Team: Purdue
Year: Junior
Height/Weight: 6’0, 200 lbs.
Strengths:
Carsen Edwards is one of the most polished scorers in the country and continues to become a much improved and seasoned point guard that deserves more respect. Last year, Edwards went into the NBA draft combine on the fence, whether he wanted to stay at Purdue or officially enter the league. Following his workouts with multiple teams, he decided to go improve on his game and return to Purdue University for one more year.
When you talk about somebody that was ‘Born To Score,’ the Texas native is lethal from 35 feet from the goal and at the rim in-between the Trees!
His sneaky athleticism is what helps him finish exceedingly well at the rim. With a similar body type to to Eric Bledsoe, his upper body strength gives him the ability to find success while lacking height. He’s got the mindset and the right attitude for someone who would normally be counted out given his stature.
There have been multiple games where Edwards has made more than six three pointers this season. Expect to see those continued numbers throughout the entirety of his upcoming professional career. Against Penn State in an overtime win, Edwards scored 41 points including eight three pointers. He has a unique way of finding his spots on the court, but there is rarely a spot on the floor he can’t shoot from. He can score set shots or off the dribble. Him scoring off the dribble is especially what makes Edwards such a tough guard.
While Edwards has a score-first mentality, he has the potential to become an efficient playmaker. There have been countless times where Carsen has set up his teammates for good shots. The team relies on him.
He is an above average rebounder for his size as well. His ball-handling is elite and keeps the defense guessing with his efficient scoring. We know he’s an agile scorer with a dynamic game, but his stock will depend on how much better of a playmaker he can become.
Weaknesses:
Edwards is undersized at 6’0 and is not the prototypical point guard, with him having the mindset of scoring first. His ball distribution could improve a whole lot, as mentioned. At Purdue he is asked to be a scorer and that has not helped him show how well of a playmaker he potentially could be. Nobody knows his ceiling as a playmaker right now, but we do know that the floor isn’t too low. The unknown is what is the weakness to his draft stock right now.
With Carsen Edwards being undersized he is a mismatch defensively. He has to work on his defensive positioning otherwise it’ll keep him at a disadvantage when he guards most players with better size. He is quick in the passing lanes, but he struggles with on-ball defense lacking lateral quickness. He has to become a better defender to make sure he progresses at the next level.
Carsen Edwards is a great scorer, however his green light is so bright that he can sometimes look to do it all by himself and that can hurt the team and he can seem selfish. He is an amazing scorer, but can sometimes be a streaky scorer and force a shot. We’ve seen that negatively affect many draft prospects once they get to the next level. They were used to taking 20 shots a game so it gave them time to warm up. Carsen is going to start by only having 6 or 7. He won’t have all of the time in the world to heat up.
Future Outlook:
Carsen Edwards is a professional scorer, that has the potential to become a better playmaker and defender to improve his chances of becoming a first round pick. But, given his low frame and non superior playmaking ability, Edwards could find himself falling in the second round n this year’s upcoming draft.
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