Editor’s Note: Read more NBA coverage from The Athletic here . The views on this page do not necessarily reflect the views of the NBA or its teams.

***

A voice whispered to Anthony Edwards all summer long.

He heard it while he was running the stairs at an empty Target Field, the beautiful baseball park right next door to where he holds court for the Minnesota Timberwolves. He heard it while he was in the gym, putting up thousands of shots per week to hone his craft. He heard it as he watched film of the last two Western Conference finals, where both times his Wolves ran into superstars who had counters for every punch thrown at them.

The voice told him the truth. It told him what Luka Dončić and Kyrie Irving were for the Dallas Mavericks in 2024. It told him what Shai Gilgeous-Alexa

See Full Page