NBA Rookies 2014: Zach Lavine Better Than Andrew Wiggins?[VIDEO] Former UCLA's Dunks Impress At Summer League! Can He Beat The First Overall Pick In A Dunk Contest?

The NBA Rookies 2014 are already promising to be a spectacular batch. It’s not just the usual suspects like Andrew Wiggins and Aaron Gordon. Slightly under the radar, UCLA’s Zach Lavine has hoops fans’ jaws dropping at Summer League.

Zach Lavine was picked 13th overall by the Minnesota Timberwolves although he did work out for teams like the Lakers, who were at 7th overall. It was at this workout where he registered a remarkable 46 inch vertical. (It was erroneously reported at 48)

That feat already gave comparisons to Andrew Wiggins, who also had his own display of athleticism. While Wiggins is undoubtedly the better overall player, Lavine is loose and nimble with his dunks, and that can provide an edge over Wiggins if and when they faced each other in a dunk contest.

The NBA got a mild sneak peek of what Lavine can do in a game against the Phoenix Suns in the league’s Summer League in Las Vegas.
A forum on Inside Hoops already had the Zach Lavine-Andrew Wiggins rivalry played out.

From user ‘Hurricane Kid’: “Levine(sic) wasn't one of the best 7 players on UCLA last year. He probably isn't one of the best 10,000 basketball players in the world right now. He has physical gifts that could allow him to be a great player but he hasn't shown that on any stage at any time.”

From ‘Bout Practice’: “Wiggins has more potential, as he's taller, more impressive as an overall athlete, better defensively, more well-rounded... AND he's generally further along in his development process, as he had a much more relevant freshman season. As of right now, there's a real difference between them as prospects, which is why Wiggins was taken first and LaVine 13th.The main resemblance between the two is that they will have a lot of highly dedicated fans from an early stage in their careers.”

Here's Zach Lavine's dunk:

Here's one by Andrew Wiggins: