Matt Varga There’s a ton riding on Anthony Edwards this year. Ever the risk taker, Wolves general manager Tim Connelly again bet big on the Georgia product, bringing in LaMelo Ball as the third star alongside him and Rudy Gobert to try and compete in what’s already looking like a duopoly in the Western Conference. Luckily, things are no less competitive in the realm of footwear, but at least there’s a proven track record; the adidas Anthony Edwards 3 will look to repeat the celebrated steps before it and further build on what’s quickly becoming one of the Three Stripes’ biggest hoops successes in the modern era.
Official images of the widely anticipated adidas AE3 have finally touched down, albeit in grade school sizing. Still, this gives our clearest picture yet of what to expect from the silhouette, approaching quicker than you’d expect given a circled September launch date. Echoing the “evolution over reinvention” visible in brand peers Donovan Mitchell’s and James Harden’s lines, some of the cues should read familiar: a low-cut silhouette, mesh backing, and rigid containment on the sides.
It’s that latter section that marks the defining characteristic of the AE3 already, ditching the honeycomb of shoe #1 and the fang-like geometry of #2 in favor of high-velocity arrows that run across the sidewalls. Adult pairs are expected to debut Hyperboost cushioning in the realm of basketball; it’s unclear whether that applies to kids’ pairs, but its branding on the heel is absent in these images.
The four colorways here demonstrate what the silhouette can do aesthetically, each tapping into its own experimental choices. On the “Ice Blue,” frosty gradients take over the containment, met by a neutral foundation a layer below. A pink/purple pair pins the ombrés instead on the base layer. Some heady patterning sneaks onto the “With Love” pair, as molten textures define the synthetics, before a hazy grey pair utilizes those smoky patterns below.
The adidas Anthony Edwards 3 is expected to begin its journey on September 15th; the “Cold Blooded” pair is set to serve as the debut colorway. Peruse all four featured in this article via the galleries below, but again, note that Grade School pairs are depicted.
