Anthony Edwards includes Michael Jordan, Kevin Durant among five best players of all time, no LeBron James

What is it like to play with Kevin Durant again? Yuta Watanabe: “It’s fun. He’s a great guy and a great teammate. I love playing with him. He’s a great guy, and obviously a great player. He’s definitely one of the hardest workers I’ve ever seen in practice and in every game. One thing I really like about him is when his teammate makes a big play, he always gets hyped. That happened last year when I made shots or made a good play. He was always like, ‘Yeah, let’s go!’ It got me excited and hyped, too. That shows how great of a leader he is and how great of a teammate he is.” -via SportsKeeda / November 2, 2023

Is it true he recruited you? Yuta Watanabe: “Kind of (laughs). He texted me and told me he wants to play with me again. That meant a lot to me. When someone like Kevin Durant reaches out to me and says stuff like that, it means a lot.” -via SportsKeeda / November 2, 2023

Gerald Bourguet: The NBA’s L2M report rules that Keldon Johnson’s late-game steal on Kevin Durant was a correct no-call, noting that “any contact that occurs is incidental.” -via Twitter @GeraldBourguet / November 1, 2023

NBA Central: “The greatest of all time, give him his flowers.” – Lou Williams on LeBron James (Via @RunItBackFDTV ) pic.twitter.com/iV4gwDVbjf -via Twitter @TheNBACentral / November 2, 2023

After the Lakers were swept by Jokic and the Nuggets, Lakers star LeBron James offered similar praise. “He sees plays before they happen,” James said of Jokic. “Maybe it’s not talked about, because a lot of people don’t understand it, but I do. He’s special.” -via ESPN / November 2, 2023

Jorge Sierra: LeBron James has praise for former teammate Russell Westbrook: “Was great tonight hitting his jumper and getting into the lane and, you know, doing what Russ does.” pic.twitter.com/xg1lR5xdcy -via Twitter @hoopshype / November 2, 2023

In the first half Wednesday, he looked more like a vintage Towns on that end of the floor. He faced single coverage in the post, something that rarely used to happen for him, and he took advantage on multiple occasions to help the Wolves build their big lead. He was physical without committing offensive fouls. “It’s weird. It’s different,” Towns said of the single coverage. “But I’m blessed to have guys like Ant, Rudy, Mike. My teammates are amazing and super talented and we have a deep locker room here. It feels good to know it can be any one of our nights.” -via Minneapolis Star-Tribune / November 2, 2023

For a night, it didn’t, and the Wolves handed the defending champion Denver Nuggets their first loss of the season with a 110-89 victory. There was a key difference Wednesday that wasn’t present Monday. When things got hairy, as they did for a few moments in the third quarter, the Wolves ran their offense through Mike Conley, who was feeling much better after a bout of food poisoning in Atlanta. Even as Denver started making a run, the Nuggets never got closer than 14 points in the third quarter. Conley, or “Bite Bite” as Anthony Edwards refers to him, scored 10 of his 17 points then. “He look like he’s ready to bite something,” Edwards said when asked why he calls Conley that. “Bite bite came through big tonight.” -via Minneapolis Star-Tribune / November 2, 2023

The Wolves also limited Jokic to three assists and cut down his ability to hurt them that way. “I’ve been a part of those [game] plans where you say let [Jokic] score, or let him be a facilitator and they both don’t work,” Conley said. “It’s really just compete and play hard. Try to make it a tough night on them. Everybody who was out there did a great job.” Denver shot just 40% for the game and coach Michael Malone sent the reserves out to play the final 6 minutes, 21 seconds. Towns and Edwards (24 points) helped the Wolves build a 22-point lead but took a back seat offensively in the third to let Conley run the show. -via Minneapolis Star-Tribune / November 2, 2023

In 1984, after coaching Michael Jordan on the gold-medal-winning U.S. Olympic team, Portland general manager Stu Inman called Knight for advice on the upcoming NBA draft. Knight counseled Inman to take Jordan, calling Jordan the best basketball player he had ever seen. Inman told Knight the Blazers already had Clyde Drexler and needed a center. Knight responded, “Then play Jordan at center.” Knight was the first Division I men’s basketball coach to win 900 games. He was the most prolific winner in Big Ten history, won three NCAA titles at Indiana, went to five Final Fours and led the United States to the 1984 Olympic gold medal. He innovated the motion offense and influenced countless coaches with his teaching of the game. One cannot think of Indiana basketball without thinking of Bob Knight. -via ESPN / November 2, 2023

Marcus Jordan wants to keep the family tradition alive by having his dad, Michael Jordan, be his best man at his forthcoming wedding when the time comes. Marcus became Instagram official with his girlfriend, Larsa Pippen, earlier this year. The relationship announcement caused a frenzy among basketball fans because his partner is the ex-wife of Scottie Pippen — yes, that Scottie Pippen. -via For The Win / November 1, 2023

Pablo Torre Finds Out @pablofindsout Marcus Jordan reveals that he wants his dad, Michael Jordan, to be the best man when he marries Larsa Pippen. 👀💍 -via Twitter / November 1, 2023