Justin Edwards agrees to two-way deal with Philadelphia 76ers

Justin Edwards is one of the final one-and-dones from the Calipari era at Kentucky, and is now headed to Philadelphia after signing a two-way deal with the 76ers as an undrafted free agent

Edwards played a lone season in Lexington for the Wildcats. In that time as a freshman, he appeared in 32 games with 30 of those being starts for UK. He averaged 8.8 points during the one year along with 3.4 rebounds while shooting 48.6% overall and 36.5% from three.

Edwards didn’t fully live up to his pedigree coming from high school to college. Still, he found his footing late in the season as he posted 11.6 points while shooting 60.5% from the field and 44.9% from three over the final 10 games of the regular season. That included a season-best game of 28 points, five rebounds, two assists, and a pair of steals while shooting 10-10, which featured four triples, against Alabama.

Edwards, a native of Philadelphia, played high school basketball at Imhotep Institute. He was a Five-Star+ prospect there as the No. 2 overall recruit in the 2023 cycle behind only Isaiah Collier. That was according to the On3 Industry Ranking, a weighted average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies. He also rated as the No. 1 SF and the No. 1 player from Pennsylvania in the class. That made him the top-ranked recruit in the eight-man group for Kentucky that was the No. 1 recruiting class in the nation.

What NBA Draft experts are saying about Justin Edwards

For his projection as a professional, Edwards is already helped by his frame at 6’6 and a wingspan of 6’10. The question is how the rest of his game and skillset on both ends of the floor translate as a player in the NBA.

“Edwards possesses the ideal size, length and athleticism for a forward in the modern NBA,” RotoWire wrote in their evaluation of him. “Offensively, he has shown to be a reliable spot-up shooter with the ability to attack closeouts. He can also use his athleticism to get out in transition and finish strong at the rim. Defensively, Edwards is able to use his length to bother perimeter shooters and create turnovers.”

“Edwards’ game is reminiscent of Amir Coffey and GG Jackson as long wings who are able to use their athletic ability to leverage the threat of their outside shot into attacks at the rim,” it continued. “Edwards projects to be a capable scorer at the next level whose skill set will complement a primary playmaker. He also possesses the tools to be a versatile defender.”

That evaluation gauged him to be a selection around the middle of the draft for On3’s James Fletcher III.

“Edwards remains in the conversation as a late first round pick or early second round pick as the pre-draft process rolls on,” wrote Fletcher.