Minnesota Timberwolves‘ budding superstar Anthony Edwards led his team to the conference finals for the second consecutive season despite being just 23 years old. His athletic, slashing playstyle has drawn comparisons to former Miami Heat superstar Dwyane Wade. 18-year veteran Mike Conley was the latest to do so.
“I think his game is more like a D-Wade mix,” Conley said, speaking with a media member. “I don’t know of another player because I think the other player is just himself.”
Edwards was coached by Tom Crean at Georgia just like Wade was at Marquette. The comparison is far from new, but his rise to becoming a household name shared some commonalities with the 2006 Finals MVP.
“So it’s like it’s Ant all to himself and it’s D-Wade, you know?,” Conley said. “Because his body and the way he gets in the paint, wiggle around in there, being unbalanced and finishing and defending the rim.”
Over the last two playoff runs, Edwards averaged 26.6 points, 7.4 rebounds, six assists and 1.3 steals. Wade, who carried the Heat to an unexpected championship at the age of 24, averaged 28.1 points, 6.1 assists, 5.8 rebounds, two steals and a block in his age-23 and 24 playoff runs.
Conley, however, reiterated that although Edwards shares some of the traits that made Wade special, he’s currently blazing his own unique path to superstardom.
“It’s Ant all to himself,” Conley said.
