Zach Edey Conundrum - Could Edey be the next great Atlanta Hawk or is he the next Cam Reddish

[NBASupes]

12 minutes ago, KB21 said:

They talked about this during the Michigan State/Purdue game.  What he does well isn't valued in bigs in the NBA.  His weaknesses as a big is what NBA teams value.  The NBA wants bigs who are switchable on defense and can defend multiple positions.  They want bigs who can play away from the basket and have a face up game.  Bigs in the NBA don't get 15-16 isolation post up opportunities any longer.  The announcers did ask the question if the league will ever cycle back to where post oriented bigs are valued.  They both felt it will take rules changes to limit space for offensive players for it to happen.  

He does a lot or things which I previously mentioned that are valued in the NBA. This is a good post and one I will address when I bring up Edey updated report with his defense. 

The three things I know is 

A. Edey is an excellent Basketball player and that generally has always translated to the NBA.

B. Edey doesn't have a prototype we have seen before just due to his weakness which impacts a lot which I will address in the updated chart. 

C. Due to his weakness, Edey won't be for everyone. Edey doesn't have many weaknesses. In fact, he has very few. What he does have is a critical weakness which will be explained in his updated report which is why I believe many scouts, fans, and teams are all over the place with him. 

Edited March 3 by NBASupes

[KB21]

Now this is what you want to see in a modern NBA big.  

[KB21]

 

[NBASupes]

26 minutes ago, KB21 said:

Now this is what you want to see in a modern NBA big.  

Just because you fit the modern NBA doesn't mean you are good at modern NBA hoops and it not guaranteed that you will be good. 

[JTB]

10 hours ago, Diesel said:

Do you think he can run with the pros?

Yup! I think he’s going to do just fine.

there are some obvious things team will take advantage of him on like having a stretch 5 to get him away from the basket but if he’s in a drop defense scheme he will probably be ok.

i think he has good touch around the goal as well. He don’t have to be right up under the rim to score like Capela.

with hawks lacking so much size (in my opinion)…I’d welcome Edey here with open arms.

 

I would bet the hawks aren’t even looking at him though 

[JTB]

1 hour ago, KB21 said:

They talked about this during the Michigan State/Purdue game.  What he does well isn't valued in bigs in the NBA.  His weaknesses as a big is what NBA teams value.  The NBA wants bigs who are switchable on defense and can defend multiple positions.  They want bigs who can play away from the basket and have a face up game.  Bigs in the NBA don't get 15-16 isolation post up opportunities any longer.  The announcers did ask the question if the league will ever cycle back to where post oriented bigs are valued.  They both felt it will take rules changes to limit space for offensive players for it to happen.  

Yup unfortunately this is probably why the hawks won’t even look his way…..i think where I stand on this is that even though that is all true …it’s one of those things that you don’t realize you need it in this modern league until you need it.

watching the hawks constantly get bullied year in and year out by being physically overmatched is getting old. My only hope is that if the FO don’t want a big like Edey then I hope they have other realistic plans to get bigger and lengthier.

The modern big who does all those things is also extremely rare 

[NBASupes]

I finally finished his defensive report. I do have to revise his offensive report but that will be easy. 

After observing Edey in 20 games this season, I felt compelled to revise my scouting report, a first in many years of doing this. Edey has proven to be the most challenging prospect I've evaluated since Brandon Clarke, and I regret not giving Cameron Johnson the same level of awareness.

 

Edey's defensive prowess left a strong impression on me. His mental acuity (feel for the game), game awareness, and basketball IQ are top-tier, and I foresee these traits transitioning seamlessly to higher levels of play, much like Mikal Bridges and others.

 

However, one recurring issue was his poor close-outs and limited rebounding radius. This was puzzling, considering other towering NBA players like Boban, Wemby, and Shaq, who have demonstrated exceptional rebounding radius in the modern NBA over the past 24 years. After much contemplation, I realized that Edey's fluidity was lacking. Fluidity is not just crucial in basketball; it can limit your potential before you even start playing.

 

In the 80s and 90s, players with poor fluidity like Priest Lauderdale made it to the NBA, but the game was vastly different then due to the rules, and finding decent bigs who weren't already in or closely linked to the NBA was nearly impossible.

 

The truth is, in the last 20 years, the only player comparable to Edey in the NBA is Edy Tavares. However, Edey is an exceptional player, while Edy was merely good when he arrived in the NBA from Gran Canaria.

 

So, how does poor fluidity affect offense and defense?

 

**Defense**

•  **Close-outs**: Players like Capela and OO make close-outs seem effortless, but for most players, especially Edey, it's anything but. His lack of fluidity affects his close-outs more than anything else, and I firmly believe this won't change.
• **Pace of directional movement**: If a rebound falls outside his immediate range, he struggles to secure it. This would be an easy rebound for players like Shaq or Wemby, or even Boban. The issue arises when chasing rebounds within a wider range.
• **Switching**: This is probably the second most significant impact. Switching and rotations are common in the NBA, and Edey struggles with them due to his poor fluidity. His feel for switching is there, so if he didn't have poor fluidity, he would probably be good at it, like he is at everything else.

 

**Offense**

- **Attacking with the ball**: This is a significant drawback, which is evident to all. A crucial part of NBA basketball in any era is attacking with the ball. This affects face-ups, post-ups, dribble drives, and most offensive moves. I don't see it as much of an issue with Edey when he keeps the ball at chest length or higher, but the moment it drops to his waist or lower, it's a problem.

- **Pace of directional movement**: This impacts attacking the ball and offensive rebounds in a wider range.

 

It's more impactful on offense than defense, but it's significant on defense too.

 

For those who still don't understand, Edey is a freak athlete for his size, with elite coordination and strength, but he has poor fluidity. Shaq is a generational athlete. He has all of those things, but he also has elite fluidity. Watch Shaq attack with the ball. When most players attack with the ball in a decent post position and they have to put the ball on the deck, it's usually a score. With Shaq, it's a guaranteed score. With Edey, that's when you attack him with a double team or even triple team. That would never work with 99% of P5 and NBA players, but it works against Edey to a degree, and I believe it will be more effective in the NBA against Edey with the closeout speeds I've seen in the NBA which is the best in the world.

Insert Shaq video

Insert Edey video

**Strengths**

- Rim Protection

- Paint Protection

- Plus Rebounder

- Freak Athlete with elite body control

- Elite stamina for size

- Athletic Movement

- Mental/Discipline is elite

 

While Edey's fluidity caps his ceiling and forces you to scrutinize every possession closely, his strengths on both ends are high, and his weaknesses are low.

 

• **Rim Protection**: While athleticism is critical for rim protection and he's a freak athlete for his size, his strength, coordination, feel for the game, BBIQ, and awareness give him an array of defensive weapons to unleash with tremendous timing and execution. This is why scoring in the paint against him is next to impossible at any level.

 

• **Paint Protection**: While his poor fluidity does hurt him on paint close-outs, his strengths we mentioned in rim protection are just as vital at post protection. A rare drop coverage big in regards to this. I would say his paint protection is still elite because it's just too athletic, especially with his body control in the paint, which is also how he avoids fouls.

 

• **Plus rebounder**: The same thing I said in the offensive rebounds, but his box outs are even better here than the offensive boards. He always gets a cap on an offensive player, and his reads on rebounds are high-end. Poor fluidity is the only thing that prevents him from being an elite rebounder.

 

• **Freak athlete for his size**: He has better lane agility than GG Jackson, Amari Bailey, and DeRon Holmes. Superior lane agility to Kobe Bufkin, Emoni Bates, and Trey Alexander at 11.37. Faster 3 quarter sprint than Emoni Bates, Gradey d*ck, and Rudy Gobert at 3.45, at 7'4, 306 pounds, Zach Edey is a freak athlete. This shows up a lot in his film, which is why I kept having issues with my scouting report. How is he an insane athlete but unathletic as heck at the same time. That's before I realized fluidity was his issue, and it's easy to skip that as almost all NBA prospects have at least average fluidity.

 

• He moves extremely well. Once he gets into his defensive stance, he's a decent perimeter defender as well. Laterally moves very well, extremely well considering his size. Edey moves extremely well, and we see it on both ends. His body control is insane. Probably his best physical trait with his elite coordination. He adjusts his body exceptionally well. I would almost compare it to Jimmy Butler. It's that elite. That's why he's always getting fouled, and why his screens are so elite. I heard he played defenseman in hockey growing up, that could explain why his screens are so elite, and his body checking is superb. His box outs are on the same level with Brook Lopez and a young Kevin Love. He's legitimately an excellent hooper right now. We cannot forget that.

 

• **Elite stamina for his size**: Stamina, as I've said many times, is critical for off-ball movement, but it's also critical for getting to the spots mentally and not being too gassed once you are there or to get there. His stamina on both ends is critical to his success on both ends of the court, but defensively, it really helps in regard to positioning in coverage.

 

• **Athletic Movement**: We already covered his freak athleticism for size and his elite stamina, but his elite mental really helps his defensive movement athletically. This is why it's really hard to score on him directly or in the paint once he's in the game.

 

• **Mental/Discipline is elite**: Doesn't foul much but never reaches or plays with active hands. Keeps everything in front of him. Uses verticality to an extreme. Uses his size and strength exceptionally well. His mental is as good as anyone I've seen enter the NBA. I even think he has an edge over Brandon Clarke in regards to the mental part of the game. His awareness is elite, he's always aware of his opponent and what they like to do and how to attack them as a defender. His feel for the game is incredible on both ends. His BBIQ is insanely high, but this is expected when you read his Athletic article. You realize this comes easy to him mentally. Sports in general do to him.

 

Defensively, I see him as a neutral defender at the next level, but I also see him as a heavily flawed defender due to his poor fluidity, and it shows even at Purdue. His defensive Box is 0.8, which is terrible for a big man who's an NBA prospect from the college game. You expect this from guys like Yves Missi who are freshmen and don't know what they are doing for the most part, but a senior defensive box is probably going to be similar at the next level for the rest of his career.

 

That said, Edey's DRtg is a 97.8, which is the worst of his career, but he's asked to do a lot more on D, and his fluidity is getting exposed more this year than in the past. Last couple of years, they weren't trying to expose his fluidity issues. So, this is probably his most real DRtg as he’s not protected. That said, 97.8 DRtg is damn good. OO was a rare 88.5. Out of France, Capela’s was a 102.4. Bruno was a tremendous 92.1.

 

How should you use Edey defensively on the next level:

1. I truly believe you show on PnRs. Having him drop against PnRs is asking for the offense to score on you.

2. Protect Edey. Force slashers in him instead of into an area as if it’s OO or Capela there. This requires defenders to be persistent. If you know he’s ass at close-outs, limit them.

Edey’s defensive skills are indeed commendable. His ability to box out opponents effectively makes him a formidable presence on the court. This strategy often leads to a cap on an attacker, emphasizing the importance of collective rebounding when he is in play.

 

However, Edey’s fluidity remains a concern. This aspect of his game is not easily rectifiable, much like Trae’s defensive challenges due to his size and athleticism. Despite this, it’s plausible to strategize around Edey’s lack of fluidity on defense. By tailoring the game plan to accommodate his unique set of skills and limitations, his impact on the court can still be maximized.

 

In conclusion, Edey’s performance is a blend of strengths and weaknesses. His exceptional defensive skills and the challenges posed by his lack of fluidity both contribute to his unique style of play. Understanding these elements is crucial for devising effective strategies and maximizing his potential on the court.

[NBASupes]

Shaq video - 

 

Watch how quickly Shaq moves when he puts the ball on the deck. Then compare it to Edey. 

Shaq has elite coordination, strength, and fluidity. 

Edey has elite coordination and strength but poor fluidity. 

 

The guy who made the video will question Edey's passing or decision processing in this section of his video report but Edey made the correct low post decision each time. Edey just with his poor fluidity doesn't move well with the ball in these situations and it exposes his poor fluidity. Whereas, Shaq in all of these situations, and he puts you on a poster with relative ease. 

I use Shaq because they are extremely similar profile-wise for college comp. Edey is a freak athlete over 7ft. Shaq was a generational athlete over 7ft. Edey is an excellent player at this stage. Shaq, was a very good player who overly relied on his physical traits at this stage. Mentally, he just wasn't close at this stage. Shaq was right when he said Christian Laettner was better than him at this stage. That said, the NBA is a lot different than college and Christian came into the NBA in the wrong era as I've said so many times for stretch 5s with good mental attributes. 

https://tankathon.com/players/compare?players=zach-edey--shaquille-o-neal

@KB21, I believe this is the best era for Edey to come into the NBA. I believe other eras would have been worse. His lack of self-creation due to his poor fluidity would mean he would need a John Stockton or Steve Nash. How many of those guys were out there at that time? Hell, his options even now are limited to Trae, Luka, and James Harden. This is the highest BBIQ era in NBA history, I believe an elite mental player will do the best in an era that values mental aspects of the game. The 90s didn't. The 2000s didn't. 

Edited March 3 by NBASupes

[NBASupes]

Quote

Zach Edey Scouting Report - Offense Only

Edey has shown significant improvement, arguably the most in the nation. While he has always been a competent post player with good footwork and the ability to finish with either hand, he was often compared to a more skilled Boban. His development into an elite helper has significantly boosted his projection.

Shooting: Edey has a decent shooting form and a good release for his size. His release quickness is decent for his height. He doesn’t get much lift but has a fairly good sense of hand-eye coordination. Based on his DX video, I can see him shooting 100 threes as a rookie (GLeague/NBA) and making around 30-32%. Catch and shoot (C&S) is the biggest growth area for Edey once he enters the NBA. I have it as a swing skill.

He doesn’t showcase much shooting within his attack charts. He primarily attacks the rim in space, off movement, or back to the basket. It doesn’t seem like he will add any mid-range to his shot selection. Even if he could do it, I wouldn’t expect it.

Low Post Scoring: While I think he’s a terrific low post scorer, I do not think he’s a great low post player. His footwork, while good, isn’t exceptional enough to be a lead scorer. He doesn’t have the elite hands in the post that you see from the Enes' or Boban’s of the world. He doesn’t exactly use his strength well against good post defenders with size.

He does not have a face-up and likely never will. He settles for deep hooks and his lack of versatility as a low post scorer is highly noticeable. What he’s tremendous at is being an elite movement big who has an elite feel for the game, so he’s constantly moving and gets himself into great scoring positions, making his job a lot easier. This is something you don’t see from most low-post scorers. His BBIQ, awareness, and feel for the game give him a definite edge as a scorer. I like the fact that he embraces contact and I love the fact that he’s nifty as a movement big as he knows when to draw contact like Jimmy Butler. He’s a very aware player.

Passing: Edey is a good passer and a very good connector. He’s a good decision-maker with the ball, understands space, and knows where to be on the floor to receive passes. He has a tremendous natural feel. He doesn’t have plus vision. I don’t see any hub potential from Edey.

Ball Handling: He’s not a terrible ball-handler but he’s a one-dribble guy for the most part. He’s just not a big you want to go and create his own offense by any means.

Screening: Edey is an elite screen setter. This is his 3rd best NBA skill and probably his favorite NBA skill by coaches and GMs. He is truly elite at this and he’s used in a lot of actions, maintains stamina, and has a lot of screen assists for Smith in particular. He generally makes contact and even when he doesn’t, his big body impacts the defender’s movement. This is extremely translatable and this is why he’s a lock for the top 50. He almost never sets a moving screen which is truly insane. He has tremendous body control for his size.

Foul Drawing: Edey is elite at drawing fouls, which is his 2nd best NBA skill. His body control helps but his awareness, BBIQ, and feel for the game with his elite movement skills mean he will be a good foul drawer even if the low post doesn’t happen in the NBA for him as much. Obviously, low post will matter to his foul drawing upside so this might not translate as much as his screening depending on where he lands.

Movement: This is elite. Although many bigs in today’s NBA are coming in elite in this area, I think it’s more valuable for Edey because his feel for the game is also elite. This + Screening + Feel for the game + Awareness + BBIQ + Finishing = Elite Helper. So far, only 3 players in the NBA that I’ve seen in the modern era have been elite helpers = Al Horford, Tim Duncan, and Jokic who became one after his rookie contract. While being an elite helper offensively isn’t really a coup, when it’s used correctly, it will have a monster offensively to deal with. He plays at a mid-tempo pace but he’s constantly moving and moving into the right spots. He’s not just moving to be moving.

Finishing: His finishing metrics are tremendous but in fairness, most of it is in movement which includes traffic and in space. He’s not quite the finisher in as a post-up big. I would say solid at best.

Athletic Ability on Offense: He’s promising for his size but it projects negatively. Lacks explosiveness in traffic, not explosive at all in back to the basket. Not explosive out of the PnR. His first step just isn’t there. Pace might impact timing in seven seconds type offensive schemes, I love his pace as a big, especially in the half-court, I think it’s a massive strength. Stamina is a part of athleticism and he’s elite in this area.

Working Areas: Lacks a lot of versatility on the ball. Does not score much in transition. I believe he has the natural speed to do so but he doesn’t play outside of his pace. For the most part, he’s a half-court offensive player. This can be a major negative for some teams. Can be sluggish to slap downs and players attacking the ball when he rebounds it and is looking to the next action. Not a threat on the perimeter for himself yet. It will be vital for him to add the 3pt shot into his portfolio.

Strengths that are currently unlisted: Tremendous hands in traffic. He understands where to be when the offensive player is in trouble and how to react. Difficult to deal with when his teammates are doubled as he understands spacing and is a good decision-maker on the ball for passing. Takes every possession seriously. Executes with a high level of consistency. Elite Basketball brain, just makes the game easier for others.

Player Type on Offense:

Current: Movement rim finishing big with shades of post-up quality

Future: Movement rim finishing big with shades of post-up and C&S qualities

I forgot to mention rebounding. He's a + rebounder but he's not a natural rebounder. Does not have a good rebounding radius even though he's 7'4 with a 7'10.5 wingspan. That said, an elite box out big and comes into the NBA already in the top 5 in this category. His movement offensively is how he gets most of his rebounds. He's constantly moving and is extremely difficult to box out. You can get physical with him but I rarely see him moved. High activity. High motor.

Zach Edey Scouting Report - Offense Only Revised: 3/3/2024

Fluidity: Fluidity is his weakness on both ends. It’s a critical weakness. It’s the one weakness you really can’t afford to have as a Basketball player and to have poor fluidity is pretty much the beginning of the end of 99.99% of Basketball careers. As I mentioned in the defensive report, fluidity plays a significant role on ball actions offensively. This is essentially why Zach Edey is the most polarizing report in the NBA draft and probably of all time. We haven’t had ONE player have any high level of success in the NBA with poor fluidity. Not one. In fact, the last one to enter the NBA in the last 24 years has been Edy Tavares that I personally have on record.

Offensive Skills: This is not the end of Edey. As I mentioned, he is an excellent player but he’s tremendous offensively. The reason he’s tremendous offensively is he’s a freak athlete for his size. Elite coordination. Elite body control. Elite stamina. Elite movement skills. Elite hands. Elite screen setter. Elite mental game and he has the trifecta like Jokic. Elite feel, elite awareness, and elite BBIQ. He values every possession. He’s an elite helper. While his fluidity likely limits his short movements which is why he is not all over the court like Duncan or Horford who also are elite helpers, he does move upright for screens, PnRs, rim running, getting into great post-up positions and forcing the defense hand.

Team Fit: My belief is his fluidity limits him offensively for most NBA teams. You got to create everything for him. That said, some teams can do that and the teams that can are LAC, DAL, and ATL as they have one of the Harden’s. Trae being the one that’s most drive happy and loves creating sweet looks for his 5 man.

Improvement: Edey has shown significant improvement, arguably the most in the nation. While he has always been a competent post player with good footwork and the ability to finish with either hand, he was often compared to a more skilled Boban. His development into an elite helper has significantly boosted his projection.

Post-Up: No change. If anything, even with the poor fluidity having a clean negative impact on posting-up, he is still extremely smart, moves exceptionally well, with a tremendous feel for the game, really understands positioning, has tremendous body control and his strength is scary. I believe he will still get a good number of post-ups in the NBA but he must get great position because he’s just not going to be a good natural back-to-the-basket offensive player.

Shooting: Edey has a decent shooting form and a good release for his size. His release quickness is decent for his height. He doesn’t get much lift but has a fairly good sense of hand-eye coordination. Based on his DX video, I can see him shooting 100 threes as a rookie (GLeague/NBA) and making around 30-32%. Catch and shoot (C&S) is the biggest growth area for Edey once he enters the NBA. I have it as a swing skill.

Attack Charts: He doesn’t showcase much shooting within his attack charts. He primarily attacks the rim in space, off movement, or back to the basket. It doesn’t seem like he will add any mid-range to his shot selection. Even if he could do it, I wouldn’t expect it.

Low Post Scoring: I was having so much trouble with this at the time so I settled on this as an answer. Now that I’ve watched 20 full games, I’m convinced fluidity is the main issue. His footwork is as good as it can be for him. When you lack fluidity to a degree like Edey, you are going to be limited. I think this is where people think he’s just big and he’s not good but in reality, he’s good but you can only do so much when you have poor fluidity. He’s by far the best I’ve seen with it but that’s due to his athleticism, mental side of the game, strength, and yes, size. But you can only be so good with this limitation.

Face-Up: He does not have a face-up and likely never will. He settles for deep hooks and his lack of versatility as a low post scorer is highly noticeable. What he’s tremendous at is being an elite movement big who has an elite feel for the game, so he’s constantly moving and gets himself into great scoring positions, making his job a lot easier. This is something you don’t see from most low-post scorers. His BBIQ, awareness, and feel for the game give him a definite edge as a scorer. I like the fact that he embraces contact and I love the fact that he’s nifty as a movement big as he knows when to draw contact like Jimmy Butler. He’s a very aware player.

Passing: Edey is a good passer and a very good connector. He’s a good decision-maker with the ball, understands space, and knows where to be on the floor to receive passes. He has a tremendous natural feel. He doesn’t have a plus vision. I don’t see any hub potential from Edey.

Ball Handling: Fluidity definitely plays a role here. If your fluidity makes you look like a turtle with the ball, it’s kinda hard to do shit.

Screening: Only change is I didn’t know his hockey background as a talented defenseman and I think that plays an insane role in how he has such elite body control and his body checking is exceptional.

Foul Drawing: Nothing to add. His movement and feel are hell to deal with and the pace he plays at is a constant. He doesn’t stop like 99% of other bigs. He’s keeps going like Horford, Jokic, and Duncan.

Movement: No change

Finishing: Fluidity plays a negative role as a post-up big but as a finisher, he should be fine. The athleticism is freakish for his size and that matters a lot. As I said earlier, he does a lot of the work before he ever touches the ball. He tries to outsmart you and outwork you to score points but he’s relentless.

Athletic Ability on Offense: This is one area I have to change. He’s lacks fluidity so obviously putting the ball on the deck in traffic or operating in traffic is a no-go for him. I had a bad taste in my mouth from some of the PnRs that he finished and I didn’t like to think he exploded the way I wanted him. That said, I’ve seen a lot more and I can say, if there is space, he finishes explosively. You don’t want him to put the ball on the deck. Leading him into the basket is the way to go with Edey. I don’t have an issue with his offensive pace at all. I just want him to sprint more on both ends. In the NBA, teams like to flare, stagger, and even sprint and fake a screen for spacing purposes. I like to see him add that to his arsenal. Comparing his ability to come out of breaks to JC is a disservice to Edey. I compared it to guys 7+ and Edey was the best at it by far.

Working Areas: A lot of this is just due to fluidity. Transition scoring is just due to him never sprinting back like his life depends on it. He just plays at the same pace he plays at. I would like to see him eventually add this into his game on both ends.

Strengths that are currently unlisted: Tremendous hands in traffic. He understands where to be when the offensive player is in trouble and how to react. Difficult to deal with when his teammates are doubled as he understands spacing and is a good decision-maker on the ball for passing. Takes every possession seriously. Executes with a high level of consistency. Elite Basketball brain, just makes the game easier for others.

Player Type on Offense:

Current: Elite garbage man who’s a freak athlete for his size who has elite mental traits and freak measurables but poor fluidity caps his offensive ceiling with the ball in his hands. Has elite movement skills as well as he can rim run at a high level. Limited post-up player unless he gets tremendous positioning in the low-post.

Future: Elite garbage man who’s a freak athlete for his size who has elite mental traits and freak measurables but poor fluidity caps his offensive ceiling with the ball in his hands. Has elite movement skills as well as he can rim run at a high level. Limited post-up player unless he gets tremendous positioning in the low-post with catch-and-shoot upside.

Rebounding: Fluidity is the issue here but the strengths are spot-on.

 

[NBASupes]

Top 3 strengths he has for an NBA team on offense - Updated 3/3/2024

1. Elite Helper - Since many teams don't use bigs like this, it's likely not as relevant to most. This is extremely relevant to the Hawks, especially Trae. 
2. Elite FTA drawer
3. Elite screener
4. This is likely 3 since #1 isn't that important to many teams as being a plus offensive rebounder. (Once again, #1 is extremely important to the Hawks. 

Weaknesses

1. Fluidity
2. Shooting - I do believe shooting could become a strength at some point for a 5.
3. He needs to sprint more in transition and in the half-court on occasion for screens. He must be willing to showcase his athleticism more in the NBA.

Defense

Strengths

1. Paint protection
2. Rim protection
3. Plus defensive rebounder

Weaknesses

1. Fluidity
2. He must be protected defensively
3. Defensive pace, especially in transition

 

An elite helper is a big man, exclusively a true center in the modern NBA who has elite movement + Screening + Feel for the game + Awareness + BBIQ + Finishing = Elite Helper. These guys make the game a lot easier for their teammates but it's hard for their teammates to explain why they are so damn helpful. They just say, he really knows how to play the game but this is a clear definition for you. 

Before the rule changes of the early 2000s, PFs could be elite helpers as well. Karl Malone was one. 

Someone like Capela in his prime was a good helper for Harden and Trae. 

Someone like OO is an average helper. Many modern bigs are average or below-average helpers at best. Some are even bad at it. 

Edited March 3 by NBASupes

[NBASupes]

3 hours ago, JTB said:

Yup unfortunately this is probably why the hawks won’t even look his way…..i think where I stand on this is that even though that is all true …it’s one of those things that you don’t realize you need it in this modern league until you need it.

watching the hawks constantly get bullied year in and year out by being physically overmatched is getting old. My only hope is that if the FO don’t want a big like Edey then I hope they have other realistic plans to get bigger and lengthier.

The modern big who does all those things is also extremely rare 

Edey is a unique prospect like Brandon Clarke and Cameron Johnson. All of them were upperclassmen who were all excellent Basketball players entering the NBA draft. They didn't fit what the prototype was. Cam Johnson was a 6'8 205 who couldn't defend the perimeter at college much less in the NBA but his mental game was elite and he always found a way. Clarke was a 6'8 215 small ball 5 with the same measurements as Klay Thompson. We also have Mikal Bridges who always was an excellent Basketball player as an upperclassmen but he didn't have the translation questions that the other 3 have. 

At the end of the day, all of them translated and I believe Edey will too. All of them are impact players in the NBA. All are legit players. 

We keep talking what teams are looking for and not enough about what Edey brings and that's significant. So what teams aren't looking for what he is, for what he is, he's excellent at, we don't have one 5 excellent at shit. We have the king of spamming 5s as our PG. Lord, everyone knows you have to play him with the rim protector and a paint protector which Edey is. 

We need to think about the team we are and our personnel. Our offense is shit. Trae uses the center as an extention of himself and guess what has fell off around Trae. The 5 position. We got to think and think with reason. 

[JeffS17]

Appreciate the insights, but if this guy is so good, is there any reason to think he's going to be available at our pick?  

[NBASupes]

We have a tendency to cry about our defense but we scored more off TO than our opponents. We score more off 2nd chance points by a good margin. 

Our opponents are outscoring us in the paint by nearly 4 points a game. You know who would fix that? An elite Helper and an elite paint and rim protector. 

We are also giving an insane 16.6 ppg in transition. You know who will help that? An elite Helper and end possessions with the ball going through the net. 

Only teams who give up more PITP is the Wizards and Pacers and the only team who gives up more FBPS is Utah and Portland. 

https://www.nba.com/stats/teams/misc?dir=D&sort=OPP_PTS_FB

Here is what we know we must have

Rim protection 

Paint protection 

Finishing

Scoring in the paint

PnR production has dropped as Capela has regressed.

https://www.nba.com/stats/teams/roll-man?SeasonYear=2021-22

Even our rates of passing to the paint is high but our conversion rate is low. 

A lot of our offensive issues can be easily fixed by Edey. 

That would fix our transition defense issue as teams will be picking the ball out of the net.

I want someone to explain to me the downside of getting this kid for us. 

He looks like Draymond Green to Steph Curry to me for Trae. He's the perfect fit that solves all our issues. 

[NBASupes]

16 minutes ago, JeffS17 said:

Appreciate the insights, but if this guy is so good, is there any reason to think he's going to be available at our pick?  

Simple, 

Brandon Clarke

Cameron Johnson 

 

People want clear and obvious prototypes. We haven't seen anything like Edey. Plus he's an upperclassmen. So there is upside concerns. 

Clarke is a 6'8 215 small ball 5 with the specs of Klay Thompson but he was an excellent player. 

Cam Johnson had rumors of a hip issue and he's a 205 wing sized 23 year old but he knew how to play. PHX created a new prototype unknowing but Cam seems to be the only one who can play it. The small ball 4 who can move at a high rate and constantly impact the game in the positive manner. Obviously he was better when next to CP3 and Booker than what's currently there in Brooklyn. 

Teams want to hit on their selection but sometimes, you just need to really see what you are looking at. If you can't see that, then you are going to goof this up and you probably shouldn't be in this business if that's the case. 

[Mikey]

4 hours ago, NBASupes said:

We have a tendency to cry about our defense but we scored more off TO than our opponents. We score more off 2nd chance points by a good margin. 

Our opponents are outscoring us in the paint by nearly 4 points a game. You know who would fix that? An elite Helper and an elite paint and rim protector. 

We are also giving an insane 16.6 ppg in transition. You know who will help that? An elite Helper and end possessions with the ball going through the net. 

Only teams who give up more PITP is the Wizards and Pacers and the only team who gives up more FBPS is Utah and Portland. 

https://www.nba.com/stats/teams/misc?dir=D&sort=OPP_PTS_FB

Here is what we know we must have

Rim protection 

Paint protection 

Finishing

Scoring in the paint

PnR production has dropped as Capela has regressed.

https://www.nba.com/stats/teams/roll-man?SeasonYear=2021-22

Even our rates of passing to the paint is high but our conversion rate is low. 

A lot of our offensive issues can be easily fixed by Edey. 

That would fix our transition defense issue as teams will be picking the ball out of the net.

I want someone to explain to me the downside of getting this kid for us. 

He looks like Draymond Green to Steph Curry to me for Trae. He's the perfect fit that solves all our issues. 

There’s like 5 bigs in the class I’m taking before edey lol. 

[NBASupes]

24 minutes ago, Mikey said:

There’s like 5 bigs in the class I’m taking before edey lol. 

If thats what you think, you are free to think that. That said....

None of them can help us next year. 

Clingan could but he's injury prone and has stamina issues and that's not gonna change in the NBA at least initially. 

Flip is a 4 who can't protect the paint or rim although he's a capable shot blocker. 

Missi is raw and easily a year away physically and mentally. 

Ware has effort and motor issues and is 225. He's smaller than you like from a 5. We haven't seen too many bigs have success with effort and motor issues. Mo Bamba for example. 

I don't even know who your 5th big is but it's extremely likely, he's not ready to help us next year or the year after and we are only guaranteed two years with Trae. We got to get it right.

Edited March 3 by NBASupes

[bird_dirt]

Edey seems like a guy I wouldn’t want us to take with our first (ATL) pick, but could be someone to consider with the second (SAC) pick assuming that falls in the 20s, or trade down for him. 
We need legit size, which he has.  He is someone I could see taking a flyer on if we trade Capela and we let him and Bruno battle it out to be OO’s primary backup. If he does anything better than that, then that’s gravy. But don’t expect him to become a starter so don’t use too high of a pick on him. 

[givemesome1ce1]

It’s crazy how we are trying to draft a guy that can’t move that quickly in a defensive system that requires our bigs, forwards, and guards to be able to move around quickly. It’s a big no. Don’t care about his height, the slow speed of Eddy makes him instantly not a fit for this team. 

[NBASupes]

2 minutes ago, givemesome1ce1 said:

It’s crazy how we are trying to draft a guy that can’t move that quickly in a defensive system that requires our bigs, forwards, and guards to be able to move around quickly. It’s a big no. Don’t care about his height, the slow speed of Eddy makes him instantly not a fit for this team. 

He's not slow. 

[Mikey]

14 hours ago, NBASupes said:

If thats what you think, you are free to think that. That said....

None of them can help us next year. 

Clingan could but he's injury prone and has stamina issues and that's not gonna change in the NBA at least initially. 

Flip is a 4 who can't protect the paint or rim although he's a capable shot blocker. 

Missi is raw and easily a year away physically and mentally. 

Ware has effort and motor issues and is 225. He's smaller than you like from a 5. We haven't seen too many bigs have success with effort and motor issues. Mo Bamba for example. 

I don't even know who your 5th big is but it's extremely likely, he's not ready to help us next year or the year after and we are only guaranteed two years with Trae. We got to get it right.

Holmes is probably the 5th big that goes before Edey. All 5 guys offer something different at the next level and are better fits for the current team then Edey