“Are you the superstar player you proclaim to be or not?”: Stephen A. Smith doesn’t hold back against Anthony Edwards over ‘inexcusable’ response

On Monday, Anthony Edwards and the Minnesota Timberwolves came up short against the OKC Thunder at Target Center, going down 3-1 in the Western Conference finals series. After the game, Edwards downplayed his 16-point outing, saying that he made the right plays despite not taking enough shots.

His comments didn’t sit well with Stephen A. Smith, who fired back on Tuesday’s installment of First Take. The way he sees things, Edwards isn’t playing like the superstar he is, or the superstar he claims to be.

After Edwards shot just 1-7 from beyond the arc and scored his second-fewest points in a postseason game, Smith deemed his reaction “inexcusable.”

"Here's my deal," Smith said. "Are you the superstar player you've proclaimed to be or not? The fact of the matter is that Ant-Man is special. We all know this. I don't want to hear something like, 'I made the right play.' ... That's inexcusable. As far as I'm concerned, Ant-Man is so much better than that."

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As Smith said, as the focal point of Minnesota's offense, sometimes the situation requires a player like Anthony Edwards to play hero ball when the stakes are at their highest.

Edwards and the Timberwolves will now look to become just the 14th team in NBA history to come back from a 3-1 deficit in the postseason.

Looking at the stats from Anthony Edwards and the Minnesota Timberwolves' Game 4 loss to the OKC Thunder

While Anthony Edwards and the Minnesota Timberwolves were able to pick up a dominant 42-point win in Game 3 to bring the series to 2-1, the team went down early in Game 3.

Despite that, in the second half, Minnesota battled back, putting the pressure on the newly minted MVP and the top-seeded Thunder.

At the end of regulation, the team led in rebounds, assists, points off turnovers, fastbreak points, points in the paint, second chance points and free throw makes, while out-shooting OKC from the floor, and beyond the arc. However, the Thunder still managed to walk away with a 128-126 win.

Edwards finished the game with 16 points, four rebounds and six assists, shooting 5-13 from the floor and 1-7 from beyond the arc.

This marks the second time Edwards has knocked down just one 3-pointer, and the second time this series he has scored under 20 points.

He and the Timberwolves will now look to get back in the win column and stave off elimination in Game 5.

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About the author

Evan Bell

Evan Bell is a journalist specializing in the NBA and NHL at Sportskeeda, whose love for the game stems from a childhood spent watching the Chicago Bulls. He has been there through their highs and lows, from the Jordan era to the exciting Derrick Rose and Joakim Noah years.

Evan finds the 82-game season and the intensity of playoff basketball exhilarating, and he also revels in the offseason drama. Phil Jackson stands out as his favorite coach, whom he admires for his composed leadership and success in managing dynamic personalities like Dennis Rodman.

To deliver top-quality content, Evan fact-checks information while diligently keeping up with the action year-round.

When he's not writing, Evan follows tennis and Greek football, and also plays basketball and tennis.

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