NBA star Anthony Edwards throws shade at former players: 'I don't think anybody had skill back then'
Except Michael Jordan, Anthony Edwards says
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"Basketball was better back in the day?" One of today's superstars disagrees.
Anthony Edwards is a budding household name, especially fresh off an Olympic gold medal in Paris earlier this month.
The 2020 No. 1 overall pick has lived up to his billing, averaging a career-high 25.9 points per game this past season to go along with thunderous, posterizing dunks.
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Anthony Edwards #5 of the Minnesota Timberwolves looks on during the game against the Dallas Mavericks during Round 3 Game 5 of the 2024 NBA Playoffs on May 30, 2024 at Target Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Joe Murphy/NBAE via Getty Images)
He helped the Minnesota Timberwolves to the Western Conference Final, and they figure to be in contention to go deep in the playoffs once again.
That's an accomplishment itself, but Edwards says he is doing all of this in the best era of basketball ever.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}In fact, he took it a step further.
"They say it was tougher back then than it is now, but I don't think anybody had skill back then," Edwards recently told the Wall Street Journal.
Anthony Edwards #5 of Team United States reacts after a dunk during the Men's Gold Medal game between Team France and Team United States on day fifteen of the Olympic Games Paris 2024 at Bercy Arena on August 10, 2024 in Paris, France. (Michael Reaves/Getty Images)
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}He did quickly come up with one person — Michael Jordan — but Edwards says he was the "only one that really had skill.
"So that's why when they saw Kobe [Bryant], they were like, 'Oh, my God.' But now everybody has skill," Edwards says.
Hall of Famer Isiah Thomas wasn't exactly thrilled with Edwards' comments.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"Propaganda works, so be careful what you choose to believe," Thomas said in an X post.
Of course, the debate will go on forever, but Edwards, perhaps bias, has spoken.
Anthony Edwards #5 of the Minnesota Timberwolves celebrates a three point basket during the third quarter against the Denver Nuggets in Game Seven of the Western Conference Second Round Playoffs at Ball Arena on May 19, 2024 in Denver, Colorado. (C. Morgan Engel/Getty Images)
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{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Edwards also shot a career-high 46.7% from the floor in the 2023-24 campaign, while his 5.1 assists were the most of his career.
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