After a strong start to his summer league debut, Zach Edey more than made up for a mistake he made Monday night in Salt Lake City.
Notably, it wasn’t enough to lead the Memphis Grizzlies to victory.
The former Purdue star, who the Grizzlies selected with the No. 9 overall pick in what was probably the most surprising move during the lottery portion of the NBA Draft last month, missed a potential game-winning comeback by dunking down the stretch final at the Delta Center in a summer league matchup against the Utah Jazz.
However, with 0.8 seconds left on the clock, Edey made a wild play after an intentionally missed free throw to force the extra period. The play, which teams fail to convert more often each season, was executed perfectly.
Despite his heroics, the Jazz scored in overtime in Elam Ending fashion, first off two free throws by Keyonte George. He was fouled by Edey on a drive to the rim before hitting his 16th and 17th free throws of the night to seal the 97-95 victory. George, who the Jazz took with the 16th overall pick last year out of Baylor, had 30 points in the win.
Edey fell into a lull after a strong first quarter, but finished with a double-double with 14 points and 15 rebounds while shooting 7-of-12 from the field. He threw down a big dunk over 7-foot-2 Walker Kessler after recovering from a blocked shot in the fourth quarter that left him scratching his head as he ran back the other way.
The Jazz rallied from a double-digit halftime deficit to take the lead with 18 seconds left in the fourth quarter following a huge 3-pointer from Taylor Hendricks. That’s when Edey missed the dunk, which seemed to seal the defeat for Memphis before his entry kept hopes alive.
Edey had six of his 15 rebounds in the first quarter. He picked up a technical foul after a minor scuffle just before halftime and went down in a scary moment in the third quarter after stepping on Hendricks’ foot. He quickly returned to the game and finished the night seemingly unconcerned with his sprained ankle.
Scotty Pippen Jr. led the Grizzlies with 21 points and five assists while shooting 8 of 14 from the field. Jake LaRavia added 18 points and seven rebounds. Kessler finished with 10 points, six rebounds and four blocks for the Jazz in George’s 30-point night. There were 68 combined fouls in the contest.
Edey averaged a nation-best 25.2 points per game last season at Purdue while also winning his second consecutive national player of the year award, something the sport hasn’t seen since Ralph Sampson won three consecutive wins from 1981-83. Edey also averaged 12.2 rebounds, second-best in the country, and 2.2 blocks per contest while leading the Boilermakers to the national title game.
The 7-foot-2 Toronto native was projected as a late first-round or early second-round NBA pick after the NCAA tournament, but his stock rose quickly in the weeks and months leading up to the draft. The Grizzlies were in negotiations to trade the No. 6 overall draft pick, but the negotiations fell apart in the final moments. Edey was the second center on the board. UConn star Donovan Clingan was selected 7th overall by the Portland Trail Blazers.
Edey and the Jazz will be back in action on Tuesday and Wednesday against the Philadelphia 76ers and Oklahoma City Thunder, respectively, before heading to Las Vegas for more summer league action on Friday. While he wasn’t consistent all night, Edey showed flashes of the big man he can be for the Grizzlies this season on Monday. As far as his summer league debut goes, Edey is in a good position.
