Can Anthony Edwards Win His First MVP Award This Season?

Over the past several weeks, Nikola Jokic and Giannis Antetokounmpo were quite busy with the 2025 EuroBasket tournament. Luka Doncic was there too, but not before signing a three-year, $165 million contract with the L.A. Lakers. As for Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, he appeared on “The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon,” where he joked about his short-lived affair with football.

These players, of course, are the NBA superstars of this generation. But there seems to be one name missing.

For those who are wondering what Anthony Edwards has been up to, the answer “not much” isn’t an exaggeration at this point. No international tournaments, no headline-worthy contract extension, no late-night TV appearances. According to Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic, Edwards has been “off the social media grid and working on his game” this offseason.

The Minnesota Timberwolves franchise player will always have a number of things going on in his life, but none of them outweighs the biggest priority on his agenda: getting better. Can this singular focus propel Edwards to the NBA MVP award this season?

From a talent perspective, Ant-Man has a wide array of tools that make pundits go from “Maybe, we’ll see” to “It’s only a matter of time.” His scoring average has steadily increased across his five years in the league, his clutch gene remains as lethal as ever, and his impact on the defensive end is an underrated component of the Wolves’ playoff success.

Last season, Edwards was fifth in scoring, putting up 27.6 points per game. The only players ahead of him in this category? That would be Gilgeous-Alexander (32.7 ppg), Antetokounmpo (30.4 ppg), Jokic (29.6 ppg), and Doncic (28.2 ppg).

Clearly, the Timberwolves star has a lot of work to do in order to keep in step (or even surpass) those players. If Edwards is to build a strong MVP case, there are a couple of other things he can do besides a 30-point scoring average.

For one, Edwards can look into improving his performance as a facilitator. His reputation as one of the NBA’s most feared gunners has been well-earned, but if the three-time All-Star can get more assists and set up his teammates for easier scoring opportunities, he can solidify his push for MVP. (All four of the aforementioned players averaged more dimes than him last season, by the way.)

In addition, Edwards should find ways to translate his incredible talent into more wins for the Timberwolves. SGA and Jokic led their ball clubs to 68 wins and 50 wins, respectively, and it’s no surprise that both of them were the two biggest contenders for MVP honors. Also, among the five players mentioned here, Edwards is the only athlete to have never won a conference final in his career.

Edwards once denied being the face of the NBA, but the title of MVP could very well be in the cards for him if he continues his relentless pursuit of greatness. The moment when Edwards finally claims the Michael Jordan trophy might actually be coming this season, but in order to fulfill this vision, there are mind-blowing numbers to reach and spectacular adversaries to outwork.