OT: Andrew Wiggins Discussion Thread

[slothrop8]

You have to forgive the Raptors fans who are critical of Wiggins' play so far - it's our understanding that wing players should go 1 on 1 with someone and hoist an 18 footer every possession. This playing within a team concept thing is going to take some getting used to.

[NateHuffman]

Wiggins doesn't have to dominate the ball, Kansas is winning.

If Kansas was losing and Wiggins was shooting poor %'s -- this idea that "Wiggins doesn't dominate" might actually have some merit. The fact is, he's shooting a great %, he's playing within the flow of the game, when he needs to score, he scores and Kansas is WINNING.

Not to mention, he's playing great defense, something Parker and Randle don't do.

He's the best prospect in the NCAA.

I don't know what people want- for him to beak plays and beat his chest? He makes the right play every time and they look great offensively. Kansas was killing Iona inside. When they need distance, he gets a bit more selfish and fills it up as he did to start the past couple 2nd halves. Why doesn't he do that all the time? Why would he? He plays smart, winning basketball.

If Kansas is losing and he's passing up good shots for worse ones, people can talk. When he's dumping it into the post with great results (and clearly the plan), shaddup. He looks like a pure winner to me. We talk about LBJ's efficiency all the time and how it may impact the sport. AW has the poise of a 30-y/o.

THIS.

with all the pressure on him it's really quite admirable he's not forcing more shots. Not saying he's the next lebron or anything but if he were to "take over" as some here would like, it would be to the detriment of his team.

[raptorfan416]

cut the crap with all these little excuses as to why he's not looking as the player people expected.. fact is he's just not that good as people hype him up to be.. oh he doesn't need to do this, he doesn't need to do that because Kansas is winning. are you f*cking serious. ? fact is he's playing his best because he knows whats on the line, he knows the draft is right around the corner. stop making these lame @ss excuses as to why the other prospects look better than him. FACT IS YOU GUYS OVERRATE HIM.. you judge a player on his production! not some crap about coasting because his team is winning lol his coach said in practice wiggins is not even the top 2 best player on the floor.. wait let me guess you guess will say this right ?

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d29VsG35DQM[/youtube]

[OakleyDokely]

Wiggins doesn't have to dominate the ball, Kansas is winning.

If Kansas was losing and Wiggins was shooting poor %'s -- this idea that "Wiggins doesn't dominate" might actually have some merit. The fact is, he's shooting a great %, he's playing within the flow of the game, when he needs to score, he scores and Kansas is WINNING.

Not to mention, he's playing great defense, something Parker and Randle don't do.

He's the best prospect in the NCAA.

I don't know what people want- for him to beak plays and beat his chest? He makes the right play every time and they look great offensively. Kansas was killing Iona inside. When they need distance, he gets a bit more selfish and fills it up as he did to start the past couple 2nd halves. Why doesn't he do that all the time? Why would he? He plays smart, winning basketball.

If Kansas is losing and he's passing up good shots for worse ones, people can talk. When he's dumping it into the post with great results (and clearly the plan), shaddup. He looks like a pure winner to me. We talk about LBJ's efficiency all the time and how it may impact the sport. AW has the poise of a 30-y/o.

I don't know, I think some people want him to chuck Gay/DD style and pile up a bunch of meaningless points, like somehow that would make him better.

When it mattered late, and the game was close between Duke and Kansas, Wiggins OUTPLAYED Parker offensively and defensively. When Wiggins needs to score, or needs to make a stop, he has.

If people are just looking for a volume scorer, maybe Wiggins isn't your guy.

[G-UNIT]

That KANSAS team is stacked - almost Kentucky like, id like to see him more aggressive though...seems like he has no midrange game...its either the 3 or a drive to the basket.

Id take Jabbari or Randle right now over him.

Jabbari
Randle
Wiggins

top 3

[Double Helix]

Wiggins has been playing smart. There's no doubt about that. However, when you're talking about throwing a season in one of the best drafts since the Lebron/Mello/Bosh/Wade draft then expectations are clearly sky high.

You know what other SFs play smart basketball, pass fairly well, and can play some defence when called upon? Guys like Luol Deng and Nic Batum. And Harrison Barnes will probably join that group soon enough. Wiggins' athleticism and coordination is better than all of them, and his upside is too. We all know his hype was certainly larger than all of them and coming from Canada there's a level of pride we all feel with him as a prospect as well, but when you're talking about drafting a SF with the first overall pick in a draft that's said to be the best in a decade you want to be absolutely certain that you're getting a future superstar with a take-over mentality and the skills to get to wherever he wants to get to on a basketball court, especially at the collegiate level, and not a Robin-type (if you can help it).

If he's a Scottie Pippen Robin-type (and I don't see the passing or the ball handling for that) that's different because Scottie Pippen was one of the best Robin-types in the history of basketball but ideally you don't want to be drafting a Robin-type in a draft like this with the first overall pick. You want to get the player that you could throw on any team in the NBA and he'll turn your franchise around almost on their own. You want a guy who makes all his teammates better and who his teammates immediately recognize as the alpha on the team and the guy who should regularly have the ball. Kevin Durant was that guy as a freshmen on Texas. Mello was that guy as a freshmen on Syracuse. Right now, of the SFs... that's looking more like Jabari Parker than Andrew Wiggins to me. It's ridiculous to me that DX keeps insisting Parker is a PF. I remember them suggesting the same thing when Mello was in college as well though. None of us have seen a ton of Exum but his ball handling skills as a 6'6 PG are said to be special and you want your best player to be able to get to whever he wants to when he wants to and that starts with ball handling, which Wiggins sorely lacks. He plays very vertical with the ball in his hands. Scouts have criticized him for that for years now and nothing has changed.

It may end up being better for Wiggins in the long run if he goes 2nd or even 3rd in June rather than 1st. There will be less pressure on him if he never does become that top 5 NBA takeover talent that so many hope/pray he becomes based on his freakish genetic gifts.

[FluLikeSymptoms]

I don't know, I think some people want him to chuck Gay/DD style and pile up a bunch of meaningless points, like somehow that would make him better.

When it mattered late, and the game was close between Duke and Kansas, Wiggins OUTPLAYED Parker offensively and defensively. When Wiggins needs to score, or needs to make a stop, he has.

If people are just looking for a volume scorer, maybe Wiggins isn't your guy.

I don't know why, but I love that he's playing college ball right now. Like a senior. I don't really blame 1-and-dones for not bothering to learn the college game but I do appreciate AW's learning of a system and willingness to play within it.

[arbsn]

I thought Wiggins had another nice game... I mean, compared with Jabari

WIggins had 13 points on 9 shots'; Jabari had 21 points on 18 shots

I guarantee you if Wiggins had 18 shots he'd score more than 20 points.

[Undefeated]

Some of you must not watch college ball. The college game is heavily reliant on set plays and the coaches drilling their offensive philosophy if you ever attended a camp unless you play for Coach Cal who has more of a free lancing offense with the DDM offense. What Wiggins is doing right now is playing winning basketball. His style might not always generate highlight reels, but doesn't matter. He's playing the "right way" not forcing jumpers and dribbling into a crowd losing the ball and that will help him turn into a smarter ball player to help prepare him for the next level.

[OakleyDokely]

Wiggins is averaging 17 pts this year on just 11 shots.

He's being efficient and Kansas is winning big.

If people want to use these facts to attack him, so be it. But for me, I see this as a strength. When he needs to score he can, but he won't force it, especially when the team is successful.

[Chaos Engine]

#SorryForJabari

[Griff83]

Oh man the excuses for his undwhelming play are starting to mount.

[OakleyDokely]

Oh man the excuses for his undwhelming play are starting to mount.

Yes, shooting 55% from the field...terribly underwhelming.

[OakleyDokely]

Hopefully he starts chucking shots like Gay and DD!

[noobcake]

Wiggins is playing like a beta, and some people are already making excuses for him. Ellis is clearly the first option on Kansas. You guys interested in drafting the next Kobe/LeBron or are you looking for a better Gay/Deng?

People with beta attitudes do not become NBA GOATS. There are exactly 0 players on the NBA top 20 list who played as a second option.

Let's not even mention Wiggins' lack of handles right now.

[OakleyDokely]

I know I'd rather draft the next Paul George than the next Carmelo Anthony.

[Harold_and_Kumar]

In my eyes:

Has Wiggins dominated offensively? No.
Has Wiggins dominated defensively? Arguably yes.
Has Wiggins shown a killer instinct? Somewhat, but probably a no.
Does Wiggins play within the structure of the offense? Yes.
Does Wiggins force the play? No.
Has Wiggins been willing to defer to other players on his team? Yes.
Has his team lost? No.
What does Wiggins FG% look like? Good/Great for a 3
What does Wiggins 3FG% look like? Good/Great for a 3
What does Wiggins FT% look like? Mediocre.

Now take away the name Wiggins and I'm thinking we still have a really nice player on our hands.

If LeBron went to college, I'm sure above would look about the same as Wiggins (LeBron may force a bit more, but would likely shoot a worse %). You can take over a game without having to score 40 points. Being efficient and having only 3 turnovers over 3 games playing at a high level and a lot of minutes is awesome. Since when did playing team-ball, playing defense and winning become so despised?

I mean, Tim Duncan took under 7 shots a game during his freshman season at Wake; Wiggins is currently taking 11/FGA per game (they're shooting the same percentage interestingly). My point is not to compare Wiggins to Duncan as players, but to suggest there's more to the game of basketball than points and his lack of "alpha" isn't necessarily a bad thing. In fact, I believe it's an excellent thing. I'd be happy if Wiggins became a reliable, coachable, team-guy like Duncan, far more than a me-first chucker like McGrady.

Oh, and did I mention we're talking about three games!? THREE! lol

[sanity]

It is not hating, but there's a clear distinction between the Wiggins who isn't involved and the one who is. The two halves of last night's game made that fairly obvious, amongst some of the other games before. THe bar is set extremely high for him though, but if you're being compared to Randle and Parker, that is expected... isn't it?

[Young_Buc]

I'd like to see Wiggins be more aggressive but if they're winning who cares?

Wiggins seems to turn it on and off when necessary. Against Duke he turned it up the 2nd half and was the main reason they won.

Against Iona the first 10 minutes of the second half they were closing in and it was a sequence of his defense and offense which turned the game into a blowout.

Parker last night for his 21 points jacked and hoisted some poor ones (like many guys we know) GUARANTEED if he were on our squad we'd moan and complain.

If Wiggins plays this way and they don't win, by all means hate on the guy. But right now he's not forcing shots on what looks like it could be the best team in college ball (and definitely WAS NOT looked upon as such in the offseason)

[fredericklove]

I don't mean to be a dick but any Canadian Raptor fan that has a Parker sig and wants JP over Wiggins is weak. Where's the patriotism and loyalty? I don't care if AW has gotten off to a slow start, there's a reason why all the best scouts in the world have him as #1 and yet we have "Canadians" hoping the Raptors land another American player that will probably bail on the team soon as his rookie deal is up. GTFO

I can sig whoever I want, deal with it.

Sent from my Nexus S using RealGM Forums mobile app

And I can say whatever I want about you for having that sig

What a ridiculous assumption you've made lol. I show plenty of patriotism and loyalty toward Wiggins. I even chose to skip the Kentucky game to watch Wiggins play. If that isn't an indication of my 'loyalty and patriotism', then what more can I say? I follow every news article, every documentary, just about everything that I need to know about this hometown kid. I'll even buy his jersey one day, even if he ends up on a different team I'll still do it. So try not to jump to conclusions.

Who are you to dictate what I do or say? And what makes you an expert on what an 'authentic canadian fan' should be, anyways? My sig doesn't demote my loyalty toward Canadian basketball players. I have the right to exercise my free will; to support whomever I choose. Sorry but if you're expecting me to bleat agreeably at you, its not going to happen. I'm not a sheep, and I won't follow along. I'm just interested in what I think is for the best interest for the team in the long term. I want our only Canadian basketball team to do well and if Jabari is the SF prospect that I think is better for our team, then I really don't need to justify my reasoning because I have every right to support this player - just like everyone else on the forum has the right to support whomever they choose.

Don't try to goad me into another pointless squabble because I don't want to, or need to retaliate. Nor will I change my sig to please you. If you have an issue with this sig then that's your problem.