TORONTO — Zach Edey took a pause and looked around the lower bowl at Scotiabank Arena before tipoff, soaking it all in.
The Toronto native was finally playing an NBA game in front of his hometown fans, with nearly a hundred of his friends and family watching as his Memphis Grizzlies routed the Raptors 138-107 on Wednesday. He had 13 points and 15 rebounds for the eighth double-double of his rookie season and third in a row.
"I was more excited than nervous, I think," said Edey in the visitors' locker room after the game. "Cool to be back home, my one time per year. I've got to enjoy it."
Edey also had 14 points and 11 rebounds in the Grizzlies' 132-119 win in Milwaukee on Sunday and 16 points and 14 rebounds in Memphis's 128-109 victory over San Antonio. He entered Wednesday averaging 9.8 points and 7.6 rebounds over 20.8 minutes per game this season.
"I'm just kind of trying to take it game by game, figure out how to do my thing this year," said the seven-foot-four 22-year-old who grew up in midtown Toronto. "Take one game at a time, keep improving, get more comfortable."
Edey averaged 25.2 points, 12.2 rebounds, 2.2 blocks and two assists over 39 games for the Purdue Boilermakers in the 2023-24 season. His NCAA career average was 18.2 points, 9.6 rebounds, 1.7 blocks, and 1.3 assists over four season with Purdue.
He was recognized for his impressive season when he won the Naismith Award on April 7 as U.S. college basketball's player of the year for a second time. He is only the third male player to win back-to-back Naismiths, joining Hall of Famers Ralph Sampson and Bill Walton.
Still, it was a surprise when Memphis drafted him ninth overall last summer as many observers felt he was too slow and lacked the agility necessary for a big man to be competitive in the NBA.
Grizzlies head coach Taylor Jenkins thinks Edey's just scratching the surface of his talent, however.
"I know people had all kinds of question marks about what he was going to be able to do at this level defensively," said Jenkins before Wednesday's game. "With our system, protecting the paint, protecting the rim, trying to secure defensive rebounds, I think he really thrives in that.
"It's just a matter of adjusting to the speed, the physicality at times based off of the personnel he's going up against every night and then offensively, pace."
Edey said he was grateful to be drafted into a team that already had a winning culture. The Grizzlies (35-16) are chasing the Oklahoma City Thunder for first in the Western Conference.
"That's what you want," said Edey. "You don't want to go through those years where you're trying to get a good pick. You want to go to a team where you're competing in meaningful games."
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 5, 2025.
John Chidley-Hill, The Canadian Press
