Zach Edey was the best player in college basketball in the last two seasons, dominating in a way like few others have in recent years. However, the 22-year-old is also one of the more polarizing prospects in the 2024 NBA Draft.
Edey, who has a 7-foot-10.75 wingspan with a 9-foot-7 standing reach has a rare size for the position. If he had entered the NBA two decades earlier, he would be the type of center a team would build around. Fast forward to 2024 and there are more questions about his fit in the modern NBA.
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- Zach Edey height: 7-foot-4
In his final two seasons at Purdue, Edey won the National College Player of the Year award twice and took home the Kareem Abdul-Jabaar Award in consecutive seasons. He was also a consensus first-team All-American in both seasons and led the NCAA in scoring as a senior. Paired with a quality performance in the pre-draft process, there seems to be some buzz around Edey heading into the 2024 NBA Draft.
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ESPN’s Jonathan Givony‘s draft projection for Edey is between picks 9-19, with the NBA Draft insider and analyst noting it’s “very likely” that Edey is taken within the first 20 picks and he could make it into the lottery.
- Zach Edey stats (ESPN): 25.2 PPG, 12.2 RPG, 2.0 APG, 2.2 BPG, 62.3% FG
Edey is aided by the fact that this isn’t a great draft class, with no true consensus on who the top prospect is nor is there a belief that the 2024 NBA Draft boasts a franchise-changing talent. However, the biggest star in college basketball in the last two seasons does have a lot of fans in the NBA.
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Givony does note that the Memphis Grizzlies, Utah Jazz, Chicago Bulls, Oklahoma City Thunder, Miami Heat, Toronto Raptors, Los Angeles Lakers and Portland Trail Blazers are among the NBA teams interested in Edey. If he delivers a strong private workout in the coming weeks, Edey could be a top-12 pick.