Tag: NBA Lottery

Georgia basketball star Anthony Edwards goes No. 1 in latest NBA mock draft

Georgia forward Anthony Edwards goes No. 1 in NBC’s latest NBA mock draft

Georgia’s Anthony Edwards was selected at No. 1 in NBC Sports‘ latest NBA mock draft.

On June 25, Edwards could be UGA’s first ever No. 1 selection in the NBA Draft.

The 6-foot-4 guard was a one-and-done at Georgia, displaying an incredible scoring ability and freakish athleticism.

The SEC Freshman of the Year scored a team-leading 19.1 points per game while adding 5.2 rebounds and 2.8 assists per game.

On Edwards, NBC Sports wrote:

Edwards is the best scorer in this 2020 NBA Mock Draft. At 6-foot-4 with a 6-foot-8 wingspan and explosive athleticism, he’s proven himself to be a dangerous three-level bucket-getter that can get hot and do things like score 33 points in a half. Ask Michigan State. He also has the physical profile of a guard that can defend two or three different positions in the NBA. It’s all there.

Although Edwards is perhaps the most proficient scorer in this year’s draft class, there are still some questions regarding his jump-shot.

At UGA, Edwards shot 29% from the 3-pt line, however, the numbers may not reflect that the guard was forced to be a one-man show for the Bulldogs.

Whether Edwards goes first or not, Bulldog fans hope he lands with a certain team from Atlanta…..

The Hawks do currently hold one of 14 projected lottery picks, so there is a possibility Edwards may be back in the red and black this fall.

Despite some good news, questions remain about NBA’s future plans

Despite promising news about new tests potentially aiding the return of the NBA season, many questions remain about how the league will move forward.

Despite news a newly-approved coronavirus test may help speed the return of the 2019-20 NBA season, many questions linger on how the suspension of games in response to the pandemic will impact the current and future seasons.

On hold since Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert tested positive for the viral infection on Mar. 11, even optimistic projections suggest a June return to action at soonest.

With the NBA business year resetting at the end of that month, how will it impact contracts which end before the arrival of July 1st, the traditional start of NBA free agency?

Boston Celtics All-Star forward Gordon Hayward expressed concern speaking with retired forward Richard Jefferson on this and related issues on Instagram Live recently, and the potential loss of games if the season is not re-started could have other significant impacts for teams and players going forward.

For one thing, it could mean players won’t get paid beyond their April 1 paycheck, which the league has confirmed will be distributed to players it is due, reports NBC Sports.

The NBA’s Collective Bargaining Agreement contains a clause that teams may withhold up to 1.08 % of a player’s salary for every game canceled in a season by uncontrollable events like war and pandemics such as the one we are experiencing.

Another related issue is the impact of all those lost games on the salary cap.

Without at least a partial recoupment of at least some of those games, the league could be looking at a historic drop in the cap in future seasons unless the NBA, teams and players can negotiate an alternative.

While some analysts are projecting losses to the tune of close to a billion dollars, NBA commissioner Adam Silver is hesitant to make any such prognostications.

“It’s too soon to tell what the economic impact will be,” Silver explained .

“We’ve been analyzing multiple scenarios on a daily if not hourly basis and we’ll continue to review the financial implications. Obviously, it’s not a pretty picture but everyone, regardless of what industry they work in, is in the same boat.”

There is also the NBA Draft Lottery, Combine and 2020 NBA Draft to consider, with some teams already preparing for online interviews and previous scouting to take the place of the combine.

It is unknown how the league is considering dealing with the pandemic’s impact on these events at this time, but we can expect news to begin percolating out of NBA offices soon.

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