James Wiseman is having more problems than expected to adapt to the NBA. The big man landed in a struggling team that is trying to find their touch in the league this season but things haven’t gone in their favor. That has affected everybody on the roster and the rookie isn’t the exception.
The former Memphis Tiger is receiving more criticism every day and recently, two analysts heavily criticized him for his downgrade. He started the season having good performances, showing flashes of his potential but things have changed for Wiseman in recent months. He was sent to the bench, his struggles are more visible now and he doesn’t seem to find the solution to that problem.
Zach Lowe and Nick Friedell of ESPN recently discussed the Wiseman situation and both analysts agreed that the player looks lost, worse than he was at the beginning of the campaign. On the latest edition of the ‘Lowe Post’ Podcast, Friedell went off on the 20-year-old, (via Redditor “JoeBiden2020FTW“).
Friedell: “Wiseman is worse right now than he was to start the year.”
Lowe: “It’s unquestionable. He’s lost”.
Friedell: “They thought he would hit the ground running. That hasn’t happened. He hasn’t been good at all… the early returns simply aren’t good”.
Lowe didn’t call Wiseman a bust and said the player could still be valuable in trade talks, especially if the Warriors include the Minnesota Timberwolves’ pick they got in the D’Angelo Russell trade. Wiseman only played 3 games in college and that surely affected his development. Yet, more and more people criticize him but the Dubs have made it clear they see their future with James on the team.
This is still his first season and he has a lot of room to improve his game but time will tell if he can do it or ends up becoming a bust. The Warriors reportedly planned to get LaMelo Ball on draft night but they went with Wiseman. That could have been a big mistake for them.
