Wiggins is erupting vs. West Virginia

[saltlover]

3 minutes left, he's got 41 points on 12-16 shooting, as the rest of Kansas failed to show up (they're losing by 10).  His effort has been off the charts, forcing tons of turnovers and altering shots, in addition to the scoring.

[BigAlTheFuture]

We need to draft Wiggins. He's gonna be the best player out of this draft.

[LarBrd33]

I want to point out that this was always an inevitability.

I read articles before the season started that said that Wiggins would NOT show up and start dominating.  I read one that said something to the extent of "Expect him to be inconsistent for most of the year... lose his top spot on the draft board... but eventually re-gain it late in the season with a string of huge performances"... If I wasn't so lazy, I'd find it and link to it.

This was all anticipated. 

[LarBrd33]

here I found my previous post about it:

Here's another article from back in May:

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/1653638-5-bold-predictions-for-andrew-wiggins-freshman-year-at-kansas

It basically predicts that Wiggins will struggle early on at Kansas, but likely will get it together eventually and prove he is #1:

Andrew Wiggins will play his way out of No. 1 pick lock status with his early struggles only to reestablish himself as the surefire selection with an incredible second half.

By the time the NCAA tournament comes to a close and Kansas has at least taken home a Big 12 tournament crown and maybe more by the end of March, NBA scouts will once again be drooling.

Just sayin...  nothing he's doing right now is really unsurprising.  He still has phenom potential.

[saltlover]

Final line for Wiggins:

41 points
10-13 from 2
2-5 from 3
15-19 from the line
8 rebounds
5 steals
4 blocks
2 assists

He was everywhere on the court -- forced an illegal inbounds and at least two traveling calls, which don't appear in the steals stats.  The effort, which had been questioned early in the year, was exceptional.  Kansas lost by 6, but they were down by about 25 in the middle of the half before Wiggins scored 15 straight points for the Jayhawks, forcing multiple turnovers in that span.  One of the best two-way performances I've seen in college basketball in years.  For about the first 35 minutes of the game, it was virtually 1-on-5 basketball, since the rest of his team didn't show up. 

It's this ability to completely take over a game which is why Wiggins has the most potential of anyone in the draft.  He's been at the top of my board all year, and he still is.  I hope the ping pong balls are kind to the Celtics in May.

[LarBrd33]

I think we'll realistically be picking 8-10th.

Is West Virginia any good?  I don't actually follow college ball.  Was this against a crap schooL?

[Spilling Green Dye]

I think we'll realistically be picking 8-10th.

Is West Virginia any good?  I don't actually follow college ball.  Was this against a crap schooL?

Unless we get incredibly luck we aren't getting Wiggens.  It amazes me that people are anti-tanking and think we're going to get him or Jabari Parker.  It's simple math, if we  continue to play the way we're playing we'll likely be the 7th or 8th pick

[badshar]

And how exactly is he worthy of first overall pick? He "erupts" for one game and drags through others. How is he different than Jeff Green, who drops 40 one game and then around 20 for the next 10 games and then repeats?

The kid is averaging 16.0 points in college, against much much much lesser competition than what he will have in the NBA. It's not like he makes up for it in other ways. He's averaging 5.8 rebounds and 1.6 assists.

It still baffles me how people believe he is worth wasting the first overall pick on.

In comparison, Jabari Parker is averaging 18.8 points along with 9.0 rebounds and 1.3 assists per game. He averages more blocks, less fouls and better shooting percentage in less minutes than Wiggins.

At 6 feet 8 inches, Wiggins gets just 5.8 rebounds while Parker gets 9.0 rebounds. Parker's got better field goal percentage and better three point percentage.

[saltlover]

I think we'll realistically be picking 8-10th.

Is West Virginia any good?  I don't actually follow college ball.  Was this against a crap schooL?

They're decent -- a team who could make a run in the NIT, but no NBA talent.  But Wiggins made them look like high-schoolers.  He forced at least 8 of the 13 West Virginia turnovers, and was virtually unstoppable on offense.  It's rare in college for someone to be that dominant against even that level of competition.

On the flip side, Wayne Selden had a particularly bad game.

[LarBrd33]

And how exactly is he worthy of first overall pick? He "erupts" for one game and drags through others. How is he different than Jeff Green, who drops 40 one game and then blah blah blah.

Man I really wish you were an NBA GM in charge of one of the bottom 3 teams.  I'm sure Ainge would gladly give you Jeff Green for Andrew Wiggins.  If you're nice, I bet he'll throw in both of our 2014 picks (#10 and #20).

I don't follow College ball, but comparing Green to Wiggins is laughably ridiculous.   Wiggins has the makings of an elite defender.  His stats are fantastic for a college freshman.  You can't look at college stats and equate them to NBA stats.  What he's done is excellent considering the context.   You're comparing him to a 28 year old NBA veteran... Wiggins is a decade younger and probably already vastly superior.

[badshar]

And how exactly is he worthy of first overall pick? He "erupts" for one game and drags through others. How is he different than Jeff Green, who drops 40 one game and then blah blah blah.

Man I really wish you were an NBA GM in charge of one of the bottom 3 teams.  I'm sure Ainge would gladly give you Jeff Green for Andrew Wiggins.  If you're nice, I bet he'll throw in both of our 2014 picks (#10 and #20).

You didn't understand my point. Jeff Green was an example of inconsistency. Just like Wiggins is inconsistent. No one is comparing Jeff Green to Wiggins. But it's funny how people are completely disregarding the fact that Wiggins might have a few 30-40 point games, but the majority of his games are pretty poor, far from what the hype would say. Like Danny said, "reality finally hit him after his high school hype."

[badshar]

And how exactly is he worthy of first overall pick? He "erupts" for one game and drags through others. How is he different than Jeff Green, who drops 40 one game and then blah blah blah.

Man I really wish you were an NBA GM in charge of one of the bottom 3 teams.  I'm sure Ainge would gladly give you Jeff Green for Andrew Wiggins.  If you're nice, I bet he'll throw in both of our 2014 picks (#10 and #20).

I don't follow College ball, but comparing Green to Wiggins is laughably ridiculous.   Wiggins has the makings of an elite defender.  His stats are fantastic for a college freshman.  You can't look at college stats and equate them to NBA stats.  What he's done is excellent considering the context.   You're comparing him to a 28 year old NBA veteran... Wiggins is a decade younger and probably already vastly superior.

Read the post above this one.

[badshar]

And how exactly is he worthy of first overall pick? He "erupts" for one game and drags through others. How is he different than Jeff Green, who drops 40 one game and then blah blah blah.

Man I really wish you were an NBA GM in charge of one of the bottom 3 teams.  I'm sure Ainge would gladly give you Jeff Green for Andrew Wiggins.  If you're nice, I bet he'll throw in both of our 2014 picks (#10 and #20).

I don't follow College ball, but comparing Green to Wiggins is laughably ridiculous.   Wiggins has the makings of an elite defender.  His stats are fantastic for a college freshman.  You can't look at college stats and equate them to NBA stats.  What he's done is excellent considering the context.   You're comparing him to a 28 year old NBA veteran... Wiggins is a decade younger and probably already vastly superior.

Uhm no.

As for his stats:
Kyrie averaged 17.5 points, more steals, more assists, better three point percentage, better FG percentage and better free throw percentage in less minutes.

Kelly Olynyk, in his final year, 17.8 points, better FG%, better FT% in less minutes.

Anthony Bennett, first round pick from last year who is called by many as a "bust," averaged 16.1 points (0.1 more than Wiggins), more rebounds and better FG% in less minutes.

[Jailan34]

And how exactly is he worthy of first overall pick? He "erupts" for one game and drags through others. How is he different than Jeff Green, who drops 40 one game and then around 20 for the next 10 games and then repeats?

The kid is averaging 16.0 points in college, against much much much lesser competition than what he will have in the NBA. It's not like he makes up for it in other ways. He's averaging 5.8 rebounds and 1.6 assists.

It still baffles me how people believe he is worth wasting the first overall pick on.

In comparison, Jabari Parker is averaging 18.8 points along with 9.0 rebounds and 1.3 assists per game. He averages more blocks, less fouls and better shooting percentage in less minutes than Wiggins.

At 6 feet 8 inches, Wiggins gets just 5.8 rebounds while Parker gets 9.0 rebounds. Parker's got better field goal percentage and better three point percentage.

So idk if you watch a lot of college ball but you can't just use stats or totals as a measure of success in the nba. It's a much more team game, less points are scored, the ball is distributed more evenly, all you want to look for is the potential, the WAY a player gets his points/rebs/assists.

Check out Paul Pierce's college stats, not overwhleming for one of the top 5 greatest Celtic's ever, but you could tell he had all the moves to score and score well. Thats what you have to look for.

So when people see Wiggin's athleticism combined with his surprisingly good jumpshot and defensive upside, its hard not to get excited.

[saltlover]

And how exactly is he worthy of first overall pick? He "erupts" for one game and drags through others. How is he different than Jeff Green, who drops 40 one game and then around 20 for the next 10 games and then repeats?

The kid is averaging 16.0 points in college, against much much much lesser competition than what he will have in the NBA. It's not like he makes up for it in other ways. He's averaging 5.8 rebounds and 1.6 assists.

It still baffles me how people believe he is worth wasting the first overall pick on.

In comparison, Jabari Parker is averaging 18.8 points along with 9.0 rebounds and 1.3 assists per game. He averages more blocks, less fouls and better shooting percentage in less minutes than Wiggins.

At 6 feet 8 inches, Wiggins gets just 5.8 rebounds while Parker gets 9.0 rebounds. Parker's got better field goal percentage and better three point percentage.

For one, Wiggins is seen as a 2/3 while Parker is a 3/4, so yes, Parker should get more rebounds.  Embiid is a perimeter defender, whereas Parker is in the paint much more often.  But also, Wiggins has to compete with Embiid for rebounds -- Embiid gets 27% of defensive rebounds -- it'd be foolish for Wiggins to crash the boards with Embiid there to vacuum up the rebounds.

For two, Kansas has played a significantly tougher schedule than Duke.  Kansas's schedule is arguably the toughest ever in college basketball.  It's not like Duke's played nobodies, but Kansas played a ridiculous non-conference schedule.

For three, yes Parker scores more, but uses up 31% of his team's possessions, whereas Wiggins uses 26%.  Wiggins is more efficient, having the higher offensive rating.

Honestly, if you haven't seen Wiggins in three months, or only watched the first half of the Duke-Kansas game, and not the second half, I guess I can see where you're coming from.  But Wiggins has shown up pretty much every night for months -- Parker was the one who disappeared for a few weeks in January.

Again, Parker is a great player.  I'd be thrilled if he wound up on the Celtics.  But Wiggins is simply better.  He has the athleticism that everyone gushes about, and the basketball skill that will allow him to utilize it.  When his shot is off, he can alter a game defensively.  Parker just can't.