James Wiseman already looks like one of the best prospects from the 2020 NBA Draft. Wiseman is an athletic rim-running center, who can unleash a ferocious dunk while rolling to the rim. He is also able to step out and shoot a jumper if need be and is a willing shooter. Essentially, Wiseman is a center made for the modern NBA on the offensive end, while also having a great game that fits the Warriors’ system.
Among the people who are confident in the development of James Wiseman is a writer for The Athletic, Ethan Strauss. In his article, he details the many ways that James Wiseman affects the Warriors’ offense with his rim-running presence. Here are some sections of note within the article:
The short version is that Wiseman has gravity, to the rim specifically. He’s already a feared vertical threat and unlike JaVale McGee, Steve Kerr will play him for long stretches. Like Steph Curry, his presence can positively impact an offense even when he’s having a poor individual offensive game.
Wiseman looks and seems like a scary rim-running threat.
If Wiseman grows as a player, so too will his already strong gravitational pull. The combined force of Curry’s outside gravity and Wiseman’s inside gravity can potentially power this offense for years.
Teams are having to worry about James Wiseman already due to his potential on the inside as a scorer. He frees up the game for the other scorers on the team like Andrew Wiggins and has more mobility than a traditional center like JaVale McGee. His game on the inside seems to be a perfect complement for Stephen Curry’s outside game, and as Strauss said, it could be extremely promising for the Warriors.
Very little credit goes to the Golden State Warriors for being able to field a competitive roster around Stephen Curry despite injuries. Hopefully, James Wiseman and Stephen Curry can surprise many critics with a revenge season for the franchise.
