Luka Doncic vs. Anthony Edwards in NBA playoffs duel: Looking back on previous battles between young stars

The Dallas Mavericks and Minnesota Timberwolves open the Western Conference finals on Wednesday, as the series offers plenty of star power and storylines. But let’s be real: the biggest draw is a superstar matchup between the future faces of the NBA — Luka Doncic and Anthony Edwards. 

One of the beautiful aspects of this matchup is how they’ve featured different styles of play to get to the same destination. Doncic is the master of the deceleration move and will use his size and strength to finish over smaller defenders. He’s going to need all the creativity, including fadeaways and stepbacks, to grind out this knee injury vs. the Timberwolves No. 1 defense. Edwards can do all those things, but he’s also the most explosive player in the league, with a lightning-quick first step leading to thunderous finishes above the rim. Neither player is lacking in confidence or trash-talking ability either, especially Edwards, who waved goodbye to Denver fans after closing out the defending champions on their home court in Game 7. It’s all left them in a position to take the torch in the West in the absence of LeBron James, Kevin Durant, Stephen Curry, Nikola Jokic and others. 

Both are worthy heirs to the throne. Doncic is coming off his best MVP finish (third) while putting up the first season with 33-9-9 averages in NBA history. Edwards finished seventh on the MVP ballot while becoming the eighth player all-time with 25-5-5 averages at age-22 or younger. 

Doncic has the second-highest scoring average in NBA playoff history (31.0) behind Michael Jordan (33.4), whom Edwards is drawing comparisons to. Edwards has the sixth-highest playoff scoring average (28.5), while Allen Iverson (29.7), Kevin Durant (29.3) and Jerry West (29.1) round out the top five. 

It’s not only rare to see two players producing like this, but meeting at this young age with a trip to the Finals on the line is unheard of. This is the first-ever matchup in the conference finals or later between players who averaged at least 25 points per game in their age-24 or…


Source link : https://www.cbssports.com/nba/news/luka-doncic-vs-anthony-edwards-in-nba-playoffs-duel-looking-back-on-previous-battles-between-young-stars/

Author : Douglas Clawson

Publish date : 2024-05-22 14:01:06

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