Anthony Edwards, D'Angelo Russell are victims of national media disrespect

The Ringer thinks there are 32 players better than Anthony Edwards.

Even if Anthony Edwards is voted into the All-Star Game by NBA coaches on Thursday night, it won't erase the amount of disrespect he's received from national media members who clearly aren't watching many Minnesota Timberwolves games. 

D'Angelo Russell is in the same boat, though unlike Edwards, his elite play in the past two months can't erase a career filled with shortcomings and justified criticisms. Still, the hate Russell got from Ryan Russillo this week was shocking and borderline cruel. 

"I think he's the worst player in the league that plays a lot of minutes. That was me being nice. He is so damaging to what your'e trying to f****** do every night that it's awful. I wouldn't pick him in a pick-up game," Russillo said. 

"He's just slow and casual. He's way too casual with the basketball. He's a casual basketball player. He's just out there running around. He gets lost, he freelances," Russillo continued. "To have that paired next to Anthony Edwards is a disaster. I don't even think [head coach Chris Finch] wants to play him."

Russell has been an offensive force for the past two months. Since Dec. 1, Russell is fourth in the league in 3-point shooting (42.8%). Only Buddy Hield, Keegan Murray and Lauri Markkanan are hitting at a higher percentage. 

How about some facts?

Since Jan. 1, Russell is fifth in the NBA in made 3-pointers per game at 3.6. The only players he's behind in that stretch are Klay Thompson (4.7), Steph Curry (4.7), Damian Lillard (4.0) and Buddy Hield (3.7). But Russell has knocked down 45.6% of his 3s since Jan. 1, which better than Thompson, Curry, Lillard and Hield. 

Russell's rise on offense, while acknowledging his defensive limitations, coincides with two things. One, the absence of Karl-Anthony Towns, who suffered a severe calf injury on Nov. 28 and hasn't played since. And two, Russell is playing more off guard while Kyle Anderson, Anthony Edwards and Austin Rivers run the offense. 

It's not a small sample size, either. Last year, with Patrick Beverley on the roster, Russell played 45% of his minutes at shooting guard and was better in that role. He admitted Wednesday night that he playing off the ball is good for him. 

"It's huge for me because when I first got in the league I struggled to find a balance between passing and scoring," Russell said, via Jack Borman. "Knowing I can score the ball at the rate that I can score and knowing I can control the game at a rate as well, I'm trying to balance out being in that position and just dominating the ball. Now I'm running lanes and trying to get to the corner because I know the guy guarding me has to respect that corner. And it's opening up shots for myself and other guys as well."

I asked D-Lo about how important playing off-ball has been in his big Dec/Jan stretch, and his big 4Q tonight:

"Having Kyle Anderson and Austin and the way our system is flowing, it allows me to play and make high IQ plays off the ball. I enjoy the game a lot like that." pic.twitter.com/Dg32RqTFNW

— Jack Borman (@jrborman13) February 2, 2023

The Edwards disrespect

That's the D'Lo national disrespect. The opprobrium of Anthony Edwards is laughable, and one needn't look any further than The Ringer for reasons why. 

This week, The Ringer unveiled an updated list of its top 100 players and Edwards is ranked 33rd. Here are some of the players The Ringer believes are better than Edwards: 

• Brandon Ingram
• Jrue Holiday
• Lauri Markkanen
• Darius Garland
• De'Aaron Fox
• Trae Young
• DeMar DeRozan
• Bam Adebayo
• Domantas Sabonis
• Pascal Siakam

Let's compare Edwards to those 10 players.

• Edwards is the only one who hasn't missed a game this season
• Edwards' 53.5% effective FG% is second among guards in the group
• Edwards is the top rebounding guard in the group
• Edwards leads all 11 players in steals per game
• Edwards is tied for second in blocks per game in the group

Basketball Reference

Basketball Reference

Those are all really good players but to say Brandon Ingram, Bam Adebayo or Darius Garland is flat out better than Edwards is a slap in the face. But it's no surprise. The Ringer suggested in April 2021 that Edwards' career arc would be comparable to Coby White, J.R. Smith, Collin Sexton, Dion Waiters and Jordan Crawford. 

Here's a fun stat for the The Ringer to consider when they update that list: Only four players in NBA history who are under the age of 22 have posted five straight games with at least 25 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists. They are:

• Anthony Edwards
• Michael Jordan
• LeBron James
• Luka Doncic

Another popular source for NBA information is Nate Duncan of the Dunc'd On podcast. Last week, Duncan revealed his All-Star picks and his response to not picking Edwards was that Edwards isn't "anywhere near as good as the guys I have in there."

Not picking him could be justified but to say he's not "anywhere near as good" as the likes of Steph Curry, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Ja Morant, Damian Lillard, Devin Booker and De'Aaron Fox is harsh. 

Here's another fun stat: Edwards' 536 career 3-pointers is the most in NBA history before turning 22 years old. Second place on the list is Doncic, who hit 419 3s before age 22. 

Edwards turns 22 in August, by the way.  

Another stat? Okay, fine.

In his last five games he's averaging 31.2 points on 50.4% shooting and 40.9% from 3-point range along with 7.4 rebounds and 5.6 rebounds. According to the Timberwolves, Edwards and LeBron James are only players posting those numbers in the past five games. Pretty good, eh?

They say winning is a magnet for national attention. Well, the Wolves are 12-5 in their last 17 games, which is right up there with the 76ers and Nuggets for the best winning percentage in the NBA since Jan. 1.

If they keep playing well, the narrative should change and attention should come. But this is the national NBA media we're talking about here, so don't hold your breath.