This postseason has brought out a lot of unseen sides of Anthony Edwards. The rising superstar, who has always maintained a tough personality, couldn’t maintain it after the Game 3 loss against the Dallas Mavericks. The frustrating loss brought out a sore loser in Ant-Man, as he blamed the referees after going 0-3 down in the series.

Following the game, a reporter asked Edwards what stood out in the box score after the game. In response, the Wolves star said, “They had 31 free throws, we had 17.” After a series of disappointing outings, averaging under 19 points in the three games, he broke his shackles with a 26-point night. Even though it came out during the crucial game, it wasn’t enough to out win the Mavs. Notably, the Wolves are yet to open their account in the series and are one loss away from putting an end to their magnificent run.

While the Mavs duo Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving put up a brilliant 66-point outing together, Anthony Edwards chose to point out the disparity in the free throws offered as the reason for defeat. Interestingly, this isn’t the first time when someone openly criticized the refs for the FT issue.

Several teams this season have often criticized the refs, particularly with their FT offering to the LA Lakers. The Toronto Raptors coach Darko Rajakovic publicly criticized the officials and in return suffered a $25,000 fine from the league. And, after tonight’s call out from Anthony Edwards, the rising superstar may even get a notice from Adam Silver.

The NBA Commissioner remained silent throughout this season regarding the players’ criticisms of the officiating. Even after superstar, LeBron James took a dig at the refs for spoiling his birthday with a bad call this season. But, in 2018, Silver once addressed the issue and said, “We recognize that the fines — while nobody likes to lose the money — in many ways are more symbolic than anything else when you have players as wealthy as they are.”

Different shades in Anthony Edwards’ tough mentality

The 22-year-old Anthony Edwards rose to stardom in no time. Some section of fans even compared him to the NBA legend Michael Jordan, citing the similarities in the game. Apart from his balling skills, he also got the fans’ attention for his tough mentality off the court. Recently, he said, “I just want to kill everything in front of me. That’s the main thing, pretty much. That’s all there is to it,” after defeating the Phoenix Suns 3-0 in the first round.

While it seemed like the Wolves would maul everything in front of them and reach the Finals. They had their first setback against the Denver Nuggets, after losing three straight games. Following the Game 6 loss, he said, “We were just a little tired probably…We came out flat today.” Even though it was alright for a player to be vulnerable after a loss, the NBA world saw the first sign of vulnerability in Ant-Man. 

And, tonight, Edwards pointed out the refs and blamed them for the disparity in the free throws offered. Ultimately indicating it as the reason for the loss. Moreover, he was also criticized for getting tired in the fourth quarter by several analysts like Reggie Miller and Charles Barkley.

Will he shut down the critics and create a miraculous comeback by forcing Game 5? Let us know in the comments.

Stay tuned for more such updates, and to follow in what Shaq’s ex-agent, Leonard Armato had to say about the marketing genius, watch this video.