A Volunteer Fan's Retrospective: They Were Wrong About Zach Edey

Let’s set the scene: March Madness, 2024, and the Tennesee Volunteers (Vols) are set for their first Elite Eight since 2010 on the shoulders of superstar senior forward Dalton Knecht. This was considered by most as the best Tennessee basketball team ever assembled. Head coach Rick Barnes had a chance to bring the Vols to their first Final Four in program history.

However, one team stood in their way: the Purdue Boilermakers, led by reigning Naismith Player of the Year Zach Edey. Edey dominated the game, leading the Boilermakers to the Final Four under his 40 points and 16 rebounds. 

What made most this Vols fan despise the seven-footer was that he finished the game with 22 free throw attempts in an effort where he received the benefit of the doubt from the officials, totaling only one foul despite his aggressive play style. When the Memphis Grizzlies selected Edey 9th overall in June’s NBA Draft, pessimists thought Edey’s game would not translate. 

Questions about Edey’s fit in the modern NBA lingered. A jumbo-sized big with no outside shot, suspect foot speed and poor defensive versatility made Edey an NBA draft bust in the eyes of his haters.

Former NBA All-Star Gilbert Arenas took to his podcast, Gil’s Arena, to ask: “How is he (Edey) going to play defense in the NBA now?... He’s just going to be picked on, so it’s a waste of a lottery pick. I just don't see it happening. But, you know, there’s stupid general managers out there, so it could happen."

But Edey, who only knows how to win, has silenced the doubters. Averaging nearly 11 points and eight rebounds per game on a top-three team in the Western Conference has placed Edey in the Rookie of the Year conversations.

Edey’s bruising playstyle (including his two separate fiascos with Warriors forward and self-proclaimed Grizzlies villain Draymond Green) and strong rebounding have been precisely what the Grizzlies missed when they traded away Steven Adams.

Not all is perfect, as Edey has seen multiple scary injuries and some early foul troubles. However, his fit in the front court next to Jaren Jackson Jr. and his dunker-spot synergy with Ja Morant will be key in Memphis’ push for a title, so consider this an official apology from a Tennessee Vols fan.

Zach Edey upset them last March and they may have even lost their temper and said some things they regret. Now? As a Grizzlies fan, he has their full support and belief.