{"id":608063,"date":"2026-02-17T13:21:14","date_gmt":"2026-02-17T13:21:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/608063\/"},"modified":"2026-02-17T13:21:14","modified_gmt":"2026-02-17T13:21:14","slug":"anthony-edwards-will-be-the-face-of-the-nba","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/608063\/","title":{"rendered":"Anthony Edwards will ‘be the face of the NBA’"},"content":{"rendered":"

Minnesota Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards was named the 2026 NBA All-Star Game MVP on Sunday after leading the USA Stars to a championship in the new round-robin tournament format<\/a>. Edwards scored a total of 32 points in 26 minutes played over the USA Stars\u2019 three games.<\/p>\n

On Monday morning\u2019s edition of First Take, ESPN\u2019s Stephen A. Smith made a bold statement about Edwards.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnt-Man is gonna be the face of the NBA,\u201d Smith said about Edwards once LeBron James retires. \u201cMark it down.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAnt-Man is gonna be the face of the NBA.\u201d@stephenasmith<\/a> thinks Anthony Edwards will be the face of the league once LeBron James retires \ud83d\udc40 pic.twitter.com\/VvLs91Q4xC<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 First Take (@FirstTake) February 16, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201c(Victor) Wembanyama, the brother\u2019s special,\u201d Smith said to ESPN NBA analysts Brian Windhorst and Kendrick Perkins. \u201cBut that damn Ant-Man. I mean, he is something to behold. He is Jordan-esque. He hasn\u2019t won yet; that\u2019s why we can\u2019t say that. But his game, the purity of it, the handle, the shot, the athleticism, the swag. Ant-Man, he don\u2019t believe it, but his boy Stephen A. gonna tell it to him. You got it all, dog. You got it all.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cA lot of people can\u2019t relate to somebody seven-feet-five,\u201d Smith explained regarding Wembanyama. \u201cIt\u2019s like, he\u2019s seven-feet-five. We can never do that. We can\u2019t be that. It\u2019s just an anomaly. Ant-Man is just like, it\u2019s just like Steph (Curry). The baby-faced assassin. Damn, look at size, and he\u2019s doing what he\u2019s doing. Look at Ant-Man, and he\u2019s doing what he\u2019s doing.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201c31.9 points per game in the 20 games against the 16 (NBA) teams that currently have winning records,\u201d Smith continued. \u201c59 percent on 71 shots, on clutch shots, this season, the best mark among 44 players who have attempted at least 35 shots. Six playoff series- Kevin Durant, Devin Booker, (Nikola) Joki\u0107, Kyrie Irving, LeBron James, Luka Don\u010di\u0107, Steph Curry. Ant-Man has won four of those six series.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe brother\u2019s coming,\u201d Smitih elaborated, with the yelling increasing. \u201cHe\u2019s special, ladies and gentlemen. Even if he don\u2019t want to admit it. I\u2019m doing it for him\u2026 Ant-Man is going to be the face of the NBA. Mark it down. Wembanyama\u2019s right there with him. Might win before, for all we know. But Ant-Man is going to be right there. He is spectacular. Box office. Money. My favorite player; him and Steph Curry. My favorite players in the NBA. Spectacular. I love Ant-Man. Worth the price of admission. All day, every day. Somebody\u2019s gotta tell him. So, I\u2019m telling him.\u201d<\/p>\n

Edwards is third in the NBA in scoring at 29.3 points per game, while putting together career-bests in field goal percentage (49.3%) and three-point percentage (40.2%) so far this season. The 24-year-old is undoubtedly one of the most exciting players in the NBA and is an ascending talent. And to Smith\u2019s point, Edwards\u2019 game has a Jordan, Kobe Bryant-esque feel to it from the shooting guard position. His swagger and personality have even carried over to the big screen with an acting role in the 2022 Adam Sandler-led film Hustle<\/a>.<\/p>\n

With that being said, Wembanyama would currently seem to be the best bet at being the next face of the NBA. Wemby is still only 22 years old and has an unprecedented ceiling with his mind-blowing skillset on both ends of the floor out of a 7\u20195\u2033 frame. We\u2019ve never seen anything like him, and as the San Antonio Spurs continue to grow and improve, Wemby is likely to become a massive global star who will wow NBA fans.<\/p>\n

In the end, it might just come down to who wins the championships. Edwards and Wembanyama are each in search of their first. There\u2019s also reigning NBA MVP and Finals MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, but the absolutely loaded Oklahoma City Thunder might prevent SGA from standing out to the \u201cface of the league\u201d territory. And there\u2019s Joki\u0107 to consider, who should get more attention than he does as the best player in the NBA and three-time league MVP. Cooper Flagg and a plethora of young talent across the league (as well as the incoming draft class) could enter the mix as well.<\/p>\n

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