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Kendrick Perkins thinks Anthony Edwards will win his first MVP this season

Perkins believes Edwards is coming for it all this year.
Will Ragatz|
May 19, 2024; Denver, Colorado, USA; Minnesota Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards (5) drives at the basket in the first quarter against the Denver Nuggets in game seven of the second round for the 2024 NBA playoffs at Ball Arena.
May 19, 2024; Denver, Colorado, USA; Minnesota Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards (5) drives at the basket in the first quarter against the Denver Nuggets in game seven of the second round for the 2024 NBA playoffs at Ball Arena. | Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images

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ESPN's Kendrick Perkins, who has been on the Timberwolves bandwagon for a while, thinks Anthony Edwards will win his first MVP award this season.

"The young man that we've been comparing to Michael Jordan," Perkins said on NBA Today when asked who'd he pick to be a first-time MVP this year. "The young man that actually took his team to the Western Conference Finals. The young man that knocked off the defending champs out of the postseason. His name's Anthony Edwards."

"Watching what I saw last year, especially in the Olympics, Anthony Edwards is out to go get his," Perkins continued. "He wants to win, but this year, I wouldn't be surprised if he leads the league in scoring, to be honest with you. He's not waiting on anyone. I know he wants to win a championship, he has said that time and time again, but Anthony Edwards also wants to stack up those individual accolades. Anthony Edwards also wants to be the future face of the NBA. In order to get to that, he knows, just like everybody else, you gotta go get that MVP."

Edwards finished seventh in MVP voting last year after averaging 26/5/5 on 46/36/84 shooting. It was a breakout year that landed him a second-team All-NBA spot. Ant also led the Wolves to their first two playoffs series victories in 20 years, bringing them to the conference finals against the Mavericks. Since then, his star continued to grow during his stint with Team USA this summer.

Edwards, who turned 23 in August, is heading into his fifth season with big goals. He wants to get to the NBA finals and win a championship, but like Perkins said, he also surely has individual goals on his mind. If Edwards can replicate his averages from this past postseason — 27.5 points, 7 rebounds, 6.5 assists — over a full year, while also playing great defense on one of the best teams in the league, he could find himself in the MVP conversation.

It'll take a big leap to surpass players like Luka, Jokic, Giannis, SGA, and Joel Embiid, which is why all of those players have better odds to win MVP than Ant does. But with another step forward, anything is possible for Edwards this season.

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Will Ragatz
WILL RAGATZ

Will Ragatz is a senior writer for Vikings On SI, who also covers the Twins, Timberwolves, Gophers, and other Minnesota teams. He is a credentialed Minnesota Vikings beat reporter, covering the team extensively at practices, games and throughout the NFL draft and free agency period. Ragatz attended Northwestern University, where he studied at the prestigious Medill School of Journalism. During his time as a student, he covered Northwestern Wildcats football and basketball for SB Nation’s Inside NU, eventually serving as co-editor-in-chief in his junior year. In the fall of 2018, Will interned in Sports Illustrated’s newsroom in New York City, where he wrote articles on Major League Baseball, college football, and college basketball for SI.com.

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