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Steve Kerr never had the chance to select Anthony Edwards in the 2020 NBA Draft.
Edwards went No. 1 overall to the Minnesota Timberwolves, while Kerr and the Golden State Warriors used the No. 2 pick on James Wiseman.
But even if he had the chance, Kerr may well have passed on the superstar swingman anyway.
In a new story from Logan Murdock of The Ringer, Kerr reveals that he wasn’t sold on Edwards coming out of Georgia.
Anthony Edwards Struggled In Workout For Golden State Warriors
“The first impression was it was hard to tell whether he was going to be good or not because he was just so raw,” Kerr told Murdock. “He was so young, and he was full of energy, which we loved, but we just worried about: Was he going to be a worker? Because he didn’t know anything.”
Edwards’ pre-draft workout with the Warriors did nothing to change his opinion, either.
“He was like, ‘Imagine everybody walking through the door has $50 million,’” Edwards’ former trainer and current business manager Justyn Holland recalls Kerr saying. “‘Because the way you’re working out, you’re not the type of guy to give $50 million to.’”
After the workout, Edwards had dinner with Kerr and several members of the Warriors front office.
“What I shared was just how hard Kevin and Steph and Klay all worked,” Kerr says. “And I told him that my favorite part of practice was after we finished, when all three guys went to their own basket and had their individual workout and how they all went game speed and how incredible it is to see that on a daily basis. But that that’s what it takes to be great.”
Holland says Edwards learned from the day, and improved his work ethic going forward. He’s now one of the NBA’s best players and plays under Kerr as a member of Team USA.
As for Kerr, the story is a testament to his honesty. He could have easy said he believed in Edwards all along. Instead, he told Murdock what he really thought. Sometimes you swing and miss. Thankfully, for Kerr, it didn’t matter anyway.