It’s inarguable that the Timberwolves hit it out of the park with their selection of Anthony Edwards with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2020 NBA Draft. However, Edwards becoming a superstar wasn’t always the assumption throughout the pre-draft process, as the Wolves weighed their options between Edwards, big man James Wiseman, and point guard LaMelo Ball.
Then-Timberwolves general manager Gersson Rosas had a difficult choice on his hands — one that would change the course of the franchise. Of course, he ended up deciding to take Edwards with the first overall pick. According to The Athletic’s Jon Krawczynski, the call to go with Edwards was aided by a poor interview with Ball leading up to the draft.
Krawczynski, a guest at a live taping of The Zach Lowe Show at First Avenue on Wednesday night, was going through key moments in Timberwolves history when he got to the selection of Edwards in the 2020 draft. It wasn’t the selection that was the key moment for Krawczynski, it was a rather amusing answer Ball gave to the Wolves’ brass that potentially turned the tide in Edwards’ favor.
“Why did they pick Edwards? A million different reasons in their evaluation,” said Krawczynski. “But one of them was, that they had an interview with LaMelo Ball during this process, trying to figure out ‘Hey, is this the guy for us?’ And LaMelo did not interview very well. And one of the questions that was asked of him is, ‘Hey LaMelo, after you’re done playing, what do you see yourself (as) when your career is over? Like, what kind of things do you aspire to?’ And LaMelo said, ‘I want to be President of the United States.'”
Edwards has gone on to earn two All-NBA Second Team nods and three trips to the All-Star game, become one of the faces of the league, and helped the Wolves to back-to-back appearances in the Western Conference finals. As for Ball, he may have claimed the Rookie of the Year award, but his Hornets have yet to reach the playoffs during his time in Charlotte. He’s made one All-Star team, back in 2022, which was the only full season of his career where he’s stayed healthy.
“And so, that goes down and lo and behold, Anthony Edwards is the number one pick. And now here they are contending for Western Conference championships every year,” said Krawczynski.
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