Did the Memphis Grizzlies really become the victim? Zhou Zhihao was rated as the "worst choice" by the media
On June 27, Beijing time, the NBA finished the first round of the draft with 30 picks. French forward Lisa Xie was selected by the Hawks as the No. 1 pick, and Alex Sarr, who played for the Perth Wildcats of the Australian NBL last season, was selected by the Wizards as the No. 2 pick. The biggest upset was that the Memphis Grizzlies selected Canadian center Zach Eady, who was nicknamed "Little Yao Ming" by Chinese fans, at the ninth pick.
As soon as the draft results came out, Yahoo Sports rated each team's draft operations - the Grizzlies' selection was the only one to receive the worst rating, a D.
This is a complete gap, which means that the media is very sure that this is a failed choice and Zhou Zhihao is far from worthy of this pick. Some industry insiders even believe that the Grizzlies made this choice because of their mentality.
Zach Eady was born on May 14, 2002. He is Canadian and his Chinese name is Zhou Zhihao. His grandfather is from Guangzhou, so he is indeed 1/4 Chinese. He plays center and is studying at Purdue University. He is 2.24 meters tall, weighs 136 kilograms, and has a wingspan of 2.41 meters. His draft template is Valanciunas/Zubac/Boban.
In the March Madness match where Purdue University defeated the University of Tennessee 72-66 to advance to the semifinals, Zhou Zhihao scored a historic statistic of "4016". Last season, Zhou Zhihao played 39 games for the team, averaging 25.2 points, 12.2 rebounds, 2.0 assists, 2.2 blocks, 2.3 turnovers in 32.0 minutes per game, with a shooting percentage of 62.3% and a free throw percentage of 71.1%. Especially in March Madness, he performed extremely well, averaging a large double-double of 29.5 points and 14.5 rebounds per game to lead Purdue University to the finals, but unfortunately he ended up as runner-up. However, with his strong performance, he was still selected into the All-NBA Team.
Zhou Zhihao has obvious advantages. He has a strong physique and can compete with any opponent in the interior. He is also a reliable rim protector and rebounder. He has a soft touch near the basket and a strong finishing ability. His free throw shooting percentage is not bad, and with his strong destructive power in the interior, he can score a lot of points at the free throw line. He is experienced and has played in college for four years. After getting the ball in the interior, he is used to shooting high and is not easily intercepted. When being double-teamed, he can pass the ball in time. Whether in college or in the Canadian national team, he will try his best to play his role and make contributions.
However, inconsistent with his dominance in college basketball, his NBA draft prospects have always been less than optimistic.
After the NCAA season ended last year, Zhou Zhihao appeared on the NBA draft list, and his ranking has remained between the end of the first round and the second round. Sports Illustrated predicted Zhou Zhihao's future at the time: "Due to Zhou Zhihao's age, he is likely to be selected in the second round, but he is undoubtedly a first-round talent."
Under such circumstances, Zhou Zhihao withdrew from the draft at the last minute last year. It is worth mentioning that this was the second consecutive year that Zhou Zhihao chose to withdraw from the draft. Now this has proven to be a wise choice - last year was the era of Wen Ban Yama, and the quality of the top 10 rookies was pretty good. So Zhou Zhihao temporarily avoided the limelight. This year is called the smallest draft in NBA history, and the quality of rookies is extremely low.
However, before the "March Madness", he was still only in the second round of the draft. It was not until he led Purdue University to make history that Zhou Zhihao's draft prospects entered the edge of the first round lottery zone on some draft simulation websites, hovering around the 13th pick. However, the Lakers, who received the 17th pick, had always shown their attention and love for Zhou Zhihao.
Although this year's draft is much more favorable to Zhou Zhihao than in the past, before the meeting, no one thought that he would eventually be selected with the ninth pick.
Firstly, it is because of his age - Zhou Zhihao was already 22 years old after graduating from his senior year, which became the biggest obstacle to his growth space; secondly, it is because his height, athletic ability and playing style are not the mainstream of the current NBA. He moves slowly, and his rhythm on both offense and defense is slow. He prefers to rely on his body shape to get shooting opportunities rather than using footwork techniques. His shooting range is short, his mid-range shooting feel is not good, and it is difficult for him to attack from the outside. Although he is tall enough, he rarely uses floaters, and his finishing ability is seriously reduced when he is far away from the basket...
He was definitely not the Grizzlies’ first choice. Before the draft, the Grizzlies wanted to trade the third pick with the Rockets to get Clingan. But the Rockets felt that the bargaining chips were not enough, and the two sides failed to reach an agreement. After that, the Grizzlies negotiated with the Hornets to exchange draft picks. The two sides reached a deal, but the Hornets later changed their minds and finally chose to keep the draft pick for themselves. The helpless Grizzlies locked Zhou Zhihao by force.
Of course, as an older rookie, Zhou Zhihao can contribute to the team through rebounding, screens and rim protection. In addition, from Zhou Zhihao's growth process in college, we can see that he has a strong ability to adapt and learn, and his experience also means that he is likely to become a very good combat force. But his age also means that his ceiling may not be high. Next season, I judge that he will become a good role player.
