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Published Jun 19, 2019
Much to consider for NBA in Carsen Edwards on draft night
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Brian Neubert  •  BoilerUpload
GoldandBlack.com staff
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Thursday night, whether it's somewhere toward the back of the first round or someplace near the beginning of the second, or anywhere in between, Purdue's All-American, Carsen Edwards, is going to hear his name called as part of the NBA draft.

Once he does, then the hard part begins, as many in his position have learned before, sometimes the hard way, as getting a foot in the NBA's door and getting two feet through it, to stay, can often be two very different things.

Edwards will get a foot in the door; that much is certain. From there, there will be no guarantees — aside from his contract should he be a first-rounder or select second-rounder, of course — and the path of least resistance may not await him.

He'll have much going for him, though, notably physical and athletic gifts that could cancel out his lack of ideal dimensions otherwise and a scorer's skill set virtually unparalleled in college basketball last season and maybe better suited for the NBA game than the college variety.

But the story of Edwards' NBA career may be determined by a variety of themes. Here's a look at some of them.

THE NBA 'FIT'

Edwards, as a player, is defined by one thing and virtually one thing alone: Scoring.

He played 94 games in his Purdue career and fell just 60 points shy of 2,000. In averaging 24.3 points per game this season, Edwards led the Big Ten by a margin of more than four points per game and placed ninth nationally in scoring. Among high-major players, only Marquette's Markus Howard averaged more points per game.

In the NCAA Tournament, the greatest proving ground there is both for college basketball stars and NBA hopefuls alike, Edwards could have done no more than he did. In Purdue's four NCAA Tournament games — wins over Old Dominion, Villanova and Tennessee, followed by a thrilling overtime loss to eventual champion Virginia — he averaged 34.8, hanging 42 on both the reigning champion Wildcats and eventual champion Cavaliers. His 28 threes were an NCAA Tournament record, set in only four games.

Though his percentages and efficiency metrics for the entire season weren't what he might have preferred in a high-volume, high-usage role for Purdue, the attention Edwards commanded spoke to his reputation as one of the most dangerous and feared shooters in college basketball.

That area of Edwards' game, though, probably overshadowed his speed, quickness and overall refinement, his craftiness and technical mastery of all that goes into putting the ball in the basket, all areas that made him a complete scorer at the college level.

“And, he has that go-to mentality, and that’s not just the freedom that Matt (Painter) gave him, but something that’s ingrained," said Ryan Blake, a scouting consultant to NBA teams. "As someone who has the ability to shoot and score from distance, when he gets to the next level, I think he might have the potential to be more of a combo guard, but he has to prove he can do that."

In the short term, it stands to reason to suggest Edwards' niche would have to come through his offense, through his ability, simply, to score, a reasonable hope being that the faster-paced, more-spread-out, higher-possessions-totals 24-second NBA game could actually suit his game better than the college game did.

And, his role will obviously change, maybe for better, maybe for worse.

At Purdue, obviously, he was the Boilermakers' pillar, the player with the ball in his hands as often as not, the one with the ultimate green light, but also drawing the lion's share of the defensive attention, "smothered," as one onlooker put it.

Should Edwards make an NBA roster for next season, his most realistic path to minutes likely lies in the role of bench scorer, that player, often a guard or wing, who comes in off the bench, maybe changes the pace of a game and simply attacks against an opponent's second unit.

And there is a drop-off.

“I didn’t start a ton of ton of games in Minnesota," said Robbie Hummel, the former Purdue star who played 98 games over two seasons for the Timberwolves, "but I was always amazed by it. When you looked at the starters I was guarding (as a starter) against the bench guys I’d be guarding, it was like, ‘Whoa.’ I started a game against the Bulls once and I’m guarding Jimmy Butler, and that was not a good matchup for the Minnesota Timberwolves. We’d play the Spurs and I’d guard Kawhi Leonard, or Kevin Durant (with the Thunder).

“But then when they go to the bench, it’s, ‘OK, now you’re guarding Jon Leuer’ and I’d be a lot more comfortable. Not that he’s not a good player, but he’s a little different than those other guys.”

Bench scoring is critical in the NBA.

"You see a lot of guys like that, guys who can just come in and be instant offense and boost your whole group," said Purdue associate head coach Micah Shrewsberry, who spent the past six seasons as an assistant coach for the Boston Celtics. "Those guys — some of them are second-unit guys, but some of them can be starters, too — can be spark plugs when you need someone to come in and give you a six-to-eight-point burst in a hurry. It's something all teams need."

That's where comparisons made to Edwards always seem to gravitate toward veteran Lou Williams, now of the Los Angeles Clippers. The 32-year-old's been in the league since 2005, and no matter which of the six teams he's played for it's been, he's scored.

Williams, who at 6-foot-1, 175 pounds qualifies as "small" every bit as much as Edwards would, averaged 20 a game for the Clippers this season over 75 games. He started one of those games.

“I’d think (Edwards) should watch a guy like Lou Williams, a guy who just comes off the bench and just balls out," Hummel said. "Now, I think he may have to be patient and might have to understand that at least early on, he might be a guy who gets stuck in the corner on certain possessions and just gets told, ‘Hey, shoot it when it comes to you,’ which I think could be an adjustment for him."

PATIENCE MAY BE TESTED

As with any pro-sports organization, a player might only be as successful as their opportunities allow, and for that reason, the majority of young players — even many Lottery picks — have to wait for theirs.

It might mean time in the G League, perhaps — as was Hummel's situation, due to an injury — even overseas.

But even if a young player sticks on an NBA roster, he might be stuck on the bench, maybe even in street clothes as an inactive.

“But you’ve got to be ready at all times," Shrewsberry said. "The amount of practice and the amount of things that those guys do as rookies, people feel like they have a lot of time. You know, they really don’t. They are in the gym way more than the older guys, so you have to be good at what you’re doing, being efficient in doing it and making sure you’re handling all your business off the court and then basketball is your main focus.”

Hummel knows how quickly things can change, because of injuries, back-to-backs or load-management nights for veterans.

He lived it with the Timberwolves.

"Part of it for Carsen is going to be about understanding how to be a pro," Hummel said. "Like, if you’re not playing for a while, you’ve got to get on the treadmill after the game, and stay in shape, because when you do start playing — someone’s going to get hurt, or suspended, or sick, or whatever — they don’t care that you haven’t played in three weeks. You have to go in there and know the plays and be in shape and ready to come in and take advantage of the opportunity, and when you do, you can stay in the lineup. It’s a weird league that way. You can not play for a while, and be wearing a suit even, and then two guys get hurt and suddenly you’re playing. Learning how to be pro, developing practice habits, those are definitely things he’ll need to do.”

WORK ETHIC

To that end, the NBA likely won't be welcoming a player who'll be averse to working out even if he's not playing regularly.

"“Being in the gym is almost therapeutic for him," said Joey Burton, the Indianapolis-based trainer who's worked with Edwards on the side the past two years or so.

Edwards has always been known for his work ethic in that sense. After his freshman season, he sought Burton out, and worked with him in-season and out-of-season alike. Countless are the hours Edwards spent on Cardinal Court over the years, virtually by himself, blaring music as he shot jumpers or honed various elements of his scoring arsenal.

After he missed a couple of important free throws at Florida State in Purdue's maddening loss in Tallahassee in December, the Boilermakers' flight landed at the university's airport in the early morning hours and Edwards went right to Cardinal to shoot.

Though maybe he could have used some sleep that night, otherwise, Edwards has always been known for taking strict care of his body.

Such diligence would serve him well in the NBA should he find himself outside a team's playing rotation, in a better-be-ready sort of situation.

“I’ve seen players thrive in those situations and players struggle in that situation," said Burton, who's worked extensively with NBA players Glenn Robinson III, Yogi Ferrell and others, and a slew of draft hopefuls over the years. "I think Carsen’s developed the habits to thrive no matter the situation.”

SIZE AND POSITION

Edwards' dimensions and physical attributes, notably his speed and quickness, traditionally would categorize him for the point guard position, and though that position nowadays has evolved beyond just the traditional role of facilitator, his identity as a player would fall much closer in line with the shooting guard position.

Or, the scoring-minded lead guard, akin to some of the players Edwards has been known to model his game after: The Charlotte Hornets' Kemba Walker and Portland Trailblazers' Damian Lillard, to name two.

Last year, when Edwards declared for the draft, but ultimately returned to Purdue, there was a prevailing thought that because of his size — as well as the time-honored line of thinking that "you are who you can guard" — he should be viewed as a prospect as a point guard, a player who's role would in part be to direct an offense and involve others.

That said, after a junior season at Purdue spent as the proverbial man after the Boilermakers lost a corps of key seniors, the thinking now should probably be different. This season's inarguable reminder about Edwards is that to play to his strengths, he should be playing to score.

Edwards scored at a level few in the college ranks could match, but in a situation where the defensive attention he faced was often suffocating and relentless, he averaged only 3.3 assists per 40 minutes, against 3.5 turnovers per 40, and sometimes fell victim to his own over-aggressiveness as a scoring-minded guard.

At the Big Ten Tournament in Chicago, for example, Trevion Williams had scored two consecutive trips to put the Boilermakers up on Minnesota 71-69 with 3:40 to play. A call came in from the sideline to feed the freshman big man around the rim again, but when an entry opportunity presented itself, Edwards instead drove baseline and his shot was turned away, as was his putback attempt.

It's moments like those have created concerns among pro scouts about elements such as awareness and poise that are typically associated with point guard-type players.

Such questions seemed small, however, later in March, as Edwards tore through the NCAA Tournament during one of the event's all-time great performances, displaying his considerable talent as a scorer, the attribute that stands as his best chance to make it in the NBA, as an undersized player for his position.

At the NBA's draft combine in Chicago this spring, Edwards measured at just 5-foot-10-3/4, without shoes. The game is, of course, played in shoes, but those shoes still wouldn't push Edwards far north of 6-foot as a shooting guard in a league full of 6-7 and 6-8 wings.

Blake believes Edwards' uncommon strength — he's a well-built 200 or so pounds, at least as of the combine — and solid length for his height might help him avoid getting picked on as a post-up target, but those with NBA perspective say size does matter more on defense than offense.

On offense, Edwards has shown he can get shots off against most anybody. When he scored 42 against Virginia, it came mostly with 6-7 DeAndre Hunter or 6-5 Ty Jerome guarding him.

And small guards have produced in the NBA.

With the Celtics, Shrewsberry was part of a Boston staff that built an offense around 5-9 Isaiah Thomas, who averaged nearly 29 points per game in 2016-17. To the question of positional fit for players of such a size, Thomas was Boston's point guard, technically. But its offense was built for him to score, for him to give the ball up, then immediately work to get it back in scoring positions, exactly how Edwards produced for Purdue this season.

Edwards may only be 6-foot tall, but his scoring as a collegiate player this past season came as much off activity than isolation, off his sprinting through screens, exploding through cuts and working for finding angles when Purdue ran its base motion offense.

That might be the model for Edwards in a more quick-hitting NBA setting, though almost certainly not in a foundational role like the one he carried at Purdue.

“Obviously he has the size (issue), and has to prove that he can get by or shoot over bigger people and defend that as well," Blake said. "Not that he doesn’t have the ability to, but those are concerns that aren’t weaknesses yet.

"When you get to the next level, everything’s bigger and the speed’s faster, bigger guys that are faster — the elite of the elite — but he proved in college he can do this at a top level.”

Now, Edwards' challenge becomes proving he can do it at the highest level, and he'll find out Thursday night who'll be giving him his chance.

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