Vj Edgecombe Flashes Potential While Struggling…

Vj Edgecombe Flashes Potential While Struggling…

Early in both preseason games, it seems like when the Sixers are running scripted stuff, they get better player movement and ball movement. And as the game goes on, these types of possessions completely go away. They didn’t do anything crazy, but look at VJ. He’s in a great spot. He can attack that gap or he can shoot the three ball. He elects to shoot it. Ends up getting fouled. It’s good to see him knock down all three free throws after a screen. The Knicks just switched it. So now you got Mitchell Robinson on Maxi. I like how Maxi didn’t just iso here. Driving to the rim on Mitchell Robinson’s very tough and also taking a step back is just as hard. Brunson shifts over to help and immediately Maxi makes a pass to VJ kind of offline. Good catch by VJ still and a quick decision one dribble right to UB and now you got an open three-pointer. Good NBA teams consistently hit these types of shots but the Sixers threw two preseason games very inconsistent in this aspect. Now we got VJ running in transition. He stays aggressive despite it being a one-on-one situation and opts for the floater. I don’t see him shooting that shot much. It’s not really in his game. So, it was kind of surprising to see. It’s pretty clear early on VJ can get to the rim, but finishing right now very inconsistent and most likely a weakness. Again, it’s simple stuff. It’s nothing crazy, but the Sixers get some good player movement offball screens on this possession. If you remember, this same play actually led to a three-pointer in the first game. But here, Brunson completely leaves VJ. Now he’s catching with tons of space and opportunity, and you just can’t let that happen. He’s too athletic, as you can tell. Maxi running around a bunch of screens again. Pass back to VJ and he’s trying to work through traffic, but he loses control. I think he was going for that James Harden Jaylen Brunson foul baiting tactic where you sweep the ball into their arms, but it was a nice swipe by Muel getting all ball. First pick and roll action of the day. OG goes for the same Mikuel steel but comes up with nothing and VJ makes the correct read. I I mean his passing over the first two games very impressive. Now, you probably won’t care about this type of thing, but these little details really matter to me. Look at him box out Muel Bridges. I also think he can box him out a little better. Hopefully the Sixers coaching staff points it out to him. And this is a great play showcasing what VJ and Maxi have been dealing with. With all the injuries, the spacing just is not good right now at all. You have Mitchell Robinson and Muel Bridges in the paint and he takes one dribble and all of a sudden he’s double teamed. Of course VJ makes the correct pass. This time UB makes him pay, but the problem is he’s not consistently making them pay. And even if he does, the Knicks could care less. They don’t believe in him doing it again and again and again. That same idea goes for Dominic Barlo and Andre Drummond or Adam Bona, whoever they have at S center, even Jabari Walker. The offense right now looks terrible because mostly you’re playing with three negative floor spacers. So either driving lanes aren’t there or they’re congested. And this problem gets even worse when one of Maxi and VJ are taking a breather. I think the main optimistic look, if you have one, out of these two preseason games is the Sixers were able to compete, not win the minutes, but they were able to compete when VJ and Maxi were on the floor together. And that’s against a very good Knicks team. So even getting guys like Watford who will add a scoring punch and of course Grimes would be a huge addition. And I’m excited to see how that helps them improve and hopefully they can manage to win some minutes with their best players on the floor at that time during the preseason. And hopefully McCain, PG, and Embiid are back at some point, but you can’t count on that. I digress. Back to VJ. So off the pick and roll, they switch Mikuel onto him and he was not able to notice the open space to his right in the middle of the floor. I think there was an opportunity for a spin move back the other way or between the legs. Instead, he kind of kills the possession by picking up his dribble in a very bad spot with no outlet. And now Barlo has to crave for himself. And of course, it goes wrong. On this one, Maxi’s trying to drive right, but there’s no lane. It’s clogged. So, he kicks it to VJ. Unfortunate air ball. Again, another situation where good teams usually can capitalize on that. Now, we’re back on the defensive side of the floor. Correct rotation from VJ here. He just kind of takes out Mitchell Robinson in the process. So, it’s a foul. I thought this was a good team possession. Nice fluid crossover from VJ. Hesitation burst speed. He sees McBride cheating off his guy. So, a quick pass to Jabari who makes McBride pay as he’s recovering. Then a nice pass to Andre Drummond who finishes it off. Another great possession from the Sixers. They empty the left side of the court. Great pocket pass and Jabari does his job with all that space and opportunity. Finds VJ wide open and finally Edgecomb hits from deep. I just need him to keep shooting. Keep shooting. Get those in-game reps. Don’t ever get passive from deep. Here he gets a bit too aggressive on defense, allows the back door cut, and then Jordan Clarkson throws up garbage and gets rewarded. Now, in this one, he gets called for an over the back despite Jordan Clarkson having no idea how to box out. He does create a little contact, but I would have let it go if I was a ref because I’m biased. But also, I mean, come on now. Look at him sky for that ball to end the quarter off. He’s I isoing and you kind of see the handle let him down. Burst of speed to his left. And you see there’s open space if he’s able to maintain control after this spin move, but instead he kind of loses the ball and it somehow works out for him. He was able to get a shot off, but it was extremely difficult and it could have been easier. And here’s a spot where he just made up his mind. He’s like, I want to drive. I want to drive. He’s able to get close to the rim. He has a good view on the basket, but also a lot of contest going on in that area, and he just doesn’t have the touch around the rim to hit a shot like this consistently. Definitely something to keep an eye on. If he can get a floater, that would be huge for his game. But he’s really just thrown right into the fire because I I mean, look at the spacing he has to deal with. Probably should have made the easier pass on this one, but can you blame him? We all know Kelly’s probably bricking. it somehow gets through and the Sixers don’t make them pay. It’s like, come on, guys. It just feels like I’m watching a college team. They just consistently miss opportunities to score. It’s crazy. The players that have played so far in the preseason, I mean, they’ve been closer to a college level team than an NBA team from a shotmaking perspective. But don’t worry, on the other end of the floor, VJ was hustling and absolutely blocks that. Now, I’m going to be annoying. I’m going to be nitpicky. The problem I have is he hit it right to the Knicks. I I know he wasn’t trying to do that, but in this spot, there is an opportunity to just like suffocate Jordan Clarkson. Either that or don’t hit it as hard. And in a preseason game, this doesn’t really matter. But the modern NBA has really come down to like a possession battle. So now he’s working off ball. OG gets really aggressive and VJ hits him with the back door like a wide receiver. OG’s still on the ground, so VJ’s like, “Okay, I’ll make the quick pass.” But of course, they’re not going to make this three. Despite his age, Malcolm Brogden, still a very deceptive driver, but VJ’s just too quick. Just keeps him in front. That’s what you want to see. Off the dribble, pull up game definitely going to be a work in progress. Definitely going to be inefficient in this area early in his NBA career. But at least he’s giving you in-game liveaction reps. This play right here where he just completely destroys this action by not allowing his guy to get the rock. Every great defense does this. Every great defender does this. And it really ruins offensive possessions. I mean, we see the Sixers struggle with this. Finally, someone’s creating for him. Good job by Justin Edwards getting in the paint, kicking it out, and look at him just dust this close out by Mikuel Bridges. He does everything correctly, easily gets to the rim, and then his mind just shuts off or whatever, and he loses control. We all know he loves to launch way earlier than he has to, but here Brunson was swiping, so it kind of made sense. But if he was able to take one more dribble, he’s probably like dunking that low key. He was also going really fast, so that probably affected his finish. But yeah, finishing is definitely a weakness. Another play that just showcases the state of the Sixers offense with these players on the court. A high switch. Rollman is taken away by Clarkson. So VJ makes the right pass. Jabari Walker should have just hit UB for three. It’s the right basketball play. Do I blame him? No. And eventually he does get the job done. But it’s just so difficult. And let’s go back to the beginning. When you have two players from the Knicks on VJ in this spot, you need to generate a clean, easy look. That’s what separates good teams from bad teams. Good teams in this spot consistently will get a wideopen look. You could tell in the second half he was tired. He wasn’t trying to be aggressive. He was passing quickly sometimes when he’s getting the rock. Here he comes up with the steal though. They pass it back and he makes a weakhand pass to the cutting Ub. What is this dude passing wise? Guess what? He doesn’t get an assist because the Sixers miss an easy layup. As I was saying, college level shotmaking team. Grimes, McCain, Paul George, Watford, Embiid, please get healthy. Another small detail I really enjoy, he gets the rebound here and just passes it right up on this one. Justin Edwards gets deep into the paint. The defender thinks VJ is going to go up and get the rock. Instead, he’s going back door and it’s an easy slam. Great team basketball. And also, it’s just nice in this spot when he catches. He’s just finishing so easily because of his athleticism. pressures the point guard and then switches on to a forward while staying in front and being a brick wall. Another weak hand pass from VJ to open up a three-pointer. What is going on? His pass game and point guardesque feel is probably the most impressive thing so far outside of his athleticism. Man oh man, if the shot making comes around for him on the ball and off the ball, it’s he’s just going to be a special player. But also, that’s very tough to develop. So, we’re just going to have to wait and see. I can’t wait to keep watching him. Let me know your thoughts below in the comments section. That’s game two from VJ.

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