The rest of the NBA is starting to realize just how big of a superstar Anthony Edwards is quickly developing into.
If you were to ask the more casual NBA fans, who is going to be the next face of the league? There'd probably be a variety of answers. A few names that would probably be thrown out are Giannis Antetokounmpo, Victor Wembanyama, Jayson Tatum, and Luka Doncic. One player who would probably be thrown in toward the end of that list, if at all, is Anthony Edwards.
However, with the way Edwards has developed over the last two seasons, there's an argument to be made that he should be atop that list of next faces of the league. What Edwards has been able to do to elevate the Minnesota Timberwolves franchise is nothing short of great. And particularly in the NBA Playoffs, on the league's biggest stage, we constantly see the best of Edwards.
Up 3-1 against the Los Angeles Lakers, as the lower-seeded team, Edwards continues to make his case for the next big superstar in the NBA. To the tune of a 43-point, 9-rebound, and 6-assist performance in Game 4 against the Lakers, not only did Edwards outplay LeBron James, but he also outshined Luka Doncic. Over the course of the last few years, that hasn't been easy to do. And yet, Edwards is doing it routinely.
Anthony Edwards' playoff success
Even dating back to last season, Edwards has already begun to write his NBA Playoff legacy. In last year's NBA Playoffs, Edwards led the Wolves to an impressive first-round playoff series win against Kevin Durant, Devin Booker, and the Phoenix Suns. He followed that up by dethroning the defending champion Denver Nuggets (and Nikola Jokic) in the Western Conference semifinals.
The Wolves were outmatched in the conference finals against the red-hot Dallas Mavericks, but Edwards successfully helped lead Minnesota to their first deep playoff run in two decades. This season, even as an underdog, we're already beginning to see similar results. Short of an epic collapse in the next three games, Edwards is going to lead the Wolves to a first-round upset against the Lakers.
Assuming the Wolves are able to close out the Lakers, they'll await the winner of the 2-7 matchup between the Houston Rockets and Golden State Warriors. Against either team, the Wolves are going to have a puncher's shot to pull off another series win.
If the Wolves are able to make it back to the conference finals for a second-straight season, it'd be hard not to recognzie Edwards as the next great superstar in the NBA. What we're seeing from Edwards over the last two postseason runs is a superstar who is taking over the league. And if this is just the start, the NBA as a whole should be very worried about what is to come. Even now, I still don't realize just how dominant of a superstar Edwards may be at his prime and with a championship-worthy supporting cast around him.