2020 NBA Draft

[Sir'Dom Pointer]

For those who haven't seen Stewart this is his opening game against a ranked Baylor squad.


Advanced post game for his age, well put together. Frame to put on some really solid muscle.

If I had to compare him to someone in the NBA I'd say I see a little Montrezl Harrell in high (higher ceiling), but definitely needs to work on his ability to square up to the basket and attack off the dribble.

What's the fascination? looks like an undersized NBA C post scorer? Why would I waste a pick in the 3-6 for him? educate me please?

 

[Muffinalt]

What's the fascination? looks like an undersized NBA C post scorer? Why would I waste a pick in the 3-6 for him? educate me please?

I dont know if he ends up a 3-6 pick at the end of the year necessarily. In a usual draft i would think hes a second part of the lottery guy but who knows how this draft will shape up. He might be a TT case, taken pretty high.

Now granted I havent seen many games from him so im basing everything off of what I managed to read about him up to this point. I really like him as a prospect because hes one of those super high character constant 100% extra effort bigs that dont come around that often. I view him basically as a TT in the NBA but he has a 7.4 wingspan so i think he has legit rim protecting potential. Same kind of rebounding machine, and his post game is already better. He also apparently has a developing shot that people are pretty positive about to become a real asset. Also showing potential when guarding on the perimiter, but he needs to continue to develop there. His passing is good too.

These elite effort rebounding guys can be incredibly useful as we all well know. If he develops a consistent shot, turns into someone who can protect the rim and be fine on the perimiter, his total package becomes really tantalizing. Again, his post game and passing are already pretty good so he wont be useless offensively either way.

Just watching those highlights above though Im a little concerned just how much NBA lenght will bother him. Hes a below the basket player for the most part so its going to be a legit concern.

Anyway, at this early point in the season I view him as a better prospect than TT. He's pretty good in most areas that TT struggles in while bringing the same kind of strenghts still. His potential ceiling is a perfect center in todays NBA imo, although of course id love if he was a legit 6-11 or 7 footer. Its very early so I might be offbase after seeing him against college competition, but for now im excited about him.

And im a real sucker for 10/10 effort guys who are also smart and well spoken individuals. He's going to be a plus character in the NBA so that shouldnt cap his development.

 

[Nathan S]

I was prepared for Wiseman to be underwhelming but, uh, wow.

 

[NMCav]

I don't see it with Edwards. He's playing on a bad team and taking a lot of shots. Doesn't have range yet. He's a bull dog on defense but his build and lack of range (Maybe it gets better as the season goes on) reminds me of Marcus Smart at OKST. People will say he can develop that down the line. While Smart still can't shoot.

 

[Sir'Dom Pointer]

I don't see it with Edwards. He's playing on a bad team and taking a lot of shots. Doesn't have range yet. He's a bull dog on defense but his build and lack of range (Maybe it gets better as the season goes on) reminds me of Marcus Smart at OKST. People will say he can develop that down the line. While Smart still can't shoot.

You are crazy comparing them as shooters. They are nothing a like.

 

[NMCav]

You are crazy comparing them as shooters. They are nothing a like.

I disagree. I think Edwards is extremely overhyped. He's not a good shooter. Maybe he will prove me wrong but a 2/9 performance from 3 point land against Citadel is not encouraging. The 4/7 against a shit tier Western Carolina is likely an outlier. He's raw as a shooter. Main difference is Smart didn't chuck up shots in college like Edwards is going too. I'm not gonna change my opinion on Edwards until he shows me something against actual competition competition. Not just chucking up shot after shot.

 

[blommen]

Smart isn't close to the same level of athlete Edwards is, he doesn't have the same first step, and while Edwards shot is still somewhat of a work in progress, it's miles away from what Smart was at that point in his career.

I said this back when I started this thread, but Edwards is not in an easy position on that Georgia team. They don't have a lot of experience and they arguably have even less talent. He is very young, even for a freshman, and he's being tasked with being the big cheese on that team. There's a lot of responsibility on him and I expect him to resort to some pretty egregious volume shooting during the season to carry the rest of the team. That obviously isn't ideal, and I'm not here to make it seem like a ruthless score first 2-guard with a work-in-progress long ball is a good thing in a vacuum, But I don't think it will necessarily be an indictment of Edwards as a prospect.

He's a young, talented, athletic and fiercely competitive scoring guard on a team starved for veteran leadership and talent. There's bound to be games where he messes up balancing out the aggressiveness with playing within the team. Even if some of that is endemic to him as a player, it's should also be acknowledged that a lot of it will be compounded by the situation he's in.

 

[NMCav]

Smart isn't close to the same level of athlete Edwards is, he doesn't have the same first step, and while Edwards shot is still somewhat of a work in progress, it's miles away from what Smart was at that point in his career.

I said this back when I started this thread, but Edwards is not in an easy position on that Georgia team. They don't have a lot of experience and they arguably have even less talent. He is very young, even for a freshman, and he's being tasked with being the big cheese on that team. There's a lot of responsibility on him and I expect him to resort to some pretty egregious volume shooting during the season to carry the rest of the team. That obviously isn't ideal, and I'm not here to make it seem like a ruthless score first 2-guard with a work-in-progress long ball is a good thing in a vacuum, But I don't think it will necessarily be an indictment of Edwards as a prospect.

He's a young, talented, athletic and fiercely competitive scoring guard on a team starved for veteran leadership and talent. There's bound to be games where he messes up balancing out the aggressiveness with playing within the team. Even if some of that is endemic to him as a player, it's should also be acknowledged that a lot of it will be compounded by the situation he's in.

People forget that everything you said about Edwards is what they said about Smart when he was at Oklahoma State. Maybe hes more athetlic but that's not going to magically make him a better shooter in what is a shooters league. Either way I think it's a moot point I don't think Cavaliers end up with the top pick so luckily another team will be stuck with him. On the off chance we do win the lotto I assume we would take Wiseman anyways.

 

[blommen]

People forget that everything you said about Edwards is what they said about Smart when he was at Oklahoma State. Maybe hes more athetlic but that's not going to magically make him a better shooter in what is a shooters league. Either way I think it's a moot point I don't think Cavaliers end up with the top pick so luckily another team will be stuck with him. On the off chance we do win the lotto I assume we would take Wiseman anyways.

It's not a matter of maybe he's a better athlete than Smart, because he flat out is a better and more explosive athlete, and that's not even getting into Smart playing two years of college ball before declaring. Even if he's as unpolished as Smart was from distance, which he isn't, the difference in athletic profile is so stark that I don't think it's productive to compare them. That size combined with that burst and elevation in concert with the handle and developing 3 level scoring is something that is just miles away from the kind of player Marcus Smart was in college. Drawing a conclusion based on both guys being big guards who play defense and aren't fully developed as outside shooters ignores a shit ton of nuance that set one apart from the other as a prospect.

 

[NMCav]

It's not a matter of maybe he's a better athlete than Smart, because he flat out is a better and more explosive athlete, and that's not even getting into Smart playing two years of college ball before declaring. Even if he's as unpolished as Smart was from distance, which he isn't, the difference in athletic profile is so stark that I don't think it's productive to compare them. That size combined with that burst and elevation in concert with the handle and developing 3 level scoring is something that is just miles away from the kind of player Marcus Smart was in college. Drawing a conclusion based on both guys being big guards who play defense and aren't fully developed as outside shooters ignores a shit ton of nuance that set one apart from the other as a prospect.

Your overeating Edwards outside shot like crazy. Neither had range both around 77 percent from the FT line. Edwards may be more athetlic which will help some scoring inside but won't really magically make him a better shooter. Who knows if he has the work ethic or desire to get better from 3 point land. He's going to put up huge numbers this year on meh percentages and get touted as a huge prospect. But he isn't nearly as good as the media will lead you to believe. Sorry to burst your bubble. Dude just ain't it. Who ever takes him will be forever disappointed. So I hope its not us.

 

[Muffinalt]

I was prepared for Wiseman to be underwhelming but, uh, wow.

Yeah same. I'm eating my words about him being an underwhelming prospect.

He looks so damn smooth and fluid and I really like his shooting form. He looks like he can really take advantage of his crazy tools. Hope we get to see him play a lot.

 

[blommen]

Your overeating Edwards outside shot like crazy. Neither had range both around 77 percent from the FT line. Edwards may be more athetlic which will help some scoring inside but won't really magically make him a better shooter. Who knows if he has the work ethic or desire to get better from 3 point land. He's going to put up huge numbers this year on meh percentages and get touted as a huge prospect. But he isn't nearly as good as the media will lead you to believe. Sorry to burst your bubble. Dude just ain't it. Who ever takes him will be forever disappointed. So I hope its not us.

Again, sure, he's going to be putting up a lot of shots this year, but will you at least agree with me that that is partially also going to be a product of the team he's playing on? Is it not fair to take that into consideration when trying to gauge whether or not he has legitimate issues with shot selection and balancing aggressiveness versus looking for his teammates?

The funny thing is, I don't really think I've ever said that I thought Edwards was anything resembling an elite shooter. I just think it's silly to put him in the same box as Smart, when Edwards is already capable of pulling up off the dribble which in and of itself points towards a way more refined offensive skillset when combined with his burst, handle and off ball movement. I guess I don't technically know if he's going to turn into a great outside shooter, but I think determining that he won't based on a Marcus Smart comparison is flawed.

That's what I'm kinda struggling with with regards to your posts, because you seem so unshakably confident that Edwards simply isn't going to pan out as a shooter and I'm not sure what you're basing it on? Like, what data points are you basing this unshakable belief that he just isn't gonna cut it? You bring up questions about whether he will have the dedication to meaningfully improve his game, which I guess is a valid question since we don't know... But are you basing this concern on anything in specific? And since you seem to keep harping on the shooting, do you think that he is so hopelessly busted in that regard that good coaching and a concerted effort on his part wouldn't make a meaningful difference?

I'm genuinely curious what you're going off when you state with such certainty that Edwards just isn't going to be worthy of a top 3 pick.

 

[NMCav]

Again, sure, he's going to be putting up a lot of shots this year, but will you at least agree with me that that is partially also going to be a product of the team he's playing on? Is it not fair to take that into consideration when trying to gauge whether or not he has legitimate issues with shot selection and balancing aggressiveness versus looking for his teammates?

The funny thing is, I don't really think I've ever said that I thought Edwards was anything resembling an elite shooter. I just think it's silly to put him in the same box as Smart, when Edwards is already capable of pulling up off the dribble which in and of itself points towards a way more refined offensive skillset when combined with his burst, handle and off ball movement. I guess I don't technically know if he's going to turn into a great outside shooter, but I think determining that he won't based on a Marcus Smart comparison is flawed.

That's what I'm kinda struggling with with regards to your posts, because you seem so unshakably confident that Edwards simply isn't going to pan out as a shooter and I'm not sure what you're basing it on? Like, what data points are you basing this unshakable belief that he just isn't gonna cut it? You bring up questions about whether he will have the dedication to meaningfully improve his game, which I guess is a valid question since we don't know... But are you basing this concern on anything in specific? And since you seem to keep harping on the shooting, do you think that he is so hopelessly busted in that regard that good coaching and a concerted effort on his part wouldn't make a meaningful difference?

I'm genuinely curious what you're going off when you state with such certainty that Edwards just isn't going to be worthy of a top 3 pick.

How often do guys who are mediocre from 3 point land in college translate to above average NBA shooters when they have the athetlic ability of Edwards? In college this year he will be getting coached by Crean who sucks and will further ruin him. The role hes being forced to play is 1st 2nd and possibly 3rd option and will teach him bad habits.

His skill set reminds me of RJ Barrett (Who I am still glad didn't land in Cleveland). Yes Edwards is a better athlete then RJ Barrett I'm not here to argue that. His game feels like it was made for the late 90s/early 2000s rather then present day. I'm going to give him the rest of the college season to prove me wrong. I just don't see it. Great athlete but as things stand he's a player made for a previous era of the NBA.

 

[Sir'Dom Pointer]

How often do guys who are mediocre from 3 point land in college translate to above average NBA shooters when they have the athetlic ability of Edwards? In college this year he will be getting coached by Crean who sucks and will further ruin him. The role hes being forced to play is 1st 2nd and possibly 3rd option and will teach him bad habits.

His skill set reminds me of RJ Barrett (Who I am still glad didn't land in Cleveland). Yes Edwards is a better athlete then RJ Barrett I'm not here to argue that. His game feels like it was made for the late 90s/early 2000s rather then present day. I'm going to give him the rest of the college season to prove me wrong. I just don't see it. Great athlete but as things stand he's a player made for a previous era of the NBA.

You are just making assumptions and turning them into facts.

And RJ and him again, are nothing similar.

 

[Derek]

@NMCav why does the Citadel game count as far as judging his shooting abilities, but the West Carolina game doesn’t?

Either way, two games is too small of a sample size to make judgements about anything regardless of opponent.