At just 23 years old, Anthony Edwards already has a long list of accomplishments in basketball. That includes an All-Rookie Team selection, two All-Star appearances, an All-NBA selection and most recently, an Olympic gold medal. Is Edwards already the best shooting guard in the NBA?
Edwards came in at No. 1 in HoopsHype’s recent rankings of the top-30 shooting guards in the NBA. It comes off the back of his gold-medal run with Team USA and his best NBA season to date in which he earned the All-NBA nod after averaging career bests in points (25.9), assists (5.1), field-goal percentage (46.1%) and free-throw percentage (83.6%). Edwards also averaged 5.4 rebounds and 1.3 steals per game last season while leading the Timberwolves to the Western Conference finals.
“All in all, Edwards is a spectacular player, a three-level scorer with insane athleticism and length who plays with a tough mentality, and who has an old-school flair to his game in that he’ll let an opponent know when he’s lighting him up, and he’ll do so loudly,” HoopsHype’s Frank Urbina wrote.
Edwards has changed the trajectory of the Timberwolves franchise, whose appearance in this year’s Western Conference finals was its first in 20 years. He’s quickly become one of the most popular players in the NBA as a dynamic scoring guard who regularly draws comparisons to Michael Jordan.
Edwards came in ahead of Team USA teammate Devin Booker, of the Phoenix Suns, who was ranked No. 2. Cleveland Cavaliers guard Donovan Mitchell came in at No. 3; NBA Finals MVP Jaylen Brown of the Boston Celtics came in at No. 4; and OKC Thunder guard Jalen Williams rounded out the top 5.
Edwards will look to take another step for the Timberwolves this season coming off his gold-medal run this summer. He said after the Western Conference finals that the Wolves now know what it takes to get to the highest level and that they’ll be back next season. Edwards will be leading that charge.
Edwards and the Timberwolves will begin the journey back to the playoffs when they open their regular season against the Los Angeles Lakers on Oct. 22 in a game that will be nationally televised on TNT. Tipoff for the season opener is scheduled for 9:30 p.m. at Cypto.com Arena in Los Angeles.
