I'll see if I can dig up some of the articles I read on him. For one thing, ask yourself why he's a freshman and is as old as he is. Answer, he couldn't get his grades up high enough to qualify for college. finally managed to get into Marshall. Ask yourself why he's one and done despite advise from many people to stay in school because he's not ready yet. Answer, he quit studying and wasn't able to keep his grade average up. So he had no choice.
Most people accept that he at the moment has a low basketball IQ. He's good at what he likes to do. Such as block shots and score. He relies mostly on his athleticism right now, and reportedly hasn't put in the work to get better at the fundamentals. So his work ethic has been questioned. One could say that these are merely rumors, and perhaps some of them are. But if you watch him play, which I was able to do 4 times this year, you start to believe the rumors because of how he plays the game.
When Whiteside gets the ball in his hands. One of two things are going to happen. He's either going to shoot the ball, or turn the ball over. He almost never tries to pass the ball, and when he does, he's a terrible passer. He does have pretty fair handles for a guy his size, but seldom puts them to use. He doesn't have much of a post game, relying mostly again on his athleticism to get him by. Add to the picture that he's not very strong, and he's easily knocked off balance in the post, thereby affecting his shot. He has very little upper body or lower body strength.
And while he did block a lot of shots and he did rebound well. Remember that he seldom faced anyone that was as tall or as athletic as he was. Which was why I was looking forward to the Jordan/Whiteside matchup. It was my first chance to see Whiteside go up agains someone just as tall and much stronger than he was. Whiteside still managed to score around 14 pts if memory serves, but most of them were scored with his jumpshot or putbacks. When he went head to head with Jordan he lost almost every match. Jordan pushed him around like a rag doll.
Now if Jordan is a projected 2nd round pick, and who knows, he may end up being a lot better than that. But assuming that they're right, just how well do you think he's going to do against the Bynum's and the Kaman's of the world. Three years from now Whiteside could end up being pretty good and on his way to being possibly great. Or he could just as easily be on his way out of the league. I think he's a very, very risky pick if he's a lottery pick. Your betting that he gets his head on straight and really applies himself. Dedicates himself. Busts his butt to become a great player. Up to now he's shown no indication that he's willing to put in the work. And its hard, hard work. Athleticism aside, he's way behind the curve. This is a guy that doesn't know how to set a pick properly and he about to turn 21 years of age.
I'm not saying he can't do it. He has all the tools. All I'm saying is its better to look before you leap. Right now, I bet my money on Parakhouski being a much better center than Whiteside.
