Regardless of how people feel about his ceiling, Zach Edey is one of the most interesting prospects in the 2024 NBA Draft. The 7-foot-4 Canadian comes with a catalog of accolades and question marks as he prepares to begin his professional basketball career. For every outstanding pro, there is a notable con or qualifying statement that follows. Hence, he is a bit of an enigma.
Edey is the only other man besides Ralph Sampson to win the John R. Wooden Award twice (best college player), but he also had a distinct advantage due to the lack of size in the college game. The dominant center experienced agonizing heartbreak when his No. 1-seeeded Purdue Boilermakers stunningly fell to No. 16 seed Fairleigh Dickinson in the 2023 NCAA Tournament (did have 21 points, 15 rebounds and three blocks). Though, he also led the program to its first national championship appearance since 1969 this past spring.
Despite significantly improving his footwork, quickness remains a concern for Edey. He is a prolific shot-blocker (2.2 per game in 2023-24) but could have considerable trouble keeping up with NBA offenses. Simply put, this supremely productive and history-making big man has likely been the cause of many headaches during this pre-draft process.
Executives are toiling away as they try to figure out what type of talent the former Purdue star will become. Or are they? Based on the latest reports, the league appears to be quite infatuated with Zach Edey. In fact, one anonymous individual appears to view him similarly to an all-time great center.
Is Zachille O'Neal going to take the NBA by storm?
The nickname above, which Hall of Famer Shaquille O'Neil himself coined during Edey's terrific March Madness run, seems a bit hyperbolic given what the four-time NBA champion accomplished across two decades. But there is an obvious comparison to draw between the towering athletes. With their size and skill in the low post, both bigs clearly stood above the rest of their peers.
While that is usually as far as it goes, someone believes Edey actually resembles Shaq. “One player who worked out against Edey compared the experience to ‘trying to guard Shaquille O'Neal,'” ESPN's Jonathan Givony reported.
Oh boy. That is one heck of a statement to make. No one else seems to be quite as bullish about the 2024 NCAA scoring leader as this player is, but teams are definitely enamored with him. He is a legitimate lottery pick candidate who is generating strong intrigue from a number of front offices ahead of the NBA Draft.
“Edey is drawing interest from teams that are drafting in front of and behind Miami, with every squad in the back half of the lottery after San Antonio said to be in the market for a center,” Givony writes. “Utah, Portland, Sacramento and the Los Angeles Lakers were some of Edey's latest stops on the workout circuit.”
With this year's class expected to be thin, the previous line of thinking may not apply. Upperclassmen could be more appealing to scouts and execs than they have been in a long time, especially if they happened to average 25.2 points and 12.2 rebounds per game while also shooting better than 70 percent from the free throw line.
Debates will continue about Zach Edey's ability to fit in the modern NBA, but he clearly has his share of ardent believers.
Follow Us
Subscribe