Hall of Famer responds to Anthony Edwards’ insulting claim

February 15, 2020; Chicago, Illinois, USA; NBA former player Isiah Thomas during NBA All Star Saturday Night at United Center. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports

Hall of Fame member Isiah Thomas was not too happy with some recent comments made by Anthony Edwards.

Edwards was the subject of a feature published by the Wall Street Journal on Monday. In the feature, Edwards talked about previous generations of players. He downplayed the skill level of players from previous eras.

“I didn’t watch it back in the day so I can’t speak on it. They say it was tougher back then than it is now, but I don’t think anybody had skill back then. [Michael Jordan] was the only one that really had skill, you know what I mean? So that’s why when they saw Kobe [Bryant], they were like, ‘Oh, my God.’ But now everybody has skill,” Edwards was quoted as saying.

Edwards made a subjective claim, but his comments just seem to reek of an uninformed player. Thomas certainly thinks so.

The Detroit Pistons legend responded via X and indicated he feels Edwards believes that due to “propaganda.”

“Propaganda works, so be careful what you choose to believe,” Thomas wrote in response.

Propaganda works, so be careful what you choose to believe. https://t.co/A2fJvxDlmd

— Isiah Thomas (@IsiahThomas) August 20, 2024

Thomas’ response is a fair one. Jordan was the greatest player in the 1990s due to winning six championships that decade. He had a vicious rivalry with the Thomas’ Detroit Pistons that had formed in the late ’80s. Despite there being plenty of great players from that time, MJ overshadows them all due to how great he was and also to an extent due to great marketing.

The 63-year-old former guard led Indiana to a national championship in college basketball and led the Pistons to two NBA championships. He once led the NBA with 13.9 assists per game.

There are numerous former players who had plenty of skill, and Thomas would be one of the players at the top of the list. Edwards might also want to watch some highlights of Kareem Abdul-Jabbar doing the sky hook, Hakeem Olajuwon doing the Dream Shake, and maybe Larry Bird shooting and Magic Johnson passing. If all of those traits don’t involve skill, then we need to redefine the word.