BOSTON — As Anthony Edwards’ NBA stardom has exploded — especially over the past year — his loud personality has also been in the spotlight. That means fun soundbites and quotes as the 23-year-old navigates the fame of being one of the best players in the league.
But Edwards’ best trait is arguably his trash talking to just about anyone who will listen to him. Jayson Tatum, who played with Edwards on USA Basketball at the Paris Olympics, said he enjoys that aspect of the young Wolves guard. He also added after the Celtics beat the Wolves on Sunday that they talked plenty of trash to each other during the summer.
“I love Ant,” Tatum said. “He’s a hell of a player, a hell of a competitor. He talks a lot. And he had a lot to say this summer about the games we played against him last year, and he was excited to play against us this year. So you enjoy playing against the other best players in the league. It’s always fun and competitive.”
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The Wolves have struggled to open the season at 8-8, but they’ve been one of the rising teams in the league. They made it to the West Finals last season as Edwards was a huge part of that equation. They’re still trying to find their footing after trading Karl-Anthony Towns for Julius Randle and Donte DiVincenzo. But as Edwards showed again Sunday, he can score with the best of them when he heats up.
The Celtics and Wolves had some great battles last season. It was early during the 2023-24 season when the Wolves made some noise in a tough win over the Celtics at home. Netflix’s “Starting Five” series, which features Edwards and Tatum, also caught Edwards talking trash about Tatum after the Wolves beat the C’s. Tatum got the best of Edwards and the Wolves the next time they met, including scoring 45 points in an overtime win in Boston.
That’s life playing on the Celtics as guys like Edwards want that stage against the defending champs. Edwards is still looking to make some playoff noise of his own, though the deep playoff run last season helps his stock.
Jaylen Brown, who’s praised Edwards in the past as they’re both from Atlanta, said he thinks the trash-talking part of the game should be celebrated more. Brown said he’s not much of a trash talker himself unless someone gets him going. But otherwise, he said he knows it’s just one guy talking as part of the game.
“It’s basketball,” Brown said. “At the end of the day, it’s nothing personal. Just come out and playing ball and being competitive. Ant is one of the more competitive guys in this league. He’s one of the young superstars. He plays both sides of the ball, he plays hard, he wants to win. So I have respect. Plus, we’re from the same background — I get it, I know what type of cloth he’s cut from. So to me, it’s normal.”
