“I remember when we were playing Phoenix, they were talkin’ so much s**t,” Edwards ranted on his Instagram story. “Telling us we better make the playoffs, we ain’t gonna make the playoffs. We outta the playoffs, but this is a disgrace bruh. Y’all got 36 points in the third quarter? This is terrible.”

The game ended 123-90, sending the Suns home in embarrassing fashion as Dallas advanced to the Conference Finals. While Edwards was delighted to make fun of Phoenix back then, the wrath of the Mavs came back to bite him just two years later.

The Suns and their fans still can’t talk too much smack to Edwards, as Minnesota swept them in the first round this year. However, it is eerie seeing the Wolves wilt at home in an elimination game against Dallas in a similar way to how Phoenix did it two years ago.

Phoenix fans are enjoying the full-circle moment, as they’re incessantly teasing Edwards on X. One user named @Holdattt even used a GIF of Edwards celebrating against the Suns in a multi-layered roast.

“Nah you lot remember when Anthony Edwards was on IG mocking the suns for getting blown out in an elimination game,” the fan boasted.

Edwards still deserves credit for leading Minnesota to its best season in 20 years at just 22 years old. However, it’s shocking how Doncic and company consistently outclass quality teams so thoroughly in the playoffs.

How did the Mavs blow out the Suns and Wolves so badly?

Dallas Mavericks guard Kyrie Irving (11) dribbles against Minnesota Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards (5) during the second half in game five of the western conference finals for the 2024 NBA playoffs at Target Center.
© Bruce Kluckhohn-USA TODAY Sports

Edwards, who scored 28 points with nine rebounds and six assists, sounded off on the disappointing performance, via NBA.com.

“We never clicked all together as a team in this series, not even one game,” Edwards said. “The last two series, we were all clicking at one time, making shots and stuff. It wasn’t clicking at one time here.”

Although the Wolves had the best defense in the league in the regular season, they had no answer for Doncic and Irving. The two each scored at least 30 points each in three of the five contests, with Doncic reaching the 30-point mark in all but one game.

Although Dallas’ beatdown of Phoenix was only two years ago, the majority of the supporting cast around the Slovenian star was different. With Doncic being the common denominator in both situations, it’s easy to see who might take the crown as the league’s best player sooner rather than later.

Minnesota, on the other hand, must acquire more scoring threats to support Edwards. While the team’s lockdown defense is a good attribute, today’s NBA is more offense-oriented, and there’s not much anyone can do to shut down the biggest superstars when it matters most.