Whether Anthony Edwards starts or comes off the bench, the youngster is bound to have an impact. We’ve seen that in the NBA with the Timberwolves, and now we’re seeing it in Team USA’s exhibition games before the Olympics. Dubbed the next Michael Jordan by the basketball fraternity, although it’s too early to really predict, Ant-Man is certainly not shying away from making a name for himself on the biggest stage. Steve Kerr, on the other hand, has been fairly experimental with his lineups in the last two weeks.

It can be well considered that Team USA athletes are paving the way for the 22-year-old, letting him do what he does best. His flashy shots, dunks, and impactful penetration in the game give them the upper hand on the physical and mental end. And that’s what Austin Rivers has noticed, too. On the Ringer NBA podcast, Rivers highlighted how more experienced players like the Suns’ Devin Booker – who averages 35.7% from deep, averaging 24.3 points from the field in his NBA career, which are more than Ant-Man’s averages – are letting the Wolves star be in the center focus.

“There’s no such thing as translation with him. You just put him in a basketball game, and he’s going to put the ball in the circle,” Rivers said. It’s like what Anthony Edwards said in his interview with Vanity Fair earlier this year. “Oh, I think I’m the best player, for sure.” And wouldn’t you attribute this quality of stepping onto the floor and delivering right away to a quality the “best player” in the NBA would have? Then, the host continued, “His talent is so supreme, it doesn’t matter where he plays,” and the ex-NBA star fully agreed.

“I think [the players] realize that. So, I think when people see Booker and all these other guys moving out and letting him have the show, it’s not because they are scared or passive. I think these guys are strategically being smart.” Rovers further expanded on his analysis of Anthony Edwards’ role in the Dream Team. “You can’t all be in there like, ‘They gonna have to play around me.’ Otherwise, it’d be a catastrophe. You let Ant do that, and everybody else finds other ways. Devin’s so tactical he’d be a spot shooter. He could be an Allen Houston for this USA team. We don’t need him to be Phoenix Devin.”

This mindset Austin Rivers is talking about – of giving Edwards the room to do his thing, to shine? He feels Team USA already knows it, and because they’re working to incorporate all the best aspects of their individual games, Rivers believes “we’re gonna win.” The best part is that Edwards is rising to the challenge like he’s been doing throughout his career. “I’m still the No. 1 option [for Team USA at the Olympics],” he said. Steve Kerr’s reaction to this? “I love that Anthony Edwards said he’s the No. 1 option… I want him to think that way.”

In fact, the head coach even admitted to wanting the other players to adopt the same mindset. But if that were to happen, do you think this tactic that Austin Rivers explained would still work? Well, we may never find out. But to think that a 22-year-old is setting an example for the more experienced players on the team is just remarkable. So, when did Ant-Man start to make this integral shift from being a young and aspiring NBA star to a leader? Let’s roll back the calendar.

Anthony Edwards, an integral part of the Dream Team 2.0, is up to some serious business!

Anthony Edwards, while hogging all the spotlight, has been consistent with his performances. That’s right, he’s been living up to the hype, and senior basketball players starting to tip their hats off to him is a major tell. Whether we’re talking about the time when Ant-Man tried trash-talking Kevin Durant (his favorite player) in this past season’s NBA playoffs, and the Suns vet just smiled knowing his side was beaten, or the times when Edwards landed unbelievable shots and his partner KAT was left in disbelief.

“You could already see how his teammates react to his scoring. There’s a respect for him, and it started with their run last year in the playoffs, where he went from being like this young star to being like, ‘Yo, no. I’m one of the new guys,’” Austin Rivers surmised.

Through four exhibition games with Team USA, Anthony Edwards leads the scoring chart with massive names like LeBron James and Stephen Curry in the mix. 13 points against Canada, 14 against Australia, 16 against Serbia, and 11 after last night’s nail-biter against South Sudan has Ant-Man’s tally reach 54 points! The eye-opening part is that he’s come off the bench in three of those games!

As per reports, Kerr has settled on three starters, namely James, Curry, and Embiid. “I like those three guys in our starting lineup. We’ve been looking at other guys around them and we obviously do have great options, but I like those three guys together.” While two spots remain, the Warriors head coach has quite a few options, and it’s a matter of what sort of gameplay he prioritizes.

The Curry-Holiday backcourt would provide balance on both ends of the court. At the same time, a James-Embiid-Tatum frontcourt would be explosive and experienced enough to thrive in any situation. As soon as KD is fit, it is highly assumed that he’ll walk into the starting lineup. Anthony Edwards – who’s been part of the second unit with Tyrese Haliburton alongside Devin Booker, Derrick White, big man Bam Adebayo, and snippets of AD – is living up to the hype as well.

Do you think Anthony Edwards’ performances warrant him a place in the starting roster? Let us know in the comments below.