"He'll slip": Gilbert Arenas doesn't hold back when criticizing Zach Edey's NBA draft stock
Amid the excitement of the 2024 NCAA March Madness, former Warriors guard Gilbert Arenas is not sold on NBA prospect Zach Edey from the Purdue Boilermakers. Translating one's game to the professional league isn't for every college athlete out there, considering how much different the two leagues are from each other, which Arenas pointed out in an episode of "Gil's Arena."
"I don't want to mess the kids' hopes up," Arenas said, "... I'm pretty sure whoever drafts him in the lottery is probably going to get fired within a few years after that draft pick. How he is playing the game is not how the game is being played today. Pretty sure he'll slip because how is he going to play defense in the NBA now?" (0:50)
Fresh off an incredible double-double outing of 40 points (61.9% shooting) and 16 rebounds against the Tennessee Volunteers, Arenas thinks Zach Edey's defensive shortcomings will haunt him in the professional basketball league.
When going up against the likes of 76ers big man Joel Embiid or Nuggets star Nikola Jokic, his defensive ability will be heavily monitored in those kinds of matchups. Aside from his excellent post-game, Edey lacks perimeter shotmaking which he will need to make up for defensively.
Whether that means being a strong rim protector or a reliable switch defender, the young center will need to bring more to the table than his ability to hit shots with his back to the basket.
Be that as it may, there are young centers in the league who have made a strong impression, such as Dallas Mavericks rookie Dereck Lively II, who luckily landed in a good situation for his skill set.
Despite lacking a reliable offensive shot, Lively II makes up for it by being a lob threat with the potential to be an excellent rim protector.
Gilbert Arenas gives sound advice to NBA teams when it comes to evaluating prospects
In another episode of "Gil's Arena," former Warriors guard Gilbert Arenas criticized NBA teams for relying on mock drafts when evaluating prospects to be considered for selection.
"If you're an NBA team and you're going off a mock draft," Arenas said, "that's done by non-athletic people who watch college basketball and workouts, something is wrong with you. These aren't NBA scouts going down there judging the kids. So your mock draft is not done by professional eyes. ... That's why ya'll missing out who's good."
Arenas argued that relying on mock drafts without any proper scouting done by a professional can lead to poor selections during an NBA draft. Conducting an eye test provides extra footing in determining whether a basketball prospect can carry his skill set over to the professional league without much headache.
Additionally, this can also be further strengthened with the inclusion of statistical numbers to back up an athlete's positioning. However, some teams still prefer to go the other route without much preparation and research done, resulting in lackluster talent being brought to the league over other promising players.