The NBA Draft is just a few weeks away and at this point for franchises, most of the work is already done. Most players haven't played a game since March, but in the case of James Wiseman, he hasn't played an organized basketball game in about a year.
On the daily Locked On Hawks Podcast, host Brad Rowland and Josh Lloyd (Locked On Fantasy Basketball) discussed why James Wiseman has been considered a top prospect. However, they also reveal why NBA franchises in the top three should avoid the big man.
Brad Rowland: I don't see the value in the top three to take James Wiseman. My main issue with Wiseman is his offensive projection. He's been compared to guys like Chris Bosh and David Robinson. I think those guys are left-handed and that's the reason why, because Wiseman is left-handed, but I don't see the offensive upside. Yes, he's a great coordinated athlete. If you see him running the open floor, it's pretty breathtaking. Honestly, for a guy his size to move the way he does in a straight line. Laterally he's not special. I don't think he slides laterally especially well. On defense, I think he's not necessarily a quick-twitch athlete getting up. If he can load up then get out of the way.
Offensively I see him as… not as low usage as Precious Achiuwa necessarily, but I think he's probably going to be more of just a pick and roll big man on offense. He could be really good at that especially at his size as with the finishing that he could possibly have. However, there's this dream notion of Wiseman as this guy who can really shoot it and be this super hybrid skilled center, but there really isn't that evidence on tape… I mean, the college sample is what it is, three games. Pre-college, I've watched a lot of him and he looks good because he obviously has a huge physical advantage over everybody else, but he doesn't really flash in the way that you would think that he would based on what you've heard about James Wiseman.
He's another guy who I think thinks that he is a perimeter player, sometimes to his detriment, so his shot selection is a problem, etc. His path to stardom for me is on the defensive end we can get it out into that if you want to. I think for me, the reason I'm down on him is some combination of not loving taking pure centers that are not outlier special on offense this high anyway. I don't think he's gonna be that, I think his best path to stardom is on the defensive end. There's a chance he's a great defensive player but in the top two or three, even this bad (NBA) draft, I wouldn't go there.
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