As we are only a month away from the start of the 2024-25 NBA campaign, Purdue assistant coach Brandon Brantley warned the league that Zach Edey will dominate the paint for the Grizzlies. After being picked as the 9th overall selection in this past draft, many people still wonder if the seven-foot-four athlete will thrive in the big stage.
However, the truth is that the big man had already made a name for himself in college basketball. Just recently, Brantley was watching television and saw a sports TV show snub the center from their top five big men heading into this next season, and proceeded to tell his former pupil through a text message.
This was pure strategy from Brandon. “I knew he was pissed off,” he admitted to The Commercial Appeal. “When he’s pissed off, he just hits you with the ‘OK,’ but that OK has so much fire behind it.”
Ja Morant on Zach Edey:
“Definitely Rookie of the Year. I think easy too.”
Edey made it through Ja’s off-season training “boot camp” and Ja is really excited by what he saw 🔥
Something special is brewing in Memphis👀🐻
— EdeyMuse (@EdeyMuse) September 21, 2024
“They’re just not going to let Zach switch off and get cooked the whole game,” Brantley continued. “It doesn’t work like that. It’s five-on-five. Him doing this routine everyday would be like the equivalent of me and you brushing our teeth every day. He takes 12-foot hook shots and makes them like it’s nothing.”
Edey is much more than just a seven-footer who can defend the rim, as he’s also produced a signature hook shot that has caught many people’s attention, including his teammates in Memphis. After working out a week with Ja Morant, that All-Star even proclaimed him the next Rookie of the Year.
“Obviously he’s 7-4, but his touch, he was shooting the ball very well,” the Grizzlies star said, as he’s recovered from his own injury and is excited to hit the floor next month. “Rookie of the year is pretty much all I can say.”
Brantley, on the other hand, just can’t wait for the NBA to realize his potential. “Memphis is going to have a dude in that paint that’s going to hold that paint down,” he said. “Usually guys that size will try to rebound their area. He rebounds outside of his area. It means something to him.”
The Grizzles general manager called him a ‘special fit’ for his team and is convinced that there are many misconceptions around Edey’s game
Let’s remember something, a few months ago Zach became the first player in over four decades to earn The Associated Press’ men’s college basketball player of the year award in consecutive seasons. His new general manager trusts this was their best outcome.
“Zach Edey is a particularly special fit [for the franchise],” said Grizzlies’ Zach Kleiman during the NBA Draft in June. “In getting to know him, we are talking about someone whose competitiveness is through the roof, care factor is through the roof. No ego, just wants to win.”
Now we can only wait to see how his freakishly big size will translate to the NBA courts, as he will be one of the tallest players in the league this coming season. Last year, Houston’s Boban Marjanovic, Phoenix’s Bol Bol and San Antonio’s Victor Wembanyama were all listed at 7-foot-3 or taller.
Zach has enjoyed steady growth throughout his college years, averaging 22.3 points and 12.9 rebounds as a junior, and then 25.2 points and 12.2 rebounds during his senior season which took the Boilermakers all the way to the NCAA title game against Connecticut.
