Anthony Edwards Reveals Who Made Him Cast His NFL Dreams Aside To Chase An NBA Career

Anthony Edwards is widely regarded as one of the best young guards in the NBA and is touted to be next in line to become the face of the league. However, he wouldn’t even have played basketball professionally had it not been for his elder brother Bubba’s influence. 

In a conversation with Interview Magazine’s Chris Tucker, the Timberwolves star revealed that he primarily focused on playing football in middle school. However, he looked up to Bubba, a talented basketball player, who had made a name for himself at the Daniel McLaughlin Therrell High School, prompting the guard to turn his attention to basketball. He said,

“Growing up I always wanted to be my older brother and he never played football, but he was super good at basketball. In the eighth grade I started taking it a little seriously, and we ended up going to school together. I was a freshman, he was a senior, and I saw how everybody was like, “Bubba this, Bubba that.” And I’m like, “Man, I got to be better than him one day.” I stopped playing football and started focusing on basketball.”

Bubba inadvertently put his brother on a path to superstardom. After spending one year at Therrell, Edwards transferred to Holy Spirit Preparatory School. He quickly rose in the recruiting rankings and was listed as a top-four prospect by every major evaluator.

He stayed close to home and spent a year at the University of Georgia before declaring for the 2020 NBA draft, where the Timberwolves picked him first overall. Edwards is now a two-time All-Star and an Olympic gold medalist. However, he hasn’t given up his dream of becoming a football star.

Anthony Edwards wants to play in the NFL

During an appearance on comedian Marco Summers’ talk show Open Thoughts in November 2023, the host asked the Timberwolves star about his football career and whether he could become the first player to play in the NBA and NFL. Edwards replied,

“I think I might be the first one. I’m gonna try… First I gotta handle my business in the NBA … Minnesota organization, we want to win a championship. After that, we’ll figure that out.”

Unlike Bo Jackson and Deion Sanders, who played in the NFL before suiting up in MLB during football’s offseason, Edwards seemingly isn’t keen on double-dipping. He’s focused on helping the Timberwolves win a championship and once he achieves that goal, he’ll consider embarking on a career in the NFL.