Anthony Edwards

Georgia | SG | Freshman

Height: 6'5"
Weight: 225 lbs
Wingspan: 6'9"

Shades of: Jaylen Brown, Eric Gordon, Dion Waiters

Projected Draft Range: 1-3
Big Board Ranking: N/A

Selling Points:

Edwards has the upside to be a dynamic shot creator as he is adept at creating off the dribble at all three levels. He has an array of go-to moves off the dribble, being able to step back either way with deep range and being fluid pulling up on sidesteps and snatchbacks. With his low, shifty handle, which still needs some fine-tuning, he can create space for himself but is also able to get to his spots, particularly the midrange. Edwards shows off his balance in his ability to stop on a dime and rise up over defenders. Due to the high release on his jumper, Edwards fares well against closeouts and being highly contested. As aforementioned, Edwards has NBA range both spotting up and off the dribble and has looked confident in taking and making shots from that range at the collegiate level. 

Edwards' physical tools are best on display when attacking the rim. While Edwards can use his brute strength to finish through contact and get to the line (5.3 FTA), his dexterity around the rim is equally as impressive. Edwards possesses noticeable burst one-on-one but is also an adept decelerator with outstanding balance when weaving his way to the rim. He shows a high level of control on euro steps and other off-balance moves towards the rim and is more than comfortable finishing with either hand. Alongside his craftsmanship in the paint, Edwards can play above the rim as seen by his monster poster against Vanderbilt. 

In between his defensive lapses, Edwards on occasion has shown promise as a point of attack defender and potentially being a plus one-on-one defender. With his strength and balance, Edwards, when properly engaged, does an adequate job at containing drives and has great timing when contesting shots at the rim.

Edwards shows some secondary playmaker upside due to his reactive passing instincts. He has shown to be capable of making basic yet effective reads albeit not often enough and has great accuracy on his passes regardless of the length.


Turnoffs: 

Despite being one of the draft's most talented scorers, Edwards' poor shot selection limits his effectiveness as a shot creator and his impact on the game. Edwards tends to kill possessions and reversals with early shot clock threes. Edwards' streaky shooting alongside his poor shot selection contributes towards his low shooting splits (40.2/29.4). When attacking his man one-on-one, Edwards can get tunnel vision and begin to play a jumper centric variant of hero-ball. He appears to favour difficult contested shots over basic kick-outs both strong side and weak side. 

One of the more frustrating aspects of Edwards' shot selection is how he doesn't take advantage of his NBA frame to get downhill. Whether he is switched onto a big where he has a clear burst advantage or on a guard who he can play bully ball with, Edwards tends to settle for jumpers and not abuse his size, burst and touch by attacking when turning the corner. 

Edwards' defensive impact, considering his physical tools, leaves much to be desired. When on the ball, Edwards stands somewhat upright, limiting his lateral agility purely due to technique. When blown by, due to his flat-footedness and stance, he often gives up on the play. Off-ball, Edwards shows poor engagement defensively and gets caught ball-watching leading to him losing track of backdoor cuts. His ball-watching also leads to him over-helping and leaving his man open. On closeouts, Edwards overextends, often being left off-balance and taking himself out of the play. 

NBA Outlook: 

Edwards is likely to be in the conversation for rookie of the year due to statistical production barring an unfortunate team fit or unforeseen injury. Chances are Edwards will make his money purely through shot creation early in his career as he isn't expected to be much of a facilitator nor an impact defender straight off the bat. 

While not quite player comparisons, Edwards is likely to go down a similar path development-wise to either Andrew Wiggins or Jayson Tatum. Hopes are that Edwards throughout his career begins to take advantage of his size on both ends of the ball and become more analytics friendly in his shot selection as Tatum has done in his early career. However, there is also a chance that Edwards follows in the footsteps of former #1 pick Andrew Wiggins and doesn't make these ideal adjustments and settles being a mid-tier score-first wing. 

Edwards' on-court maturity and engagement are his most notable swing skills with them being at the premise of most if not all of his weak points. If he can commit to becoming more engaged and intelligent on the defensive end and take advantage of his physical tools. Edwards can fulfil or expand upon the Jaylen Brown comparison.