{"id":143948,"date":"2025-07-03T10:14:28","date_gmt":"2025-07-03T10:14:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/143948\/"},"modified":"2025-07-03T10:14:28","modified_gmt":"2025-07-03T10:14:28","slug":"the-anthony-edwards-era-has-arrived","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/143948\/","title":{"rendered":"The Anthony Edwards Era Has Arrived"},"content":{"rendered":"

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"anthony<\/a><\/p>\n

Anthony Edwards wears Towel and Shorts Balenciaga. Shoes Adidas Anthony Edwards 1.<\/p>\n

The second coming of Michael Jordan. That\u2019s what everyone\u2019s saying about Anthony Edwards<\/a>. But the Minnesota Timberwolves superstar is his own beast, an electric, gravity-defying, trash-talking dunking machine that at 23 years old is the future face of the NBA. After winning gold as a member of Team U.S.A. at the Paris Olympics, the Ant-Man is getting ready to lead his team to another run at the NBA championship. But before he hits the court, the Atlanta native Zoomed with his fellow Georgian Chris Tucker<\/a> to talk about, among other things, the price of being great.<\/p>\n

\u2014\u2014\u2014<\/p>\n

TUESDAY 2 PM SEPTEMBER 3, 2024 MINNEAPOLIS<\/p>\n

CHRIS TUCKER: What\u2019s up man!<\/p>\n

ANTHONY EDWARDS: What\u2019s happenin\u2019?<\/p>\n

TUCKER: Man, it\u2019s a pleasure. You just finished training?<\/p>\n

EDWARDS: Nah, I had a procedure, so I\u2019ve been off the last couple of days.<\/p>\n

TUCKER: What was it? Your back or something?<\/p>\n

EDWARDS: Yeah, my back.<\/p>\n

TUCKER: You good though? You going to be ready for the season?<\/p>\n

EDWARDS: Hell yeah. I be ready.<\/p>\n

TUCKER: [Laughs] You act so much like Michael Jordan. Is he your daddy?<\/p>\n

EDWARDS: [Laughs]<\/p>\n

TUCKER: I just want to get that out there. That\u2019s what I thought. I said, \u201cThat might be Michael\u2019s kid.\u201d But I say that because you remind me of one of the greatest, if not the greatest. You bringing that fire and you ain\u2019t trying to be everybody\u2019s friend. You are trying to win. And that\u2019s what Michael was, love it or hate it. Did you watch him growing up?<\/p>\n

EDWARDS: Growing up I was a football player, so I didn\u2019t even really watch Mike.<\/p>\n

TUCKER: What?!<\/p>\n

EDWARDS: Yeah, I didn\u2019t see any of his games, just the highlights.<\/p>\n

TUCKER: Wow. You talk junk, and Michael talked junk, and we love that. Because a lot of the players are too friendly. You don\u2019t know if they really want to win. I grew up in the backyard playing with my brother. I hated to lose.<\/p>\n

EDWARDS: Me too.<\/p>\n

\"anthony<\/a><\/p>\n

Towel Balenciaga. Necklace and Earrings (worn throughout) Anthony\u2019s own.<\/p>\n

TUCKER: Who did you play with growing up?<\/p>\n

EDWARDS: My two older brothers, and I could never win, so I think that\u2019s what made me tough.<\/p>\n

TUCKER: That\u2019s crazy because that\u2019s how Michael was. He had an older brother who they say was cold-blooded.<\/p>\n

EDWARDS: My brother cold.<\/p>\n

TUCKER: I think that\u2019s god molding us at a young age\u2014people like you and Michael\u2014to build that fire in you to be great.<\/p>\n

EDWARDS: Yep.<\/p>\n

TUCKER: What part of Georgia are you from?<\/p>\n

EDWARDS: Atlanta. I\u2019m from the west side, over there by Bankhead.<\/p>\n

TUCKER: I\u2019m from Decatur where it\u2019s greater.<\/p>\n

EDWARDS: Oh, you from Decatur?<\/p>\n

TUCKER: Went to Columbia High School, graduated in 1990.<\/p>\n

EDWARDS: I wasn\u2019t even thought about then.<\/p>\n

TUCKER: When were you born?<\/p>\n

EDWARDS: August 2001.<\/p>\n

TUCKER: Dang, I had Rush Hour 2 in 2001. I was doing my thang.<\/p>\n

EDWARDS: Yeah, that\u2019s when you were at the spa picking up girls; you wanted to get a massage.<\/p>\n

TUCKER: Yep, yep, yep. That was when we was in Hong Kong.<\/p>\n

EDWARDS: [Laughs] For sure.<\/p>\n

TUCKER: We had so much fun, man. We was riding off the success of the first one. We did the third Rush Hour in Paris. Did you get any chance to see Paris while you were out there? I know you were working.<\/p>\n

EDWARDS: Yeah, I was able to get out a little bit.<\/p>\n

TUCKER: You got some shopping in?<\/p>\n

EDWARDS: I\u2019m not a big shopper, but I went to [REDACTED] and bought two items. It\u2019s a lot cheaper over there.<\/p>\n

TUCKER: That\u2019s what I did when I was making money, too. [Laughs] I made Dolce & Gabbana rich. How does it feel to have won a gold medal\u2014and winning it with some of your heroes, people you grew up watching?<\/p>\n

\"Anthony<\/a><\/p>\n

Towel and Shorts Balenciaga. Shoes Adidas Anthony Edwards 1.<\/p>\n

EDWARDS: It felt good playing alongside K.D. [Kevin Durant], who is my favorite player of all time. But winning it and the way that we won it was the greatest thing ever. I mean, we was down 18 points to Serbia, came back, and then beat France in France. It was a fantastic finish.<\/p>\n

TUCKER: That\u2019s awesome, man. Now tell me this, why K.D.? You got LeBron, you had Kobe, you got Steph. Why is K.D. your favorite player?<\/p>\n

EDWARDS: Before I met him, I felt like he was super cool, and then when I met him, I realized we are the same. All we want to do is hoop. We let our people control our stuff, but we just want to get on the court and hoop. That\u2019s what I realized when I first got around him. Every time he walks in the gym, he grabs a ball and goes straight to the court before he puts his clothes on, and just starts shooting. And then off the court we\u2019d just be chilling.<\/p>\n

TUCKER: That\u2019s how I felt when I met Eddie Murphy<\/a> for the first time. He was my childhood hero. I met Richard Pryor, too.<\/p>\n

EDWARDS: I heard Richard Pryor was funny.<\/p>\n

TUCKER: He\u2019s the king, man.<\/p>\n

EDWARDS: That\u2019s what they say.<\/p>\n

TUCKER: Everybody loved Rich. When he was doing stand-up, it was like he was doing a play. He can do impressions, characters, he was just naturally funny. And Eddie, he was a rock star in stand-up. I wanted to do Rush Hour because that was my Beverly Hills Cop. To this day, I see Eddie and I\u2019m like, \u201cMan, there goes Eddie Murphy.\u201d<\/p>\n

EDWARDS: That\u2019s how I am with K.D. \u201cMan, there goes K.D.\u201d<\/p>\n

TUCKER: Isn\u2019t that crazy? As great as you are, you\u2019re still saying that. And you got so many fans now, and people are like, \u201cOh, even he\u2019s got a hero.\u201d We\u2019re all standing on the shoulders of so many people.<\/p>\n

EDWARDS: Exactly.<\/p>\n

TUCKER: You\u2019re 21 years old?<\/p>\n

EDWARDS: I just turned 23 in Paris.<\/p>\n

TUCKER: You had your birthday in Paris?<\/p>\n

EDWARDS: Yeah.<\/p>\n

TUCKER: Did they do a cake for you, LeBron and them?<\/p>\n

EDWARDS: Yeah, we had a little party. They all showed up.<\/p>\n

TUCKER: That\u2019s hot, man! You had boys honoring you because you next, man. They know it, too. You\u2019re the face now.<\/p>\n

EDWARDS: That\u2019s what they be saying. [Laughs]<\/p>\n

TUCKER: Because you are, man. Just stay on that right path. So are you going to vote this year? You ain\u2019t got to tell me who you\u2019re going to vote for.<\/p>\n

EDWARDS: Yeah, I\u2019m going to vote.<\/p>\n

TUCKER: That\u2019s what I\u2019m talking about. You going to vote in Atlanta?<\/p>\n

EDWARDS: Probably Minnesota.<\/p>\n

TUCKER: So you\u2019re 23. I got a son who\u2019s 25.<\/p>\n

EDWARDS: That\u2019s your oldest?<\/p>\n

TUCKER: I only got one son. They\u2019re too expensive. I had one and that was it. That\u2019s the golden number.<\/p>\n

EDWARDS: You\u2019re right about that. They\u2019re expensive.<\/p>\n

\"anthony<\/a><\/p>\n

Jacket and Pants Prada. Tank Top Anthony\u2019s own.<\/p>\n

TUCKER: I\u2019m just playing. I got one, and he\u2019s great. Do you regret doing one year of college? Because I never went. I went straight to the comedy clubs and did my thing because school was difficult for me. I was a class clown.<\/p>\n

EDWARDS: No, I don\u2019t regret it. I was a class clown too and school was hard for me. I was the same as you. I was ready to get out there. I wish I could have went [to the NBA] out of high school, honestly.<\/p>\n

TUCKER: I felt the same way. In the 10th grade, I had to figure out what I was going to do. I said, \u201cI know I ain\u2019t going to college because school is already tough for me and I ain\u2019t going to the military because they get up too early.\u201d So I entered the talent show, told my first joke, and that was it. I got a little laugh and said, \u201cI can build on this.\u201d That\u2019s also when you were a young kid playing football. You told me you weren\u2019t even interested in basketball. Did you ever think you could go pro?<\/p>\n

EDWARDS: I thought I was going into pro football throughout my whole life.<\/p>\n

TUCKER: What made you switch over to basketball?<\/p>\n

EDWARDS: Growing up I always wanted to be my older brother and he never played football, but he was super good at basketball. In the eighth grade I started taking it a little seriously, and we ended up going to school together. I was a freshman, he was a senior, and I saw how everybody was like, \u201cBubba this, Bubba that.\u201d And I\u2019m like, \u201cMan, I got to be better than him one day.\u201d I stopped playing football and started focusing on basketball.<\/p>\n

TUCKER: Wow. How are your brothers and sisters responding to your fame and success?<\/p>\n

EDWARDS: They say, \u201cI knew you was going to be something.\u201d But they definitely still treat me like I ain\u2019t nobody, which I like.<\/p>\n

TUCKER: That\u2019s how my brothers and sisters still are to this day. Like, \u201cBoy, shut up.\u201d<\/p>\n

EDWARDS: When I\u2019m around them I can be cool, take a nap. I ain\u2019t got to worry about nobody doing too much.<\/p>\n

TUCKER: That\u2019s what\u2019s so awesome, when you have a good family, because you can be yourself. Out in the world, you\u2019re this hero. The whole world stops. \u201cThere goes Anthony Edwards.\u201d But when you go home they\u2019re like, \u201cWhat\u2019s up man? What\u2019s going on?\u201d<\/p>\n

EDWARDS: Exactly. Look though, I got a question.<\/p>\n

TUCKER: Go ahead.<\/p>\n

EDWARDS: What was your reaction when you seen shawty in Friday, when she said she was looking like Janet Jackson.<\/p>\n

TUCKER: Oh, you talking about the big girl?<\/p>\n

EDWARDS: \u201cGot out of the car looking more like Freddie Jackson.\u201d<\/p>\n

TUCKER: \u201cWhat\u2019s wrong with you girl? Hooked up with that big girl!\u201d<\/p>\n

EDWARDS: [Laughs] That\u2019s a classic.<\/p>\n

TUCKER: Thank you man. We had so much fun. I had so much freedom. It\u2019s like you on the court. [Ice] Cube just let me go. That was my first costarring role and that was my shot. I said, \u201cThis is going to get me to my next movies.\u201d<\/p>\n

EDWARDS: That was crazy. I still watch it to this day.<\/p>\n

TUCKER: Thank you, man. That\u2019s a great question. Ask some more questions.<\/p>\n

EDWARDS: What about when you was trying to sing on Rush Hour?<\/p>\n

TUCKER: Oh, you know I\u2019m a big fan of Michael [Jackson].<\/p>\n

EDWARDS: You be doing the impressions and shit.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

T-shirt Loewe. Sweatpants Los Angeles Apparel. Shoes Adidas Anthony Edwards 1.<\/p>\n

TUCKER: Every one of my movies, I did something about Michael. I thought we were kindred spirits. I wanted the energy that Michael had when he hit the stage. I wanted that when I hit the screen. Just like when you hit the floor, everybody\u2019s like, \u201cOh, shoot, he\u2019s about to do something. Something\u2019s going to happen any minute.\u201d<\/p>\n

EDWARDS: Yeah, for sure.<\/p>\n

TUCKER: Growing up with your grandparents, how much wisdom did you get from them?<\/p>\n

EDWARDS: A lot, bro. That\u2019s why I am how I am. My granddad wakes up, goes to the grocery store, gets him some garlic, and just drinks a whole bunch of water, bro. He be chilling. He stays to himself, don\u2019t do too much. He goes from the house to the grocery store back to the house. I think I got my coolness from him. Just being laid back, not doing too much.<\/p>\n

TUCKER: That\u2019s a blessing. Now, I know you lost your mom, and I\u2019m a mama\u2019s boy. You said you\u2019re a lot like her. Is that a lot of your motivation and drive?<\/p>\n

EDWARDS: Yeah, for sure. I know if she was here she\u2019d be super proud, just cheering me on in everything I do. Every time I step on the court, I just want to put on a show for her and my grandma. That\u2019s pretty much it. Everybody else I don\u2019t really care about. If I play good or bad, I ain\u2019t really trippin\u2019, as long as I made them proud.<\/p>\n

TUCKER: I know they are with you. I believe that wholeheartedly. Do you think this year y\u2019all ready to win a championship? Y\u2019all got all the tools?<\/p>\n

EDWARDS: Last year we were clicking at the right time in the playoffs, and then we stopped clicking at the wrong time. Versus Dallas, we weren\u2019t clicking, wasn\u2019t hitting shots. This year we got another chance to do something special, but it all depends on the team, on us as a group. If we come together and don\u2019t worry about individual stats and accolades, we\u2019ll be alright.<\/p>\n

TUCKER: That\u2019s a big thing in the NBA? People worry about their stats because of a new contract?<\/p>\n

EDWARDS: Hell yeah. Because at the end of the day you\u2019re trying to feed your family, so people worry about themselves and what they can do. But in order to feed your family, you got to win.<\/p>\n

TUCKER: That\u2019s right.<\/p>\n

EDWARDS: After what we did last year, everybody realized, \u201cAlright, we all got one goal in mind.\u201d If we win, then everybody is going to get paid because they\u2019re going to be like, \u201cHe\u2019s a winner, and they know how to win.\u201d We got to figure that part out.<\/p>\n

TUCKER: Do you like the way Kobe and Jordan went at their teammates? \u201cY\u2019all going to come up to my level right now.\u201d<\/p>\n

EDWARDS: I can agree to disagree, because in today\u2019s game everybody\u2019s different. You can\u2019t talk to everybody the same. You got to talk to players differently. Certain players can take it. I talk to some of my teammates like, \u201cHey, get your shit together.\u201d But some players, you got to go talk to them on the side. You can\u2019t really cuss them out in front of everybody.<\/p>\n

TUCKER: Yep.<\/p>\n

EDWARDS: You just got to know how to do it.<\/p>\n

TUCKER: That\u2019s smart. Can\u2019t cuss everybody. I got family and they be like, \u201cMan, I knew you when you couldn\u2019t tie your shoe.\u201d<\/p>\n

EDWARDS: Exactly.<\/p>\n

TUCKER: We all got our own egos. That was your first time getting a passport when you went to Paris?<\/p>\n

EDWARDS: No, I played with Team U.S.A. the year before in the World Cup and that was my first time going out of the country. We went to Abu Dhabi, Spain, and Manila.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Jacket Adidas Anthony Edwards 1. Sweatpants Los Angeles Apparel.<\/p>\n

TUCKER: How do you like going to different places around the world?<\/p>\n

EDWARDS: It was cool. I don\u2019t really like to fly, but if it\u2019s required through basketball, I\u2019ll do it.<\/p>\n

TUCKER: How\u2019s your spiritual life? Did you grow up in church?<\/p>\n

EDWARDS: Yeah, my grandma used to take us to church. She tried for every Sunday, but I had football games sometimes. But whenever I was free she\u2019d make me go to church for sure.<\/p>\n

TUCKER: How\u2019s your spiritual life now? Do you pray every morning? Do you meditate? What do you do?<\/p>\n

EDWARDS: I pray before I eat a lot of times, but that\u2019s about it. We pray before the game as a team, but I don\u2019t really go to church or anything like that.<\/p>\n

TUCKER: So what do you think about Ja Morant? Would you like to play him one-on-one, or do you feel like he\u2019s one of the guys you\u2019re going to have to battle in the next 10 years?<\/p>\n

EDWARDS: Oh yeah, he\u2019ll be back this year. A lot of people, I ain\u2019t going to say they forgot about him, but he went under wraps for a few months, because he hasn\u2019t been playing. But as far as one-on-one, yeah, I can probably cook him.<\/p>\n

TUCKER: [Laughs] I love when you say that.<\/p>\n

EDWARDS: That\u2019s my dog, but one-on-one?<\/p>\n

TUCKER: I met him, we had a good little conversation, and he\u2019s a great guy. I think you two are going to take over the league and win multiple championships. But I\u2019m a big fan of yours. I said, \u201cI got to meet this guy.\u201d I think I saw you one time at All-Star Weekend. I said, \u201cHe\u2019s from Georgia? That\u2019s my boy.\u201d I claimed you already. Anything you need from me\u2014a cat that\u2019s 52, been through it\u2014I\u2019m here. And one piece of advice: Handle your business now. Start investing. When I was your age, I bought a bunch of houses and they weren\u2019t making no money for me. I just needed a place to go to relax, but I wish I\u2019d bought some condos. When you get them checks, buy some condos. Buy some apartment buildings now. That\u2019s what I tell all my young bucks when they get the big paper. Don\u2019t put it in the bank because they are going to be making money off your money. Make sure you handle that. You cannot ignore that.<\/p>\n

EDWARDS: I got you.<\/p>\n

TUCKER: We\u2019ll exchange numbers, and god bless you man.<\/p>\n

EDWARDS: God bless you, too. I\u2019m definitely going to need your number because I\u2019m probably going to be acting when I retire, so I\u2019m going to need some advice.<\/p>\n

TUCKER: Oh, you\u2019re definitely going to be acting. I\u2019ll get it to you, for sure.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Tank Top Anthony\u2019s Own. Sweatpants Burberry. Necklace Cartier. Shoes Adidas Anthony Edwards 1.<\/p>\n

\u2014\u2014\u2014<\/p>\n

Grooming: Jen Rose.<\/p>\n

Tailor: Bridget Savadge.<\/p>\n

Photography Assistant: Gui Cha.<\/p>\n

Fashion Assistant: Jacob Cole Norton.<\/p>\n

Production Assistants: Brooklyn Nevins and Ashlyn O\u2019Connell.<\/p>\n

Post-production: One Hundred Berlin and Camerin Stoldt.<\/p>\n

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