"History will likely show that where he was chosen in the draft was low," Carlisle said. "He's gonna have impact. He was drafted by an organization that believes in size and they believe in what he accomplished. Two-time national player of the year is a big deal. It's rare that that can even happen in today's world of college basketball. I have great respect for what he accomplished at Purdue and a lot of respect for what he did tonight because he put a will and a physicality into the game that we simply did not match."
by Mechaultima
25 Comments
I feel like with Edey dominating the college game everyone was looking for the flaws in his game as to why he won’t translate well into the NBA but at the end of the day a 7’4” guy with decent to good BBIQ is a great asset to have for many teams. I don’t think he’ll ever be an all star but at the least he’ll have a long NBA career as a bench player imo (7+ seasons)
Never seen so much victory lapping over a couple preseason games before lol.
Acting like he did this in his playoffs debut or something
Ok I’m sufficiently glazed up now
ROY
he wasn’t picked low. in fact Memphis even made a bit of a reach. he’s also 22 years old.
Grizzlies can give him 6-8 possessions/game to work the post, put up shotput hooks and back fools down and mash. Plus lobs and points off of rebounds. There are a lot of 6’9″-6’10” centers/backup centers around the league, Zach Edey is a mismatch monster!
I wanted him to drop to the Heat so badly.
He fits the team perfectly. Grizz just need to avoid leading the league in injuries = top 4 seed.
I cannot believe people are tricking themselves into thinking he is going to be anything more than a Mason Plumlee level center at best
Im cheering for him to change the league. Sick of the run and gun 3 chucking and pidgeon holing players..
Do it edey. Make close to the basket big man play cool again brother
I’m still confused by his draft spot. He carried the fuck out of Purdue and was one of the few NBA ready bodies in a while (check chet/wemby etc).
Right after we didn’t resign an anachronistic former NCAA POTY because he couldn’t crack the rotation. Time will tell if Edey does well in the NBA but being a POTY evidently has no bearing on NBA viability. Of the last 10 POTY winners, you have 3 0-time all stars not even on a team right now, Garza and Tshiebwe who averaged 5 MPG last year in few games, 2 role players with no all stars, the unknown Edey, and then Zion and Brunson.
his post game is a gift not an outdated skill. it never meant he couldnt rim run and/or finish dump off passes + clean up the glass. “he isnt a floor spacer” is a silly critique because 1. there is still only a handful of stretch 5s in the league, 2. id be more concerned about trying to defend entry passes to edey in the paint, how about protecting that space of the floor.
He can move. If he isn’t a low iq defender and sets hard screens and rolls, he’s already a starting center. Hes probably better than that though because he has the potential to dominate the post. He just has to make the right passes and play tough
Not to burst anyone’s bubble – but imo the sentiment that he’s going to get a bunch of post-up possessions to just back people down isn’t realistic
2023/4 Post-Up Possession leaders (per game)
1. Jokic 6.0
2. Embiid 5.8
3. Bam 4.1
4. Davis 4.0
5. Randle 3.9
The best post-up players in the game get fewer possessions running it than run of the mill big men got a decade ago – you have to be able to do other things to be even a decently productive contributor on the offensive end as a big man
Yao 2.0
Analyticz tho
> He was drafted by an organization that believes in size
🚨🚨🚨🚨🚨🚨 THE GRIZZLIES UNDERSTAND SIZE, THEY APPRECIATE SIZE, AND SIZE – DOES – MATTER. AND THEY KNOW THAT THEY DON’T HAVE TO WAIT FOR THE EARTH TO ROTATE ON A FORTYSEVEN DEGREE AXIS SO THE STARS CAN TOUCH THE SKIES AND CREATE AN EQUINOX SO THEY CAN SEE THE BIG DIPPER. NO NO NO. ALL THEY GOTTA DO IS CALL ZACH EDEY. ‘CAUSE HE’S THE MAN WITH THE BIG DIPPER AND SATISFACTION’S COMING WHEN HE GOES BEHIND AND DOES THE BUMP AND GRIND AND IT’S ONLY A MATTER OF TIME BECAUSE THEY CALL HIM: THE BIG, BAD, BOOTY DADDY. 🚨🚨🚨🚨🚨🚨
The copium for a guy who will be played off the court due to speed/agility is fascinating to watch right now. You literally have to be Shaq or Curry to force the entire league to change course. I’m not sure Edey skills are enough to be on that level before the league game plans him right off the court, but I admire he has become the next tolken tall guy to carry the mantle
Make it be known now that I wanted him at #5
Now I’m even more upset about his exclusion in Paris
Guys like this make the NBA super fun to watch. I can’t wait to see what he is able to do when it matters most.
Jahlil Okafor
This is smart. Talk up a guy to indirectly bash your team’s effort meanwhile putting more pressure on Edey
The pendulum has to swing back eventually, right? Didn’t think it would be Edey that could kill small ball but why not? His game is adapting well to the NBA so far. Best of luck and good health to him.