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Dallas Mavericks: Kyrie Irving Reacts to Bold Call-Out From Timberwolves’ Anthony Edwards

Originally posted on Hardwood Heroics | By Paolo Songco | Last updated May 23, 2024 2:56 AM ET

Dallas Mavericks superstar Kyrie Irving was a man on a mission in their Game 1 showdown against the Minnesota Timberwolves on Wednesday night. By his own admission, the eight-time All-Star was the most aggressive he’s been in a long time in the Western Conference Finals series opener against an extremely hungry Wolves side.

This resulted in Kyrie dropping 30 points on 12-of-23 shooting, to go along with five rebounds and four assists as he helped lead the Mavs to a crucial 108-105 victory to draw first blood in this series.

Anthony Edwards Calls Out Kyrie Irving

According to Irving, a special call-out from Minnesota star Anthony Edwards heading into Game 1 served as extra motivation for the Mavs vet. Kyrie was comfortably sitting at home watching the epic Game 7 showdown between the Wolves and the Denver Nuggets when he suddenly ended up on the receiving end of a blatant shot from Edwards:

Anthony Edwards:

“My matchup going to be Kyrie… we’re going to see what I can do vs. him.”

(via @NBAonTNT) pic.twitter.com/OYrxInR1ba

— Legion Hoops (@LegionHoops) May 20, 2024

Talk about a guy oozing with confidence, right? Then again, can you really blame Edwards after everything we’ve seen from him in the postseason thus far?

Dallas Mavericks News: Kyrie Irving Claps Back at Anthony Edwards

Edwards poked the bear, though. Being the ultimate competitor that he is, Irving saw this message as a challenge from the young Wolves superstar. Kyrie responded by letting his game do the talking in Game 1.

After stealing away a crucial road victory to open up the series, Irving shared his brutally honest thoughts on Edwards’ call-out:

"My matchup gonna be Kyrie. That's gonna be fun."

Kyrie said he used Ant’s comments about guarding him in Game 1 as “motivation” pic.twitter.com/S6E67pRwzc

— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) May 23, 2024

As Irving said, he respects the competitive spirit of his younger counterpart. However, all the admiration was set aside as soon as they faced off on the basketball court. It’s now 1-0 in favor of Kyrie and the Mavs.