Los Angeles Lakers legend Kobe Bryant had a massive impact on many of today’s athletes, and that includes Minnesota Timberwolves star Anthony Edwards.
Edwards has been on a similar trajectory as Bryant after being drafted first overall in 2020, developing into one of the best two-way guards in the league.
On Thursday night, Edwards became just the seventh player in NBA history to reach 10,000 career points before turning 25, joining Bryant, Tracy McGrady, LeBron James, Carmelo Anthony, Kevin Durant and Luka Doncic.
Edwards did so at a younger age than all of those players except for James and Durant, and afterwards, he joked that he wish he hadn’t done it quicker than Bryant, via Andrew Dukowitz of Zone Coverage:
Anthony Edwards on scoring 10,000 career points
“It’s cool, but I know I got a lot more to go so it’s really nothing for real”
On being second to only LeBron and Durant
“Yeah I’m kinda sick that I got it in front of Kobe, I wish I would have waited like 100 days” pic.twitter.com/y08U4jgRXG
— Andrew Dukowitz (@adukeMN) January 9, 2026
While Edwards is obviously joking, it just goes to show how much he respects and looks up to Bryant that he did not want to pass him on the list.
It’s easy to see why Edwards holds Bryant in that regard is they are very similar both as players and personalities. Neither lacked confidence on the court and both have a charisma that makes people gravitate towards them off it.
Kobe, of course, won three championships very early in his NBA career with the Lakers though, so Edwards still has something to chase in that regard even though he was able to reach 10,000 career points at a younger age.
Julius Randle compares Anthony Edwards to Kobe Bryant
One person who sees the similarities between Edwards and Bryant is Julius Randle, who is fortunate enough to have been teammates with both after originally being drafted by the Lakers.
“I have been around a lot of great players. He is as confident in his belief in himself as … it’s Kobe-like. And I was around Kobe,” Randle said during the playoffs last season.
“He’s not scared of any moment and he wants those moments. His belief and confidence in who he is as a player is the highest I’ve ever seen or been around, for anybody.”
Edwards still has a long way to go to achieve the feats that Bryant did, but he is certainly on his way.
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