Morning Sports Update

Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce responded to Anthony Edwards on NBA skill levels across eras

"If I’m being honest, bro, I don’t think anybody in this generation could have played like 20 years ago."

Kevin Garnett Paul Pierce Celtics Boston Globe
Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett playing for the Celtics in March, 2013. Yoon S. Byun/Globe Staff

By Hayden Bird

4 minutes to read

Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce respond to Anthony Edwards: A classic point of contention between athletes from different time periods has always been the age-old question of who was better, or more skilled, or faced more difficult challenges.

The latest chapter of this dynamic emerged in the gregarious form of Timberwolves star Anthony Edwards, who drew the ire of former Celtics Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce (along with several others) when he discussed his perception of the NBA’s skill level over time in an interview with the Wall Street Journal.

“I didn’t watch it back in the day so I can’t speak on it,” Edwards told Lane Florsheim of the Wall Street Journal. “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.”

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During a segment on their podcast, “The Ticket and the Truth,” Pierce began by underlining Garnett’s ability during his playing career.

“I mean, this is one of the most skilled players to ever play the game,” Pierce said of Garnett, adding that he thinks Edwards’s comments were “more directed to the [Michael] Jordan era.”

“I will say this,” Pierce acknowledged, “the skill level has gotten better with this generation, but I don’t think overall it makes you a better player. I think the imagination and the flair of the game is not the same.”

Garnett had a stronger take.

“If I’m being honest, bro, I don’t think anybody in this generation could have played like 20 years ago,” he claimed. “If I’m being 100, and this is to Ant, this is to everybody in our league — [Jayson] Tatum, all y’all — let me tell y’all something, bro. Twenty years ago you couldn’t get to a triple step back. You hear what I’m saying to you? You couldn’t get to a triple step back. And then if you shot that [expletive], it had to go in. You know why? Because we had efficiency, back in the day, my dude, and it was so [expletive] hard.

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“It was too physical, and guess what? The league had to come off of it for the flow of movement to be able to have scoring go up,” Garnett added, “which is why we like to sit here and watch kind of the rat race of the high-paced game.”

In addition to the physicality, Pierce pointed out that the skillsets of players have simply changed over time. Mid-range games and post games have declined as three-point shooting has exploded.

Garnett, who (given their Minnesota connection) has been very supportive of Edwards’s development with the Timberwolves, eventually wound his way back to a final message for the younger player.

“I root for you, young fella, just know what you’re talking about,” Garnett said of Edwards, “because what you said don’t make no sense.”

It’s an interesting take from Garnett, bookending comments he made to The New York Times in 2021 about a NBA eras observation from the opposite vantage point.

“The game is at another level,” Garnett told David Marchese of the Times. “I want you to get on a court, sprint corner to corner, stop on a dime and shoot a 3. I want you to do 10 of those. Then I want you to focus on how tired you are. Because these players do that for 48 minutes. I don’t think guys from 20 years ago could play in this game.”

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Garnett’s conclusion in 2021 was that he felt the “game is in a great place” in its modern form, though he clearly still disagrees that previous eras lacked skill.

Minor disclaimer: Be advised, Garnett and Pierce use a panoply of colorful language in the course of their conversation.

Trivia: Kevin Garnett (while not the first to do it in history) was the first of a wave of players in the 1990s and early 2000s to go straight to the NBA from high school. After Garnett did it in 1995, two others followed the next season in the draft. Both were successful players. Can you name them?

(Answer at the bottom).

Hint: One player only played for a single team in his Hall of Fame NBA career, though it was not the team that originally drafted him. The other player featured for several teams (including the Celtics from 2010-2012), making six All-Star teams along the way.

Scores and schedules:

The Red Sox defeated the Blue Jays 6-3 on Tuesday, with Jarren Duran hitting a lead-off home run (his 20th of the season). Boston is four games back of the final American League wild card spot.

The two teams play again this evening at 7:10 p.m.

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More from Boston.com:

The latest from the Worcester: Red Sox prospect Kristian Campbell stayed hot in his 2024 season, belting a 431-foot home run for the Red Sox Triple A affiliate on Tuesday.

The evolving debate: As Week 1 approaches, the question remains over which quarterback will (or should) get the start.

On this day: In 1950, the Red Sox rallied from deficits of 10-0 and 12-1 to defeat Cleveland 15-14 in nine innings. Dom DiMaggio led Boston with seven total bases, including a pair of triples.

1950 Red Sox

Daily highlight: Enjoy this well-earned out from a combined Red Sox effort to make the play at home.

Trivia answer: Kobe Bryant, Jermaine O’Neal

Hayden Bird

Sports Staff

Hayden Bird is a sports staff writer for Boston.com, where he has worked since 2016. He covers all things sports in New England.

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