Ex-Knicks guard pinpoints four reasons Anthony Edwards got to go at Shai Gilgeous-Alexander with no mercy

On Tuesday, Anthony Edwards and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander go head-to-head when the Minnesota Timberwolves face the Oklahoma City Thunder in the Western Conference Finals.

Ahead of the matchup, former New York Knicks guard Austin Rivers said Edwards should take his upcoming matchup against MVP frontrunner Gilgeous-Alexander personally. He cited four reasons for his assertion on a Monday episode of his podcast "The Off Guard."

"You have Ant versus Shai in a playoff, in a conference finals. ... These two men are going to go at it,'" Austin Rivers said. "And if I'm Ant, I'm taking this one personally. For one, I'm not in the MVP voting. Two, they're saying this guy is the MVP."

"He's the best guy in the NBA. I got something to prove here. I am the face of the NBA. It's not Shai. You're not from America. You're not our face. He is one of them. He's a talented player. He's an MVP. He's not the face of the league," Rivers added.

The highly anticipated contest between Anthony Edwards and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is being closely watched. Edwards led the Timberwolves as they eliminated the LA Lakers and the Golden State Warriors en route to the conference finals, averaging 26.5 points, 8.0 rebounds and 5.9 assists per game.

On the other hand, the Thunder had to navigate a tough contest against the Denver Nuggets after sweeping the Memphis Grizzlies in round 1. They won the Nuggets in Game 7, with Shai averaging 29.0 ppg, 5.9 rpg and 6.4 apg for the Thunder in the playoffs.

The Western Conference Finals between the Thunder and Timberwolves Game 1 is scheduled for 8:30 p.m. ET on ESPN at the Paycom Center, Oklahoma.

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Anthony Edwards' video comparing himself to rival Shai-Gilgeous Alexander resurfaces ahead of WCF

Ahead of Anthony Edwards' matchup against OKC Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander in the Western Conference Finals, a video of Edwards comparing himself to Gilgeous-Alexander has resurfaced. In a February 2024 conversation with ESPN's Stephen A. Smith, Edwards said he was better than the MVP frontrunner.

"I feel like I'm a better player. 100%," Edwards said.

Anthony Edwards and the Timberwolves became the first team since the Warriors in 2017 and 2018 to make it to back-to-back Western Conference Finals. The game against the Thunder pits two of the league's top defenses against each other after a 2-2 regular-season split.