Anthony Edwards has established himself as one of the best players in the NBA and he believes it won't be long before he is the best. Edwards recently made an appearance on NBA Today, where his former teammate Austin Rivers claimed he would be the best player in the league in two to three years. Needless to say, the 22-year-old agreed with that statement.
"Yeah, I 100% agree with you sure," Edwards said. "About two or three years, yep."
Edwards also stated that right now, he is at about 40% of what would be the best version of him in the league. The two-time All-Star wanted to remind everyone that he is just in his fourth season in the NBA, so he is not close to his prime just yet.
Edwards averaged 25.9 points, 5.4 rebounds, 5.1 assists, 1.3 steals, and 0.5 blocks per game in this 2023-24 season for the Minnesota Timberwolves, and I do believe he can still improve a fair bit. I wouldn't be surprised at all to see him average around 30 points a game in a couple of years, but I don't think he will be the best player in the league at that point.
Even after two or three years, I believe the likes of Nikola Jokic and Giannis Antetokounmpo would be better than Edwards. If Joel Embiid stays healthy, he might be as well. Someone like Luka Doncic for me is already better than Edwards and just like him, is yet to hit his prime as well.
I can see Edwards being viewed as a top-five player in the NBA in two or three years, but not as the very best. There is no shame in that, of course.
While some might think Edwards went way overboard when he made that claim, it was actually quite a measured take by his standards. It was just a few months ago, that Edwards claimed he was the best player in the NBA. He might have realized that was a bit much and has now pushed it to a couple of years down the road.
Anthony Edwards Is Excited To Play With Kevin Durant For Team USA
Edwards' exploits on the court have led to him being named to Team USA's star-studded roster for the 2024 Paris Olympics. When asked about this opportunity to play alongside some of the greats, Edwards revealed he is looking forward to playing with his favorite player, Kevin Durant.
"I get to play alongside my favorite player of all time, which is Kevin Durant," Edwards said. "But also I get to play alongside LeBron (James), Steph Curry, all the goats, man. So it should be fun."
Before we get to the Olympics, there is the small matter of a playoff series between Edwards' Timberwolves and Durant's Phoenix Suns. They will be facing off in the first round, and it should be an exciting clash.
While the Timberwolves had an excellent regular season, finishing third in the Western Conference with a 56-26 record, they struggled against the 49-33 Suns. Minnesota lost all three regular-season meetings between these sides by double digits.
A big reason for that was Edwards only averaged 14.3 points per game against the Suns. If the Timberwolves are to flip that script and get to the Conference Semifinals, they'll need their star guard to step up. I certainly wouldn't bet against him doing just that.
More must-reads: