The arc of Edwards’ career has seen him go from the No. 1 overall pick in 2020 with a lot of question marks to a player who has improved every year and fulfilled a lot of the potential he had coming into the league. Things like developing winning habits — getting proper rest, treatment, diet — all came a little more slowly for Edwards.
But in Year 5, especially after seeing how his Team USA teammates treat their bodies, the importance of those improvements he can make on the margins is finally hitting home. When it came to tweaking his workouts, Olympic coach Steve Kerr said postpractice sessions were when the players would talk shop.
“I saw a lot of it, just imitating moves,” said Kerr, who has coached Golden State to four NBA titles. “They had a lot of different games going on, whether it was one-on-one or their shooting games that they played. You can see the banter and the interaction during those games, and there was a lot of good conversation where guys shared tricks of the trade, that sort of thing.”
Edwards gravitated toward Durant the entire time he was there, and Durant loved having Edwards in his ear and competing against him in practice.
“I’m not trying to put him as a little bro, but it felt like that,” said Durant, 36 and entering his 17th NBA season. “When you wake up in the morning and your little bro got the most energy. That was Ant. It was a joy to be around him.”
In watching them interact, Kerr said “you could see the joy.”
