The Los Angeles Lakers already have a confirmed opponent for the first round of the 2025 Playoffs, and despite having such a strong season that they finished third in the Western Conference, the most famous journalist in the NBA issued a warning because of the star they’re about to face.

Is LeBron James shaking? The Lakers ended the season with a 50-32 record, which earned them a matchup against the team that had the third-lowest performance in the West during the regular season.

Next Saturday, April 19 at 8:30 PM ET, the first-round series between the Lakers and the Minnesota Timberwolves kicks off with Game 1 in a best-of-seven format. The main star that LeBron James and Luka Doncic will face is Anthony Edwards—so Stephen A. Smith didn’t hesitate to issue a stern warning.

“Anthony Edwards, are you listening? You’re a superstar in this league, my brother. I don’t want to see 19 points per game this series against the Lakers with 40% shooting and 32% from three. That’s not good enough,” began Smith, the ESPN journalist with over 6 million followers on X (formerly Twitter), before turning his warning toward the entire Los Angeles Lakers squad.

What could happen to the Lakers if Anthony Edwards catches fire in the NBA Playoffs

Anthony Edwards and LeBron James. (Photo: Getty Images)

When it came time to predict what could happen in the first-round series between the Lakers and the Minnesota Timberwolves in the 2025 NBA Playoffs, the league’s most famous journalist had this to say about Edwards:
“If Ant-Man himself says, ‘I’m sick and tired of these damn superstars—of LeBron James and Luka Doncic. I’ve got something to say about it. I’m Ant-Man… and I’m going to show them who the hell I am.’ If that Ant-Man shows up, you’ve got a potential seven-game series here in Los Angeles.”
And that wasn’t the only warning Stephen A. Smith had to offer.

The NBA’s Most Famous Journalist Warns LeBron About Edwards in the Playoffs

“I think Anthony Edwards, remembering Luka and how he handled them in the Western Conference Finals last year, will answer the call. And that brother, Anthony Edwards, is going to win two or three games all by himself. Edwards is averaging over 30 in this series—that’s my prediction. He’s going to put on a show,” Smith warned.