Canada's 7-foot-4 secret weapon, Zach Edey, is hiding in plain sight

Zach Edey never wanted to be characterized by his height, which is now listed at seven-foot-four.

And so, as a kid, he skipped basketball for basically every other sport, including lacrosse, soccer, tennis, hockey and eventually baseball, where he was a pitcher with big-league dreams.

One summer in high school, Edey’s arm started barking a bit, and a friend suggested he come to a rec basketball game. It took some convincing, but eventually Edey agreed to hit the court as a form of cross-training and conditioning.

He was hooked after one practice.

“He came home and he was fired up,” his mother, Julia, remembers. “He said to me,