsibilities were different then with Edney’s primary weakness, i.e., mobility, much, much less of a liability. He wouldn’t be outside chasing down shooters or closing out on 5s who can shoot or switching out to a PG who can shoot from 30 feet away or hedge back 20 feet after a show on a ball,screen, etc. He could leverage his size to play defense and many did do exactly this in those eras AND many of those players didn’t have his offensive skillset.