2014 NBA Draft: Wiggins or Parker?

Posted on May 25, 2014 by Noah Miller in NBA // 1 Comment

Andrew Wiggins and Jabari Parker are the LeBron and Durant (Pepsi vs. Coca-Cola) comparison of this years 2014 NBA Draft. At the end of the day, what young phenom is the better player?

Andrew Wiggins:

Andrew Wiggins is one athletic player, but how athletic can he be against players like Kevin Durant or LeBron James? Athleticism shouldn’t be your standout edge if you’re a number one pick of this years draft.

At Kansas, Wiggins averaged 17.1 points-per-game, 5.9 rebounds-per-game, and 1.5 assists-per-game. Compared to Jabari Parker, Wiggins cannot beat out Parker’s offense OR defense.

Wiggins shot 44.8% which proves his weakness of consistency. Another weakness is Wiggins’ body build; he weighs a puzzling 197 lbs. True, Wiggins is a lengthy and sleek player, but how can he push through defenses with HUGE players.

It won’t happen. According to scouting reports, Wiggins is an “elite” athlete compared to other opponents. In a previous article, I commented about Wiggins being over-hyped since high school. This proves my point. Andrew Wiggins is not an elite athlete, he has not played a minute of NBA basketball. Wiggins is a good scoring player that needs to develop in his career.

In the highlight video, it seems like Wiggins can just be a pure scorer in the league. Hopefully down the road, Wiggins can develop into something more.

Jabari Parker:

Jabari Parker is known for his all-around style of play; he can score, rebound, and assist. We saw it at Duke, Parker can simply do it all for his team. Although, he does not have Andrew Wiggins’ athleticism, don’t be surprised if you see Parker throwing down a 360 dunk in a game.

You will also see Parker contributing in all parts of the stat line, which Wiggins cannot do. At Duke, Parker averaged 19.1 points-per-game, 8.7 rebounds-per-game, and 1.2 assists-per-game. In his scouting report, scouts say that Parker is “good” not “elite,” but we have to realize that Parker is only 19.

He has a high ceiling to develop and mature in the years ahead, and Wiggins is already behind due to his one-sided style of play. Parker is a developed to be a legitimate contender and all around player; a lot different than many draftees. Another weakness to Parker’s game is his lack of athleticism. Please check out the video below, it completely puts that argument to rest:

Parker is extremely athletic, but not Andrew Wiggins’ athletic. Wiggins is not human when it comes to putting down dunks.

Another strength of Parker’s is his ability to push the ball down the court. After a rebound, he will go coast-to-coast and drive through one, two, three players with ease.

At 19, Parker can bring his consistent all-around skills to any team that needs offense and defense. When you have a player like Parker being coached by Mike Krzyzewski (no disrespect to Bill Self), the results and improvements are endless.