You could say Adam Sandler knew Anthony Edwards was destined for greatness before most NBA fans. While the Edwards has dazzled hoops lovers throughout the NBA playoffs while leading his Minnesota Timberwolves to the Western Conference Finals, Sandler saw how special Edwards was at a young age while co-starring in the Netflix film Hustle alongside him not long after Edwards became the No. 1 overall pick.
Hyping up Edwards’ breakout series Monday on The Dan Patrick Show, Sandler recalled how affable and charming Edwards was back then.
“He was just such a funny sweetheart,” Sandler said.
As the story goes, the main NBA athlete in the film, Juancho Hernangomez, suggested Edwards for the part. Director Jeremiah Zegler was sold instantly.
“(Jeremiah) was like, ‘Oh my god, he’s like Paul Newman or something,'” Sandler explained. “And by the way, every pro guy when we were shooting the movie loved him. He’s just got some carefree, cool thing about him and he wants to win and he’s a badass. I love him.”
Sandler is currently in Italy shooting Noah Baumbach’s next film alongside George Clooney and Laura Dern.
Sandler said even Europeans are getting excited about Edwards’ breakout stateside in the NBA playoffs.
“Whenever I go to go out in Italy or England … they know their stuff,” Sandler said. “And everybody’s starting to talk about Anthony Edwards being a superstar.”
Hustle started shooting in late 2020, before Edwards played an NBA game. He was a surprise No. 1 overall pick out of a quieter Georgia basketball program, drafted to play in a small market.
Yet he dazzled as the film’s villain and notched a major acting credit in the well-received film on his way toward basketball superstardom.
Edwards and the Timberwolves earned the biggest comeback win in NBA playoff history to beat the reigning champion Denver Nuggets on the road in Game 7 on Sunday night and notch a trip to the West Finals. And Edwards and Karl-Anthony Towns also drew some attention in post-game press conference remarks.
Sandler might have known it first, but we all see Edwards coming now.
