Currently, Anthony Edwards is viewed as the incarnation of Michael Jordan. But the Minnesota Timberwolves star has more in common with another Chicago native than the Bulls legend. “Coach Crean Disciples,” was Dwyane Wade’s way to put it. And through the surprising effect of events, it was the Miami Heat icon himself who would lead Ant-Man to that moment.

Victor Oladipo was on a podcast with former Heat teammate Udonis Haslem. Oladipo explained that in his first meeting with Dwyane Wade, he was thinking about joining forces with Coach Tom Crean. The Flash was quick with his answer. “he made me the man I am today,” the icon revealed. That’s why even Oladipo didn’t hesitate with his decision, “I committed the next day.”

In his three years at Marquette under coach Crean, Wade helped lead the program to the Final Four, recorded only the fourth triple-double in the NCAA Tournament, and was the MVP of Midwest Regional that would soon bump his place in NBA draft projections. Victor Oladipo would come in a decade later but at Indiana University and finish his run being named Sporting News Men’s College Basketball Player of the Year and the National Co-Defensive Player of the Year.

All the while, young Edwards was witness to the growth, gearing himself up to follow the same path.

“Two of my favorite players, Dwyane Wade and Victor Oladipo, were coached by Tom Crean, and he’s a great coach,” Edwards told 247Sports’ Evan Daniels in 2019. The former Georgia graduate continued, “They came in, not highly rated, and came out really good. It weighed big on me.”

Ant-Man would just take it a step above them all, becoming the nation’s top-scoring freshman and then SEC player of the year under Crean at the University of Georgia. That’s why Oladipo appreciated Dwyane Wade for creating a path.

“So D set the tone, he set the path for me and AE and guys our stature, guys our size to really believe that we could be amongst the best players in the world,” the 32-year-old said on the OGs podcast. He also revealed the unique location where he met Dwyane Wade for the first time — Father ’s Day Dinner at the White House, which, back then, President Obama was hosting. That was the first time he met Wade, Obama, and Antwaan Randle El (former Indiana University quarterback).

That’s why the player-turned-analyst at ESPN credits the 3x NBA Champion for the success and being a true role model. From Marquette to Miami Heat, with ups and downs in the career, Dwyane Wade surely created a name of his own in this tough league. Recently, he even passed friendly advice to Edwards, when the connections to Michael Jordan were running strong.

Dwyane Wade wants Ant-Man to be aware of the ‘villain’ phase

Edwards is yet to win a championship and has already made the claims that he feels like the best player in the league. “What I hate is that in two years, the media’s gonna change on him. [Right now], he’s telling you what he’s going to do and he’s doing it.” Dwyane Wade said on 7PM in Brooklyn Podcast.

“We love it. But it’s gonna change really soon because the expectation is gonna be there. Not only because of his play, but also because he talks.” That’s why the Jordan comparison discourse was a highlight a few months ago. Interestingly, Anthony Edwards was the one to urge everyone to stop, since there seemed no end to it.

Dwyane Wade faced a similar fate when he went from everybody’s favorite to being a ‘villain’ in the league. It was the time when LeBron James decided to join the Big 3 in Miami, and Cleveland fans were not happy about it. Since Wade was James’ running mate, many fans held him responsible for the move. That is why he was advising young Edwards to be aware of how the media might change their way in how they perceive the Wolves Star.