NBA fans all say the same thing as 7ft star Zach Edey comes up short against UConn in national championship game
The fairy-tale ending to Zach Edey's college basketball career was ultimately not to be.
The UConn Huskies came out on top in the battle of the No.1 seeds in the NCAA Tournament championship game, beating the Purdue Boilermakers, 75-60.
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7ft 4in giant Edey has enjoyed an all-time college hoops career, becoming the first repeat winner of the Naismith College Player of the Year.
He finished with 37 points and ten rebounds in a valiant but losing effort to Connecticut.
His 37 points are the third most points scored in an NCAA Men's basketball championship game - the most ever by a player on the losing team.
The Canadian big man has already declared for the upcoming 2024 NBA Draft but is not expected to be a high pick - with some projecting him to finish outside the top-20.
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Edey is a throwback center who does all his work inside the paint, and for that reason some people think he will have a tough time transitioning to the NBA - which is heavily geared towards three-point shooting.
Despite notching another 20-point double-double in the NCAA title game (a record sixth in March Madness), NBA fans online were saying they do not envision Edey being a star in the National Basketball Association.
"I repeat: Edey does NOT impress me, finally matched up with someone near his size and hes being stopped every possession in the 2nd half. 0-6 to start the half. Yea this dude is cooked in the NBA," wrote one fan.
"This game is showing why Edey is gonna get picked apart in the NBA. Dude will be a G league prodigy at best," added another.
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"This is a great example of why Edey could never play in the NBA. Playing someone close to his size and he’s doing absolutely nothing. Really struggling, and as his team gets down more he becomes less effective. Not a basketball player, just a bully on teams with no bigs," a third added.
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"Edey is really skilled, but there is no chance he’s even a rotational player in the NBA. His inability to functionally play even drop coverage against a pick and roll is gonna make him unplayable at that level. UConn fully exposing that tonight," a fourth added.
However, only a short time before that fans were praising Edey for his dominant first half display.
Shannon Sharpe and Skip Bayless were two of his most vocal supporters.
Old archive footage emerges of Steph Curry's fantastic performances during the famous NCAA 'March Madness' tournament back in 2008
Edey scored 11 straight points for Purdue and at one point had 14 of their 23 total points.
He had 16 points and five rebounds at the break as Purdue trailed by six.
He even got into a heated exchange with Huskies head coach Dan Hurley.
";Edey is playing POSSESSED. NBA scouts no doubt IMPRESSED," Bayless wrote.
Others aren't ready to count Edey out yet and believe he will be a solid rotation player in the NBA.
"Zach Edey doesn't fit the mold of the modern NBA center -- little plodding, doesn't shoot threes -- but someone is going to get a good rotation player. His rebounding and touch around the rim are elite," Chris Mannix of Sports Illustrated posted.
Colin Cowherd seemed to agree on his podcast earlier this week.
"7-foot-4 with a really nice touch, you can't tell me there is no space for him somewhere in this freakin' league," he said.
But Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Green suggested that Edey 'quit' during his team's defeat to the Huskies that put Hurley's team officially on top of the college basketball world.
Fans immediately fired back at Green, who's been regularly suspended by the NBA in recent seasons and often inserts himself in the middle of divisive topics, then apologizes later.
"Too bad Edey didn't have Steph (Curry) to carry him like you did your entire career," a fan posted.
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Edey evidently has a very specific skillset but one that is bound to help certain NBA teams.
We'll find out which team that will be in the 2024 draft on 27 June.
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