The first time I saw PJ Edwards live was this summer. It was in Rock Hill, South Carolina at a Big Shots event, I immediately tweeted about how good of a defender he was, “PJ Edwards may be the best wing defender in North Carolina.” I was hype about it, this was his first time playing in North Carolina and already, he was getting the moniker of “best perimeter defender.”

As many of you reading this know, I am not afraid of making statements based on what I see, even if the player is unknown at the time. I publicly labeled the likes of Jay Huff, Shakeel Moore, Ja Morant, Jaylon Gibson, Nick Farrar, PJ Hall, John Fulkerson, Jerome Robinson, Josiah James, etc...as high major prospects, before they even had a single offer. So to make statements off the beaten path are not off brand here.

But of course, in this instance, I had seen Edwards before on film. He was at Minnesota Prep last year, and playing on the Grind Session, where he averaged 17 points per game. He came to Charlotte, NC/Liberty Heights Academy with a couple of directional school offers, Southern Illinois and Southeast Missouri State, so it is not like he was a completely unknown prospect, but he just was not known to the level of his talents.But as mentioned in the previous paragraph, while that may matter to many, to me it does not.

When you look at the landscape of wings in North Carolina for the 2021 class, you see high major players at the top. Players who have signed with Clemson, UNC, Louisville, NC State, etc…, and this is the reason why this statement is so impactful, so I will say it again, “PJ Edwards is the best wing defender in North Carolina.

But his defense is just part of what makes him a special prospect, because then you add that he is a 40+% three-point shooter at 6’5” and 205 pounds. This is where things get interesting and this is where the prospect term really starts to raise its eyebrows of coaches at the previously mentioned levels.

This summer, Edwards finished things up with Team Curry. He played in four events with them and the team finished 13-0 in those four events. Liberty Heights Academy has started the season 5-0 to this point, meaning since Edwards has been based in North Carolina, he has not lost a real game.

Edwards transferred to a Liberty Heights team who has a Top 100 2021 seven-footer in Jonas Aidoo and they are surrounded with a roster that is filled with college level talent.

So we look at him and ask, what is Edwards? He is a high major wing prospect who can defend (perhaps lock up) the opposing teams best perimeter threat, while creating space on the floor with his ability to knock down jumpers at a high clip and the IQ to attack closeouts with control and strength.

In looking at his recruitment his most recent offers are from Florida International and Bowling Green State. However, there are numerous Power 5 schools who are throwing out the recruiting pitch, “If PJ is ready to commit, we will offer him now.” They are trying to keep him a secret, however, now that the season has started, that will be hard to do.

While people who do rankings within the state of North Carolina still have decisions to make, where PJ Edwards lands on these lists could be interesting. Taking a 5,000 foot view of Edwards on the national scale, him ending the season ranking among the Top 150 prospects in the country would not be a surprise.