At just 22 years old, Aaliyah Edwards has already made history several times over.
Let’s go over a few of her stats: The Kingston, Ontario native became the first Canadian to secure a Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) deal, when she signed with adidas Basketball back in 2024. She helped lead the UConn Huskies to multiple Final Four appearances. And at 18, she was the youngest member of the Canadian women’s basketball team at the Tokyo Olympics. Now, fresh out of her rookie season with the Washington Mystics, Edwards is writing her next chapter – one that’s as much about personal growth as it is about basketball dominance.
Edwards, who was the sixth overall pick in the 2024 WNBA draft, embodies what the future of women’s basketball looks like: fearless, multifaceted, and unapologetically herself. Meeting her for the first time, it was her purple and yellow hair that caught my eyes immediately, but it was her thoughtful perspective on the game that truly commanded the attention of everyone in the room — including myself.
“The biggest transition for me was how much of a mental game it is,” Edwards shares with ESSENCE about her jump to the pros. “I finished Final Four, had to do training camp a week later, and then two weeks after that, we’re in preseason games. It was a lot for me to get away from the college lifestyle, but also the college mentality of, I’m a senior, but now I’m going into being a rookie.”
That whirlwind transition would be enough to shake anyone’s confidence. Especially as we sit down during one of the biggest weekend’s in sports, following her rookie season: All Star. But Edwards, who earned both the 2023 Big East Most Improved Player and Most Outstanding Player awards during her stellar career at UConn, has found strength in vulnerability. “It’s not easy as a rookie faced up against that pressure and against your own expectations, let alone the world’s expectations to be successful,” she admits. “The season was tough of just letting go of that second defender in my head.”
The way Edwards processes these challenges reveals wisdom beyond her years. She’s established a self-care routine that includes meditation, Pilates, and hot yoga sessions with her Mystics teammates at CorePower. But her strongest foundation remains the same one that first introduced her to basketball: family.
“They are the ones that keep me grounded. They’re the ones that I always resort to when I’m like, ‘Why did I pick up a basketball? Why am I in this career?’” Edwards reflects. “It really goes back to me playing with my brothers in my backyard on our hoop, and that’s where it all started.”
That connection to her roots extends beyond family. Last year, during her offseason, Edwards returned to Kingston to host a basketball development camp at her local high school, mentoring young athletes who see themselves in her journey. It’s this kind of community engagement that caught the attention of adidas, who recently welcomed Edwards to their roster of game-changing athletes as part of their CHAPTER 02 collection.
“Through our shared values of elevating women in sport and hosting community initiatives to improve access to sport, this partnership will have a profound impact not only on myself, but also other young athletes just like me,” Edwards says of joining the adidas family.
Her message to those young athletes? It’s refreshingly counterintuitive in today’s hustle culture: “What I needed to hear was enjoy the little moments,” she emphasizes. “I think I can’t even imagine what it is now with social media and all the pressure that the world puts onto these little girls. But we can’t take away the fact that they’re young. They still want to go have sleepovers, they still want to go attend birthday parties. Not everything needs to be work, work, work or grind, grind, grind.”
Living by the mantra “focus forward” – coined with her mother, who Edwards calls “the quote person in the family” – she’s already making her mark in DC’s passionate basketball community. When asked about her ultimate legacy beyond championships and statistics, Edwards’ response is characteristically genuine: she wants to be remembered as “a solid player who does little things and competes.”
As she continues carving out her space in the WNBA, Edwards represents a new wave of athletes who understand that vulnerability and strength aren’t mutually exclusive. “I think that each and every season as we evolved and those coming in behind us, they have us to look up to,” she reflects. “I’m able to make my own footprints in this whole new era of women’s sports that’s going on.”
For the young girls who now wait after games hoping for a photo or autograph, Edwards sees herself in their eyes. “I was that little girl back in the day asking for… a Candace Parker picture or a signature,” she says. “So I know how it feels and what that moment feels like.”