Karl-Anthony Edwards had high praise for his teammate Anthony Edwards this week, telling ESPN that he believed that Edwards was set to become the "next face of the NBA." Edwards, drafted first overall in 2020, is putting up 26.3/5.2/5.3 this season as the Timberwolves dominate the Western Conference. Towns, for his part, is averaging 22.5/8.4/2.9 a game as part of the white-hot Minnesota starting five. At the time of writing, Minnesota are 39-16. Despite this, they are locked in a tight battle with the Thunder at the top of the Western Conference standings.
"It brings a smile to all of our faces. He's one of the top players in the NBA right now. And when you mix that in with his charisma and the personality he has, that's a huge boost," Towns explained on First Take. Edwards is coming off the second All-Star nod of his career and is only going to get better as he continues to improve.
Anthony Edwards Gets Huge Fine For Ref Comments
Of course, not everyone is a fan of Edwards. Last month, Anthony Edwards was fined $40K for his derogatory comments aimed at the officiating crew present for the Timberwolves' win against the Thunder earlier this week. The NBA levied the fine at the young star for "repeatedly publicly criticizing the officiating". Edwards clearly expected it, saying that he was going to "take the fine" as he went after the refs. Despite the win, Edwards said like Wolves were playing "8-on-5" due to the lack of calls going the team's way.
However, it's not the first time that the NBA has gone after Edwards. Last year, he was fined $50K for throwing a chair courtside after the Wolves' playoff elimination at the hands of the Nuggets. Despite the hefty fine, Edwards did not miss any games due to the incident. A number of staffers unsuccessfully sued Edwards over the incident, claiming to have been injured during the incident. The case was dismissed before going to trial.
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