Zach Edey Lacks 1 of 3 Strengths on NBA Court, Claims Ex-Rival and UConn Coach Dan Hurley

The NBA draft came as a surprise for many. But thankfully all the players that fans wished were taken by some or the other team. One such star is the Purdue Boilermakers’ Zach Edey who was drafted at the number 9 position with the Memphis Grizzlies. Like many others, Edey has his strengths and weaknesses in his game, and on Friday, the University of Connecticut Huskies coach Dan Hurley came forward in an interview to opine that Edey lacked one of the three most needed strengths on the court.

Hurley was present during an interview in the Gary Parrish Show when he was asked about Edey’s strengths and weaknesses and how the latter would adjust to the high level at the NBA. Let’s look at what the head coach had to say.

Dan Hurley states Zach Edey’s positives and negatives

Hurley during the interview was asked to share his views on Edey’s abilities. And Hurley’s insight gave away the fact that Edey lacks something that most people wouldn’t have thought. “Yeah, well I mean start off from an offensive standpoint. You know all the analytics tell you is… is the three things that you’re trying to do is… is… is get threes, get rim twos, and get to the free throw line. So like two of the three things he’s like a dominant player with… You know… you know like his ability offensively to put pressure on the rim. Get you the rim twos, you… you have to foul him around the rim because he’s such an incredible finisher and then he creates, he puts so much pressure on the paint that he’s also going to create great threes for your team,” Hurley stated, via Gary Parrish Show.

Surprisingly Hurley didn’t point to Edey’s obvious lack of three-pointers. But instead opined that he would be good with them in the NBA. During his term with the NCAA, Edey averaged a whopping 18.2 points per game with 3.9 offensive rebounds and a meager 0.5% three-pointers. However, as mentioned by Hurley, Edey would make a great offensive player.

“There’s going to be some challenges on the defensive end of the court for him in terms of you know that…that drop played in that drop coverage he’s just obviously going to have to you know get up higher in ball screening defense and become a little more adept at playing at space in that way,” Hurley enumerated.

Furthermore, Edey’s stats in the defense are no less at least in terms of rebounds. He averages a decent 5.7 defensive rebounds per contest. But lacks in steals and blocks since he averaged only 0.2 steals per game throughout his four years at Purdue along with a paltry 1.7 blocks per game. Therefore, as per Hurley, Edey will have to work on his defensive skills. Hurley ended his statements about Edey enunciating that from the offensive point of view, he is going to be a “coach’s dream.” And surely, Hurley is the right person to give an opinion on Edey since the latter was his rival in the NCAA.

Dan Hurley’s mentees were Zach Edey’s ex-rivals

It is interesting to note that while Hurley is wishing all the luck for Edey, he was one of his rivals during the college basketball circuit. The Boilermakers who were reliant on Edey clashed against in the Championship Finale of the 2023-24 NCAA college basketball. While the Boilermakers depended on Edey’s individuality, Hurley’s collective team forces decimated Purdue by a 75-60 margin.

Edey had given his all in the game scoring 37 points with 10 rebounds. Even now when Edey was drafted by the Grizzlies, Hurley’s previous message for the National Player of the Year surfaced online. “If Zach Edey is not, like, a lottery pick and, you know, a tremendous NBA player, then there’s something wrong with the NBA,” Hurley had expressed on the social media platform X as per Star Local Media.

Perhaps, it is words of caution and motivation expressed in equal measures that become the driving force for players like Edey. He looks to be in safe hands and will develop himself while keeping Hurley’s words in mind. Meanwhile, Hurley can continue to groom future superstars with his gaming acumen.

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