Assessing V.J. Edgecombe Against Spain in a FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament Game

November 4th, 2024

This time around, I decided to take the time to watch Baylor’s 6-5 freshman guard VJ Edgecombe play for the Bahamas against Spain in a July 7th Olympic Qualifying Tournament game, with thanks to YouTube via FIBA – The Basketball Channel. He played with real NBA players over the summer, and he played well at this tournament. He is a very athletic, energetic swingman that has shown strong promise on both ends of the floor, and he could be slated to be a likely lottery pick in the 2025 draft. Here are my thoughts on how he fared, as well as how his game may translate to the NBA. For those that are interested in the box score of this game, here is the link.

V.J. Edgecombe is a very athletic, energetic guard that can make some very impressive plays on both ends of the floor, as he is a downhill driver that has promising playmaking skills. He showed solid court vision, and if he can be more consistent with his outside shot, it could really allow him to thrive on the offensive end.

Edgecombe showed a solid ability to score off the dribble. He is a strong driver to the basket, and he also both a very good first step and a crafty pump fake that will allow him to frequently get to the free throw line. He also crashed the offensive glass, which enabled him to score on tip shots, which included a powerful tip slam once. On the downside, sometimes he would miss on quick, contested shots after grabbing offensive rebounds for his team.

He didn’t shoot the ball well from the outside, but Edgecombe was able to make a quick, open three-pointer. Edgecombe also was able drive left to score on a smooth, open pull-up jumper from the mid-range. However, he struggled more to make pull-up threes off the dribble, although it can be excused to an extent because his team was trailing and they needed someone to try to score to bring them back into the game.

Also, he showcased solid playmaking skills. He is a fleet-footed guard that has a lightning first step to the hoop, and he would make swift drive and kick passes to find open shooters to notch assists. He also was able to utilize a spin move to throw an accurate lob pass to get another assist due to possessing solid court vision. Sometimes though, he would rush his moves, overdribble, and throw hasty passes, which would lead him to commit careless turnovers.

Plus, Edgecombe also did a good job of rebounding the basketball, and he was active at crashing the glass to haul in multiple boards on both ends of the floor. He was able to push the pace off of a defensive board once. However, there was one play where he ran in too hard off of an offensive rebounding attempt that led him to commit a foul due to over aggressiveness.

Defensively, he looked to be about average at best. For the positives, he is a rangy defender that has solid defensive potential. Edgecombe would get his hands on passes to get steals, and he can quickly race in to help force turnovers. He also was able to stay with an opposing ball handler to block a three-point shot, and Edgecombe would actively contest threes to force misses. On the downside, he really struggled to defend in screen situations. He would often get caught on screens, which would render him out of the play defensively, and it would lead his team to wind up in scramble situations that would cause them to give up open shots and allow baskets, usually from the outside. Other times, he would get confused as who to guard on the defensive end, which would lead opponents to get open shot opportunities from the outside.

Overall, VJ Edgecombe had a decent showing in his team’s loss to Spain, and he is a very talented prospect that could excel as both a primary ball handler or as an off-ball player in an offense. He’ll need to be a more consistent shooter in games, and he’ll need to add more muscle to his frame to be able to defend screens better. Still, his strong ability to create his own shot, distribute the basketball, and potential to be a shutdown defender should allow him to be a likely lottery pick in the 2025 draft.