Former LeBron James Teammate Opines Why Anthony Edwards Can’t be ‘Face of the NBA’

Former LeBron James Teammate Opines Why Anthony Edwards Can’t be ‘Face of the NBA’

Anthony Edwards and LeBron James (Firstsportz Image)

Anthony Edwards and his Minnesota Timberwolves are one loss away from another prematurely ended playoff run. The 23-year-old was subdued in game 4 as Shai Gilgeous-Alexander showed exactly how good an MVP can play. SGA recorded 40 points on the night while shooting 30 times. Edwards was, meanwhile, held to 16 points on 13 shots, and was unable to stamp himself on the game.

There is certainly some room for Wolves fans to complain about the officiating. Alex Caruso and Lu Dort are being allowed to play a much more physical brand of defense than their opponents. If Edwards received the same whistle as SGA does, he would likely be able to play more aggressively. But the truth of the matter is also that Anthony Edwards himself is coming up short in these games.

However, it isn’t Edwards’ play that Kendrick Perkins believes is holding him back. Although it factors in, Perkins also believes there’s an off-court reason why Edwards won’t be the ‘face of the NBA’ – apart from the fact that Edwards himself doesn’t want the title. It’s to do with how Edwards presents himself. It also has to do with how Edwards, at his young age, is not a family man yet.

You gotta check the boxes when you’re the face of the league…Things outside the lines matter. Now, if you go down the list of all the faces of the league in the history of the game — you look at Larry Bird, Magic Johnson, Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant, Shaq, LeBron, Steph — what did they all have in common? While they were playing in the league, they were all family men. They were all married with kids.

Kendrick Perkins on why Anthony Edwards can’t be a face of the NBA right now

There is a lot of room to interpret Kendrick Perkins wrongly here. After all, Kobe Bryant, despite being a family man, was shunned by the media due to his trial during the 2003-04 season. James, who got married in 2013, was already the face of the league for quite a while by that point. But the reality is that Perkins is, in some ways, right on the money when it comes to how NBA fans view the ‘face of the league’.

How can Anthony Edwards become the face of the NBA?

One of the first things that Edwards has to do is to get to the NBA Finals. The Minnesota Timberwolves are now back-to-back Conference semifinalists, and it’s clear that there is another step for them to take. Leading them to the promised land, where the franchise has never been, would make one hell of a statement. It would also add credence to the notion that Edwards is the best player in his Conference.

The next thing for Edwards to take care of, in order to become the face of the NBA, would be getting hitched. Just as Perkins has said, NBA fans want their star players to be desirable men with families. Irrespective of how young the fanbase skews in the social media era, the league always butter its bread via its long-term fans. The league’s long-term fans have always wanted a non-controversial face of the NBA.

It was perhaps this dissonance that led to Kevin Durant facing so much abuse when he moved to Golden State. If KD had wife and kids, he wouldn’t be such an easy target for fans. He would also have received more buzz as the best player in basketball from between 2016 to 2021 if he had more PR going for him. Edwards has to be cognizant of these realities and adjust to them accordingly.

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