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Minnesota Timberwolves star Anthony Edwards ruffled feathers recently when he made the bold claim that Michael Jordan was the only skilled player in the NBA in the 1990s.
Edwards made the comment in an interview with Lane Florsheim of the Wall Street Journal for a feature piece on the budding superstar.
“I didn’t watch it back in the day so I can’t speak on it. They say it was tougher back then than it is now, but I don’t think anybody had skill back then,” Edwards said. “[Michael Jordan] was the only one that really had skill, you know what I mean? So that’s why when they saw Kobe [Bryant], they were like, ‘Oh, my God.’ But now everybody has skill.”
Now, it’s not like Edwards is entirely off base. Players today have more skill than ever before. Especially when it comes to the offensive side of the game.
That’s how you end up with crazy things like Malachi Flynn putting up 50 points in a game.
Anthony Edwards’ Michael Jordan Comment Shows A Lack Of Ball Knowledge
But Edwards probably would’ve been smart to just stop after saying “I didn’t watch it back in the day so I can’t speak in it.”
Superstars such as Hakeem Olajuwon and David Robinson would absolutely cook in today’s NBA. Imagine Reggie Miller getting a green light to shoot 10 3-pointers a night? Or having to defend Allen Iverson without being able to hand check?
What’s crazier is that it wasn’t even the most insane thing Edwards said in the interview.
He also noted that he wasn’t focused on winning an NBA championship in 2025.
“I don’t know too many guys who won a championship super young, besides Kobe,” he said. “Other than him, everybody took years and years of losing to get there. I just want to keep taking the next step.”
Perspective is a good thing. And it’s smart that Edwards is just focused on getting better year over year. But the Timberwolves are built to win now. So I’m sure their fans won’t be super excited about the fact that Edwards isn’t all that concerned with getting a ring.