How an intense pre-draft workout with Warriors…

How an intense pre-draft workout with Warriors inspired Anthony Edwards to improve his conditioning

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One unexpected person that Timberwolves star Anthony Edwards credits for his early success in the league is Warriors head coach Steve Kerr.

Edwards had a pre-draft workout with the Warriors, who had the No. 2 overall pick in the 2020 NBA Draft. During a recent interview, Edwards spoke to Kenny Smith about the experience.

The former Georgia standout admitted to Smith that he struggled through one of Golden State’s shooting drills. Edwards said Kerr asked him if he could go any faster and when he tried again, he was exhausted.

After the workout, they went to dinner, and Kerr was candid with Edwards:

“He’s telling me like, ‘Ay man, if we going to draft you at No. 2, you got to be a hard worker, like you ain’t working hard enough’ and I think that was a stumble in the road for me … I called my trainer afterwards and was like, ‘Ay bruh, we got to change.'”

Edwards, who was always a naturally gifted athlete, said that the exchange with Kerr encouraged him to take the next step to improve his work ethic and conditioning.

You can watch the interview with Smith, promoting Edwards’ appearance in the Netflix original Hustle starring Adam Sandler, here.

“You ain’t working hard enough.”

Steve Kerr’s brutal honesty during a pre-draft workout helped push Anthony Edwards to another level. pic.twitter.com/CmKEBMcdYv

— Complex Sports (@ComplexSports) June 6, 2022

The Tip-Off

My colleague, Prince Grimes, recently caught up with Gary Payton. They touched on important topics, including the philanthropic endeavors Payton and his son, Warriors guard Gary Payton II, are involved with.

Grimes asked Payton about the unfortunate injury that his son had earlier in the postseason, and here is what he had to say:

“It’s just basketball. I know people that take it as different because they seen [Dillon Brooks] jump a little later. And then he hit him across his head. My son would just tell you he landed wrong. He didn’t brace himself the right way. But when his hand came down, it locked instead of bending. And that’s what caused the injury. It’s basketball. Everybody’s got to understand, man, that it’s a contact sport. It is what it is. If you push him out of the air in the stands or something like that, then I would’ve been kind of upset. But it was a basketball play. The kid Brooks is, you know, he’s just a competitor. He jumped too late. It was something that shouldn’t have been done, jumping late, but he’s not thinking that way. I don’t think he thought at that moment, let me hurt him. It wasn’t like that. And I just think it was unfortunate.”

Great answer! Also, if you’re a fan of Gary Payton and Gary Payton II, you’ll probably like this shirt.