words & images // Nick DePaula:
After a summer of uncertainty never before seen for a #1 overall draft pick, Andrew Wiggins eventually landed in Minnesota, and was thrown right into the fire with a starting role on a rebuilding Timberwolves team in need of a new franchise star.
“My expectations were a lot different here than they’d been in Cleveland,” says Wiggins of the team that initially drafted him. “In Cleveland, playing behind the best player in the NBA would’ve been different than here, obviously. I came here as a starter, expected to do a lot more than on the other team. That’s a thing that helped me grow a lot this year.”
The learning curve and trajectory for the 20 year-old were both perhaps far quicker than expected for Andrew’s first season, in which he averaged 36.2 minutes while playing in all 82 games. Wiggins simply became the first ever Timberwolf to win Rookie of the Year honors, cruising to the award with 110 out of 130 first place votes.
“It should bring a lot of hope for the future of the Minnesota Timberwolves,” he beams. “It should give people a different look at things. This is the uprising. We’ve got a lot of young talent.”
Not only is his bright future tied to the franchise’s hopes, but he’s also an emerging face for adidas Basketball, where he’s looking to lead a new generation of players for the brand.
Wiggins wore home and away player exclusive colorways of the Crazylight Boost 2014 all throughout the regular season, and was even given the opportunity to be the first player to debut the 2015 edition of the series this past February during the Rookie Challenge. A game in which he took home MVP honors, of course.
To celebrate his Rookie of the Year award, adidas launched this Crazylight Boost 2015 quickstrike last week, honoring Andrew’s journey. There’s an all-over enlarged maple leaf graphic paying tribute to his Canadian upbringing, with color hits inspired by his Huntington Prep high school, Kansas University and Minnesota Timberwolves hues. The shoe also features a Primeknit upper, without any fused backing layers, offering up breathability and fit in the brand’s first knitted hoops shoe.
Take a detailed look at Wiggins’ “Rookie of the Year” Crazylight Boost 2015 below, and stay tuned for more up close images of future retail colorways launching in July, as well as a designer interview on the new statement level model.
