Anthony Edwards has the opportunity to follow in a long line of ascending stars who have used their experience with Team USA as a jumping off point to reach greater heights in the NBA. The Minnesota Timberwolves' franchise player is the best individual talent on the Americans' 2023 FIBA World Cup roster, poised to cement himself as a program fixture if he can help lead Team USA to gold.

Let's just say Kevin Garnett's expectations for Edwards stand even taller than that. Excitedly reacting to highlights of the 21-year-old putting in work at Team USA training camp, the Timberwolves' legend insists he notices a “dif level” in Edwards' focus—an approach Garnett believes will propel him into the MVP conversation in 2023-24.

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Edwards took a major leap in 2022-23, earning his first All-Star berth while averaging 24.6 points, 5.8 rebounds and 4.4 assists per game—all career-highs—on 56.4% true shooting, solid efficiency for a young guard still finding his footing as a primary option. No surprise considering his awesome playoff debut one year earlier, Edwards took his game up a notch in the postseason, averaging 31.6 points per game in a first-round loss to the champion Denver Nuggets.

The international stage will be a revealing early test of Edwards' development. Team USA is no surefire bet to win World Cup gold, fielding a young team that lacks full-fledged superstars against a difficult field of opponents led by Canada, Spain and Luka Doncic's Slovenia.

The Americans may need Anthony Edwards to cement himself as their best player to be the last World Cup team standing. We'll start to see if he's up to that task when Team USA opens FIBA play against New Zealand on August 26th in Manila, Philippines.