Now entering his fifth NBA season, Minnesota Timberwolves star Anthony Edwards' star has risen considerably over the last couple of seasons. So has his confidence, as Edwards claims he could have gone toe-to-toe with Michael Jordan in that era of the NBA.
Edwards, the No. 1 overall pick in the 2020 NBA Draft, led the Timberwolves to their second appearance in the conference finals while earning second-team All-NBA honors in 2024. Edwards is one of the best young players in the league, and he already believes his game is on par with Jordan's
In a joint interview with NFL superstar Justin Jefferson, Edwards told ESPN he could have kept pace with Jordan back in the day.
"They gon' hate me again when I say this -- I already know it," Edwards said. "I would've been the guy that could match up with M.J. That would have been me. I would've been that guy that would've been guarding him, scoring back on him. I would've been that guy."
Edwards is coming off the best season of his career, averaging 25.9 points 5.4 rebounds and 5.1 assists per game while knocking down 46.1% of his attempts from the field. Still, his comments about going back-and-forth with Jordan might raise some eyebrows, but that's nothing new for him.
Earlier this offseason, Edwards ruffled some feathers with former players when he claimed that Jordan was "the only one that really had skill" in his generation. Former Timberwolves star and Hall of Famer Kevin Garnett had a rather strong response to those comments.
"If I'm being honest, I don't think anyone in this generation could've played 20 years ago," Garnett said on the "All the Smoke" podcast.
Edwards will get the chance to back up his words with the 2024-25 NBA season upon us. It should be an interesting season for his Timberwolves after a blockbuster trade that sent Karl-Anthony Towns to the New York Knicks shook up the roster just a few weeks ago.
