Caleb Wilson, a 6’10 forward out of UNC, did not enter the year projected to go this high (and possibly even higher on draft night), but his unique intersection of athleticism, dexterity, and skill jumped off the page this season, cementing his place among the other top guys by the end of it.
Put simply, if you were to show Wilson’s highlight package to someone with no knowledge about the draft, they would probably assume he’s the projected top pick. The freakish things this guy can do in transition
are so otherworldly that he’s even drawn comparisons to, you guessed it, Giannis (in that area; they are not being compared as players, to be clear). He is stupidly athletic and explosive, of course, but he also moves with such fluidity. I can’t really describe it; it’s almost as if he glides on the court.
If Caleb can find a crease and get daylight to the rim, something good is generally going to happen. He’s also an excellent rebounder who pursues the ball at every opportunity, hauling in 9.4 boards per game (along with 2.9 stocks). But above all else, the intangible that separates the 19-year-old from his peers is his motor. The term “motor” is a term that gets thrown around much more than it should, but Wilson’s is truly different. This is a ruthless competitor who hates losing; a “dawg,” if you will. To paint a picture of the type of attitude I’m talking about, watch this interview. See what I mean?
So from an attitudinal, “does this guy want to be great?” standpoint, Caleb ticks all the boxes. That said, like all prospects, he has flaws—the most obvious being his shooting ability. Wilson shot 25.9% from three on just 1.1 tries per game at UNC; he also shot just 71.3% from the charity stripe. The shot mechanics are by no means broken, and I do believe he has some natural touch, but this part of his game will likely take some time to get to a passable level.
And because shooting is not currently a strength of his, Caleb did not want to shoot all that often. Oh no, that dude was going to try to get to the rim—by hook or by crook. Most of the time, he would try to push past, jump over, or maneuver around his opponent to finish at the cup. Sometimes this worked, but other times there were Giannis-esque possessions (again) in which Wilson had blinders on, leading to a turnover or a poor shot. He can be a little bit like a monster truck with no brakes at times, averaging 2.7 assists per game to 2.0 turnovers. There are undoubtedly some bad habits that will need to be worked out of his game as he progresses to the next level.
Finally, the part of Caleb’s game that a lot of people get wrong is his defensive acumen. Like AJ Dybantsa, Wilson has all the tools to become a good defender, but he is not there yet. As an on-ball defender, he was OK, but off the ball was a completely different story. The number of instances in which he was caught ball-watching or in the wrong help position was a little concerning.
I know I mentioned Wilson’s impressive stock numbers above, but that’s more a testament to his overall athleticism and length that he was still able to rack up stats despite starting in the wrong spot a lot of the time; it was not meant to imply that he is this preternatural off-ball raomer. But with all of that said, Caleb Wilson will wow executives in interviews and workouts, and his frame and athletic traits are just too hard to ignore with a top-four pick.
How do you view Caleb Wilson? Let us know in the comments. Also, please vote for who you think should be next on our board!
