Justin Edwards NBA Draft Slide: Why Kentucky’s projected 1st round pick wasn’t drafted on Day 1 explored

The 2024 NBA draft had its first round conclude on Wednesday night, and the top 30 picks are officially with their teams. However, one of the top prospects was Kentucky's freshman forward Justin Edwards, but he did not hear his name called and is waiting until the second round to see where his NBA future begins.

But what made teams hesitant to use a first-round draft pick on Edwards? There are a few possible reasons, but let's take a closer look at Justin Edwards and discuss some of the possibilities that caused him to leave the first round of the 2024 NBA draft without an indication of what is next for his future.

Why Justin Edwards wasn't drafted in the first round

Justin Edwards has a lot of upside, with much excitement about his abilities. However, several things made NBA teams a little cautious of his career. One major flaw is that he will need to get stronger in the weight room as he is listed at 203 pounds and other NBA players are going to back him down.

Edwards is also a bit older than his class, as he has already turned 20 and will be 21 toward the beginning stages of the NBA regular season. While that red flag certainly is not as large as others, that makes him a little less valuable as his peak could end earlier than other players in his class.

Edwards has shown a limitation as a playmaker with 0.9 assists to 0.8 turnovers per game, which is a worse ratio than people would want that to be.

Justin Edward's College Career Stats

Justin Edwards had a decent freshman year with the Kentucky Wildcats, and the forward has to do better in the professional leagues. He appeared in 32 games and averaged 21.5 minutes while finishing with 8.8 points, 3.4 rebounds, 0.9 assists and 0.9 steals per game.

Edwards shot the ball at a strong level, though, as he connected on 48.6% from the floor, 36.5% from beyond the arc and 77.6% shooting from the charity stripe.