Comparing Anthony Edwards and the legendary Michael Jordan: What are the similarities and differences?
Anthony Edwards has increasingly asserted his stature as a top NBA star in the Minnesota Timberwolves. It is worth noting that the 22-year-old guard has many similarities with basketball legend Michael Jordan. Therefore, the two are often put on the comparison table.
Similarities Between Edwards and Jordan
Besides their great physical strength, solid defense and accurate mid-range shots, both Edwards and Jordan have something in common: they are both the type of players who know how to shine at the right time.
Edwards’ Timberwolves faced elimination in Game 6 of the NBA Western Conference Semifinals against the Denver Nuggets. However, the 2001-born guard played brilliantly, scoring 27 points, 4 rebounds, and 4 assists. He scored 14 points in the first quarter. Edwards’ performance was a big factor in Minnesota’s victory.
Also after this match, the 22-year-old guard became the 5th player in NBA Playoff history to score at least 600 points, 100 rebounds and 100 assists. The others who did the same before Edwards were Michael Jordan, LeBron James, Luka Doncic and Tracy McGrady.
In his first three NBA seasons, Edwards has averaged 29.1 points, 5.2 rebounds, and 4.9 assists in 21 playoff games. He shoots 50 percent from the field (excluding free throws) and makes 39.9 percent from 3-point range. This season, Edwards has scored 40 or more points in three playoff games, most recently in Game 4 against the Denver Nuggets (44 points).
In comparison, Michael Jordan only played 10 Playoff games in the first 3 seasons of his career. The Chicago Bulls of the former player born in 1963 were eliminated in the first round of the Playoff for 3 consecutive seasons from 1985-1987 with a record of 1 win, 9 losses. However, Jordan contributed an average of 35.5 points, 6.3 rebounds, 6.9 assists per game. Unfortunately, the satellites surrounding the former American star were not strong enough to bring the Bulls to victory.
In the 1986/87 season, the Bulls’ second and third highest average scorers in the Regular Season were Charles Oakley (14.5) and John Paxson (11.3). Meanwhile, Jordan led the way with an average of 37.1 points/game. He became the second best player in NBA history with this achievement, behind only Wilt Chamberlain.
Edwards leads the Timberwolves this season with an average of 25.9 points per game in the Regular Season. The rest of the players like Karl-Anthony Towns, Rudy Gobert, Naz Reid, Mike Conley and Jaden McDaniels only average more than 10 points per game.
How are Edwards and Jordan different?
Jordan and Edwards share similar personalities, a desire to win. However, the way they express themselves is different. While Jordan is hot-tempered and sometimes intimidating to his teammates, Edwards is a softer player and is absolutely admired in the Minnesota locker room.
Edwards is not afraid to use words to attack opponents. However, people often see the player born in 2001 giving advice to teammates on the field or when sitting on the bench. Edwards also does not hesitate to praise the contributions of teammates in press conferences.
The biggest difference between Edwards and Jordan is their 3-point shooting efficiency. In the 2023/24 season, Edwards made 190/532 shots (35.7%). Meanwhile, Jordan only made 179/625 attempts (28.6%) from 1984/85 to 1990/91.
Edwards promises to show the difference with Jordan more clearly if he leads the Timberwolves past the Nuggets in Game 7. Michael Jordan could not get past the first round of the Playoff in his first 3 years. He only did it in his fourth year (1988) and it was not until 1989 that he reached the conference finals for the first time.
In 1991, Jordan won his first NBA Finals at the age of 28. He continued to win the championship in 6 of the next 8 years, culminating in his final title in 1998 at the age of 35.
If Edwards can lead the Timberwolves to the finals this year, it will be reminiscent of another legend, Kobe Bryant. The late American won the championship in 2000 at the age of 21. Bryant went on to lead the Lakers to two more titles in 2001 and 2002.
A player as young as Edwards certainly has plenty of room to achieve the same success as Jordan or Bryant. But as things stand, 2024 could be the year Ant-Man cements himself as the face of the NBA. A championship would ensure that Edwards does just that.