Shannon Sharpe has been in the news for all the wrong reasons recently. Between having to leave ESPN at the start of an active investigation and revealing some less than flattering texts, it has not been a good few weeks for the Hall of Fame tight end. That trend continued last night when the Minnesota Timberwolves defeated the Los Angeles Lakers in Game 5 of their first round series, sending the Lakers into an offseason that will require them to restructure the roster around Luka Dončić. As such, the NBA world, including Anthony Edwards, spent the evening making fun of Sharpe’s catchphrase.
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Sharpe has used many triplets of rhymes before, ending the Dr. Seuss impression with “Lakers in five.” The joke has grown and grown since its introduction in 2020 until this season’s playoffs saw Sharpe once again use the same structure.
Unfortunately for Sharpe, he was only half right, as it was Wolves, not Lakers, in five. Riffing on the structure, Anthony Edwards impersonated Sharpe in the tunnel after his Wolves win.
“Ant Man, Batman, Superman, don’t matter. Lakers in five,” Edwards yelled. This came shortly after he opened up his press conference by celebrating Sharpe’s goof. He explained how the series felt even better than it typically would.
Fans couldn’t be too angry, considering how funny it was. One poster called Edwards “the best person to lose to in sports,” while another said, “Just let my guy do his thing.”
Ant opened the presser by giving credit to LeBron James. After he called him the best player ever and gave him his flowers, Edwards had to get the jokes in.
While flanked by Julius Randle and Naz Reid, Edwards said, “You know what makes it feel even better is that they said Lakers in five, and the Wolves won in five. So, I think that makes it feel ten times better.”
Whether this is in regard to Sharpe’s running bit is uncertain, as ESPN’s expert predictions featured the entire panel picking the Lakers to win the series. No matter who the disrespect is in relation to, Anthony Edwards and the Wolves roster that was disrespected by national coverage have now accomplished something they’ve rarely done.
Minnesota has now advanced past the first round for only the third time in franchise history. It’s also the first time they’ve done so in back to back years. They will face either the Golden State Warriors or Houston Rockets in the second round.
