Magic Johnson, a five-time NBA Champion and member of the original Dream Team, fired back at Anthony Edwards after the Minnesota Timberwolves star said older generations of basketball players didn’t have the same level of skill as the newer generation.
Edwards, having just earned his first taste of gold in the 2024 Paris Olympics, made the controversial remarks in an interview with the Wall Street Journal.
The two-time NBA All-Star initially said he couldn’t speak on the matter because he didn’t watch basketball from back in the day, and thus wouldn’t know what he was talking about. He should have stopped there.
“How do you think your generation of basketball is different from older generations?” he was asked.
“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,” he responded.
“[Jordan] was the only one that really had skill, you know what I mean? So that’s why when they saw Kobe, they were like, ‘Oh, my God.’ But now everybody has skill.”
RELATED: Timberwolves’ Anthony Edwards Says Players From Dream Team Era Didn’t Have Skill
Anthony Edwards Gets Absolutely Lit Up By Magic Johnson
As was pointed out on these very pages, Anthony Edwards hasn’t even made an appearance in the NBA Finals. And there’s no shame in that really.
He’s only 23 years old and his game is developing into that of a top-tier talent.
That said, if you have zero championship rings to your credit, best not to go after a squad that collectively had 23 of them.
And so, the all-time Lakers legend and greatest point guard that ever played the game, Magic Johnson, seized on that fact in an interview with ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith. And promptly obliterated Edwards with it.
“I never respond to a guy who’s never won a championship,” Magic said. “[Edwards] didn’t win a college championship, I don’t even know if he won a high school championship.”
"I never respond to a guy who's never won a championship… He didn't win a college championship, I don't even know if he won a high school championship."
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) August 25, 2024
Magic Johnson didn't hold back while responding to Anthony Edwards' comments 👀😳
(via https://t.co/gnCFAy8D5B / IG) pic.twitter.com/8KUrvm4vZw
Never Won A Championship
Earvin is right on all counts, of course. The only championship won by Anthony Edwards was at the state level when he helped Holy Spirit Preparatory capture the Georgia Independent School Association (GISA) Class AAA state championship.
His skill level hasn’t quite risen to the level of an actual NBA champion.
Now, this isn’t a ‘let’s all pile on Anthony Edwards’ type of post, since the man has extraordinary talent. His game has rapidly evolved into one of the best in the league.
Edwards was named to the All-NBA Second Team for the first time in his career last season and helped lead the Timberwolves to the Western Conference Finals. He may yet win that NBA championship, if not multiple titles.
But his take about the older generation of NBA players is simply nonsense.
You gotta love Magic Johnson saying he ‘doesn’t respond’ before dropping the hammer on Edwards. You can hear it in the crowd – they know they just witnessed a murder.
The only way this feud with Anthony and the older generation gets better is if Michael Jordan or Larry Bird – two of the most notorious trash talkers in league history – chime in with their thoughts.
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