Former Miami Heat Big Men ‘Proud’ of Zach Edey’s Pre-Draft Workout: 'He Plays Big'

Former Miami Heat center Alonzo Mourning appeared on the Friday episode of The Big Podcast with Shaq where he had high praise for Memphis Grizzlies rookie Zach Edey.

According to Mourning, Edey had a great pre-draft workout with the Heat heading into the 2024 NBA Draft.

Miami had the 15th pick in the recent draft and hoped to draft Edey .

Unfortunately for the Heat, the Grizzlies, who had the ninth pick, nabbed the 7-foot-4 big man early in the first round.

However, the team still got to draft a front-court youngster in Kelel Ware out of Indiana.

In the podcast, the topic of the Canadian big man was brought up by Shaquille ONeal, who loved the way Edey has been for Memphis.

I watched Zach Edey the other day, Shaq said.

Drop stepping and hes doing a lot of jump hooks.

It actually made me feel proud.

Zach Edey reminds Shaq & Alonzo of how they used to play back in the day pic.twitter.com/nlMcsTNxke The Big Podcast (@bigpodwithshaq) November 23, 2024 Mourning , whos part of the Heats front office as the Vice President of Player Programs and Development, had the chance to watch Edeys pre-draft workout.

We loved Zach Edey in our pre-draft workouts, Mourning said.

We were looking at it.

He had a great pre-draft workout with us, man.

And hes one of those guys thats committed to getting better and I love it.

Obviously, he had a great college career.

He plays big, set good screens, roll hard to the basket, try to dominate the paint and be a paint presence.

He aint standing out there heaving up threes and jumpers and everything.

Hes going to the rim.

I like Zach.

I think hes going to have a great career, God willing he stays healthy.

But I like what I see ins Edey, for sure.

Edey has played 14 games for the Grizzlies in the 2024-25 NBA season, averaging 11.1 points, 6.9 rebounds and 1.0 blocks.

The two former Heat stars loved how the rookie has played because of his work inside the paint.

The former Miami Heat big man criticizes the modern big men Mourning isnt the biggest fan of how modern big men play in the league.

According to the former Miami Heat star, he doesnt like big men shooting outside jumpers.

I dont like to see bigs with a heavy volume of threes because I think first of all, youre not using size to your advantage to help your team, Mourning said.

Theres a reason why youre called a big man.

Use it to your teams advantage.

Alonzo Mourning shares his thoughts on modern day NBA Centers pic.twitter.com/KK4023FAWQ The Big Podcast (@bigpodwithshaq) November 22, 2024 Because he played in an era when toughness was highly valued, Mourning put in a lot of work in the weight room.

Because of this, he became a feared rim protector and an elite post presence offensively.

This article first appeared on Hardwood Heroics and was syndicated with permission..

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