Dean Wade was Kansas State’s most highly touted player entering the 2018-19 season. He battled injuries all season, leading to an underwhelming senior season at Kansas State. However, there is still hope that he can have a career in the NBA.
Name: Dean Wade
Height/Weight: 6’10/ 228
Wingspan/ standing reach: N/A
Position: PF
College: Kansas State
Tools: Shooting
Pros:
- Adequate athlete in the open floor; solid in transition
- Versatile offensively
- Good shooting touch
- Excellent one dribble pull-up shot
- Good vision
Cons:
- Must add strength
- Dribbling vs length/strength
- Low defensive upside- poor lateral movement & reaction time
- Poor interior defender
- Effectiveness without scoring
Overall: Dean Wade is an offensive minded floor spacing power forward. Wade is a capable athlete with a beautiful shooting stroke and is able to shoot both from a standstill and on the move at a high rate. Wade has a dominant one dribble pull-up jumper that he likes to use when he gets his defender off his feet, or in the mid range with slight coverage. Beyond shooting, he is also a willing passer with above average vision for his position.
Defensively, Wade has a lot of shortcomings. He doesn’t move well laterally, he lacks recovery ability due to only average athleticism, and he gets beat easily on the interior due to frame, athleticism, and lack of strength. With these traits combined with his age, Wade has a low defensive ceiling in the NBA.
The biggest question mark for Wade is how he will overcome his defensive shortcomings in order to get on an NBA floor. While his open court athleticism is adequate, he isn’t able to use it as well defensively. Furthermore, at times Wade was often ineffective without scoring. This is partially due to his ability to dribble against pressure and blow by defenders. Against Tulsa in December 2018 Dean Wade had his worst game of his season with just 2 points and 1 assist, and was largely ineffective despite being Kansas State’s best and most talented player. He will need to refine the peripheral aspects of his game in order to get over the hump into the NBA.
NBA Comparison: Austin Daye
Projected draft range: Undrafted
