Anthony Edwards Regrets Calling Out Kyrie Irving Before WCF

Edwards may have bitten off more than he could chew before the 2024 Western Conference Finals

May 24, 2024; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Dallas Mavericks guard Kyrie Irving (11) controls the ball against Minnesota Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards (5) in the third quarter during game two of the western conference finals for the 2024 NBA playoffs at Target Center. Mandatory Credit: Brad Rempel-Imagn Images / Brad Rempel-Imagn Images

Anthony Edwards has become a popular personality in the NBA because of his energy on and off the court. He's never afraid to say what's on his mind and is willing to attack that in the game. That led him to call out Kyrie Irving after his Minnesota Timberwolves defeated the Denver Nuggets to advance to the Western Conference Finals. He regrets that now.

Netflix launched a new series, "Starting 5," featuring behind-the-scenes footage of five NBA stars, including Edwards. In this series, they showed Edwards calling out Irving immediately following Game 7 against the Nuggets, saying, "My matchup [is] gonna be Kyrie, so that's gonna be fun" on a broadcast, then showed footage of him being gassed in the game.

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Anthony Edwards during the Western Conference Finals:

“[Jaden McDaniels] you got Kyrie, I’m tired… I should’ve left Kyrie alone by saying that, I wish I can go and take that back” 😭

(🎥 ‘Starting 5’/ Netflix) pic.twitter.com/Pnf2omvwMf

— Kyrie Center (@kyriecenterig) October 9, 2024

In the footage of Game 1 of the WCF, you can see Edwards telling Jaden McDaniels to guard Kyrie Irving, with Derrick Jones Jr. asking Edwards if he was tired. All Edwards could respond was, "Hell yeah."

Irving had a strong Game 1, scoring 30 points, while Edwards had just 19 points on 6/16 shooting, clearly gassed from chasing Irving around the whole game. The Dallas Mavericks would go on to win the game 108-105.

Edwards would say in his sit down with Netflix, "Yeah, I should've left Kyrie alone, yeah, going and saying that right after being dog-tired fighting back from a Game 7 [against Denver]. I wish I could take that back."

Dallas would cruise to the NBA Finals, beating the Timberwolves in five games and winning all three games in Minnesota. Irving isn't a player who needs extra motivation, and he dominated in that series, averaging 27 PPG and shooting nearly 50% from the floor. Irving struggled in the OKC series, which likely led to Edwards feeling confident he could call the superstar out, and it was the wrong decision.

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