Case File No. 2: Zach Edey

 

Zach Edey (15). Photo Credit: David Hickey.

Today, I look into the case file of Purdue's Zach Edey, and whether or not his game can transition to the next level.

Position: Center

HT: 7-4 WT:305

College: Purdue

Class: Senior

Credentials: 

National College Player of the Year 

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Award (nation's top collegiate center)

Consensus First-team All-American

Big Ten Player of the year 

First-team All-Big Ten

Big Ten All-Defensive team

Big Ten Tournament MVP

Strengths:

-Takes full advantage of his size.

-Moves without the ball. 

-Has a low post game.

-Good passer out of the double team.

-A rim protector who will rotate to block or disrupt shots.

Weaknesses: 

-Purdue takes advantage of Edey's size and low post abilities through the half-court game, but this could hurt him at the next level with big men being practically required to be able to get up and down the floor.

 -While he has a low post game, he comes off as predictable to me. He has a tendency to turn to his left after receiving the ball in the post, and it's usually an up-and-under type move, a hook shot, or he gets close enough to dunk.

-I didn't see him take any jump shots, everything was on the inside, which would've been great about 20 years ago, but it's a different game today.

Final Analysis

Edey has an extremely old school style in today's game. While I like that he's taking advantage of his size, he's too one-dimensional and predictable offensively. He reminds me of Yao Ming, except he lives in the paint, and Yao had more of an in-and-out game (i.e., he had post moves and a mid-range game) and shades of Arvydas Sabonis as far as passing from the low post. I'm glad Edey decided to return to school. There's a lot to like about him, but his playing style could come into question.

 It's possible his game could transition to the next level, but I think he needs to develop more post moves and at least a mid-range shot to make that happen. Well, then again, the NBA is a trendy league, so it could go back to the big man who dominates the paint, but as of right now, these are areas I think Edey needs to improve to be more effective in today's game.

He could be a first round pick, if he continues to develop and add to his game. If this were the 90s or the 2000s, he would be a lottery pick. I wouldn't even question whether or not he was going in the first round.