James Wiseman has gotten off to impressive start to his NBA career

James Wiseman has gotten off to a great start

James Wiseman has been spectacular in the small sample size he has given to begin his NBA career as he got off to a magnificent start despite the Golden State Warriors losing their first two games.

Wiseman has shown he was well worth a top-3 selection while averaging 12.5 points and 5.8 rebounds. While the numbers aren’t mind-blowing, they are a good sign of things to come as Wiseman will only improve and get better as his minutes increase. He has also shown an innate ability to get to the foul line and could very well become one of the main scoring options.

Warriors head coach Steve Kerr might consider running his offense through both Curry and Wiseman and allow them to play a 2-man game similar to how the Denver Nuggets use Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray.

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Wiseman has so many weapons in his arsenal that a 2-man game could prove to be successful. He can run the pick and roll as well as the pick-and-pop and knock-down mid-range jumpers. He can also take his defender off the dribble, can run in transition like a guard, draw contact, catch alley-oops and clean up on the offensive glass.

What makes Wiseman so special is the fact that he also has the skills to play like a traditional big man, showing off his versatility while being a solid rim protector and a good screen setter with the ability to score in the low post. Once Draymond Green is healthy and returns to the lineup, it should provide the Warriors a dominant defensive presence with Green harassing ball handlers and Wiseman protecting the paint with his shot-blocking prowess.

Wiseman has superstar potential and should be given every opportunity to show what he can do, especially considering Klay Thompson’s absence and the lack of legitimate scoring threats behind Curry as Andrew Wiggins and Kelly Oubre have underachieved so far as they were expected to help carry the offense but have been inconsistent thus far. The experience Wiseman will gain in his rookie season will be invaluable as he should vastly improve moving forward if he puts in the work.

In his NBA debut against the Brooklyn Nets on opening night, Wiseman scored 19 points on 7-13 from the field grabbing six rebounds and two steals in 24 minutes of action. Nobody expected Wiseman to have the kind of debut he did as the Warriors were in dire need of scoring, and even in a blowout loss, Wiseman took the initiative and stepped up like a veteran.

There is no limit to what Wiseman can accomplish, especially while following the lead of one of the best point guards in the league in Curry. On Christmas Day against the Milwaukee Bucks, Wiseman followed up his stellar debut with 18 points, eight rebounds, and three blocked shots as he displayed an aura of confidence against two of the best teams in the NBA on a nationally televised stage in his first two games. He has definitely been the most impressive rookie so far but it is still early in the season.

If Wiseman can continue playing at this level, he should be the overwhelming favorite for Rookie of the Year as he appears to already be in mid-season form. If the Warriors continue to use Wiseman as a stretch-5 and if he consistently continues to knock down jump shots, it should allow the Warriors offense to flow much better and will also affect the opposing team’s ability to protect the paint as they would have to account for Wiseman on the perimeter.

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He is already drawing comparisons to the likes of Anthony Davis, Chris Bosh, and Karl-Anthony Towns as a player with a deadly inside/outside repertoire. Wiseman is also a great finisher at the rim and the Warriors would be wise to utilize his talents as the season progresses. It will be interesting to see just how much progress Wiseman makes between now and and the end of the season as we may be witnessing the coming-out party of the next great big in the NBA.

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