Golden State Warriors: James Wiseman
The latest NBA Draft Lottery pick for the Golden State Warriors, James Wiseman has more than his fair share of work to do over the summer.
Strengths
Wiseman’s greatest strength is his height and mobility. It was a joy to watch Wiseman sprint in transition at times throughout his rookie season. He is so fluid and agile for a seven-footer and there is no doubt Wiseman is going to record some highlight-worthy dunks and blocks as a sophomore.
Also, Wiseman was a surprisingly decent 3-point shooter. That is, compared to our expectations for him. Wiseman shot just barely above 30 percent but this is an area of development he is already ahead of schedule.
Areas to improve
Can I say everything?
There wasn’t really much Wiseman was good at as a rookie. He was slow to his spots on the floor. He didn’t defend the rim as well as we thought he would and well… he just wasn’t ready to compete at the NBA level just yet.
But, that’s okay. A full summer of training and learning the game could completely change Wiseman’s production. Once he is able to combine his raw athleticism with real, useable skill, Wiseman will be a big-time player.
The list of workouts to focus on is long. He needs to spend as much time with Draymond Green as possible to learn how to effectively use his size on defense. Then, he’ll want to get an infinite amount of reps in rebounding for Stephen Curry and rolling to the rim as an ariel threat.
I don’t want to overload Wiseman with unrealistic expectations, but there is a chance he surprises everyone with a breakout sophomore season if he takes the summer seriously.