Can Edwards surpass Durant in the future? How are the styles of Edwards and Durant different?

Comparison of core competitiveness between Edwards and Durant

1. The gap in personal honors is significant. Durant holds 4 scoring titles, 2 championships + 2FMVP, 1MVP and 6 teams. Historical total score ranks 8th in the NBA (to the end of the 2025 regular season, a total of 28,967 points).

Edwards currently has only two All-Stars and one All-Squad three-team. His total career score has just exceeded 8,000 points, and there is still a huge gap from Durant's historical status.

2. Comparison of differentiated competition in technical characteristics

‌Scoring methods‌

Durant is known for his indiscriminate singles, with a mid-range hit rate of more than 50% all year round, and has the top projection talent at a height of 7 feet.

Edwards relies more on breakthroughs to create kills (8.1 free throws per game), and his mid-range shooting percentage is still needed to be improved, but the pressure on the outside defense (1.8 steals per game) is significantly better than Durant at his peak.

‌Leader temperamental difference‌

Durant's shooting percentage was 39.2% in the final moments of the playoffs, which was often criticized for his key ball ability; while Edwards averaged 4.1 points per game in the last 5 minutes of the 2025 playoffs, with a real shooting percentage of 62.3%, showing stronger psychological qualities.

3. Career trajectory variable analysis

‌Health risk‌

Durant still maintains high efficiency after experiencing major injury with Achilles tendon rupture, and Edwards' violent play may increase the probability of injury (three knee sprains have occurred in the past two years).

‌Teambuilding Opportunities‌

Timberwolves have a reasonable age structure around Edwards (Downs + Gobert + McDaniels), which is more sustainable than Durant’s early Thunder lineup.

Path of possibility

‌Honor Acceleration‌

If Edwards wins 1 championship + FMVP or MVP before the age of 27, the gap with Durant's achievements will be greatly shortened. The current Timberwolves lineup has a 2-3-year championship window.

‌Data accumulation planning‌

maintains an average of 27+5+5 per game to the age of 33, and the total career score can exceed 25,000 points, combining more defensive honors (potentially 3-5 best defensive lineups) to form a differentiated historical positioning.

‌Times dividend capture‌

NBA's globalization strategy is more inclined to promote American outside stars. Edwards' performance-oriented play is easier to get commercial boost than Durant's "quiet killer" image.

‌Conclusion‌: Edwards has shown the potential to surpass Durant in defensive hardness and mental attributes, but he needs to win at least 2 championships + 1MVP + 3 times for one match and enter the top 20 in history in the total score before he can complete the surpass 13 in the comprehensive evaluation. The current probability assessment is about 35%, and the key window period is concentrated in the 2025-2028 season.

1. Scoring methods and technical characteristics

‌Observation radius difference‌

Durant is known for his full coverage shooting ability, with his mid-range shooting percentage exceeding 50% all year round, and a "undifferentiated single" combined with his height of 2.08 meters and his flexible footsteps; Edwards relies more on breakthroughs to cause damage, and averages 8.1 free throws per game to account for 35% of the total score. The stability of the outside shooting (37.1% three-point shooting percentage) is still far from Durant (42.6%).

Example comparison:

Durant: 56% of the jump shots with the ball, and 51.2% of the singles on the back, Edwards: 63% of the shooting range, 42.1% of the mid-range shots with the emergency stop, 42.1% of the ending method ‌

Edwards prefers violent aesthetic dunks (the top three in the league per game), and slapped 7 dunks against the Lakers series in the 2025 playoffs; Durant mainly uses the iconic "Death Scythe"-style high-curve jump shot, and his career dunk frequency is only 1/3 of Edwards.

2. Comparison of defensive styles

Dimensional Durant Edwards

Defensive efficiency value 111.3 (career average) 105.8 (2025 season)

Defensive targets Focus on supporting protective frames (1.4 blocks per game) Main defense outside arrows (1.8 steals per game)

Defensive honors 0 best defensive lineups Selected for the best defensive second team in 2025

Edwards' oppressive single defense (restricting the opponent's shooting percentage to 41.3%) and steal sense have surpassed Durant's age, but his frame protection ability is limited by 1.93 meters tall; Durant relies on his wingspan advantage to build a defensive deterrence system.

3. Spiritual attributes and game temperament

‌Key ball handling‌

Durant hit rate in the last 2 minutes of the playoffs was 43.1%, but efficiency fluctuations often occur due to physical distribution issues; Edwards' true shooting rate at critical moments in the 2025 playoffs was 62.3%, and he bears the highest proportion of key ball shots in the league.

‌Leader traits‌

Durant prefers the "silent killer" mode, establishing advantages through technical crushing; Edwards is good at using passion to drive the team, and under his leadership, the Timberwolves reverse the winning rate in 2025 is 68% (first in the league).

4. Talent presentation method

‌Dynamic talent‌

Edwards bounces vertically for 1.12 meters (third in active service), accelerates sprint for 3.05 seconds (compares with Westbrook's peak data); Durant has the advantage in static talent, with an arm span of 2.25 meters + Achilles tendon length 33cm (historical level).

‌Technical inheritance‌

Edwards deliberately imitated Jordan-style backward jump shot and Durant's emergency stop change, but incorporated more physical confrontation elements; Durant maintained the "simple and efficient" technical philosophy and rarely used fancy moves.

‌Style Summary: Durant is the "precision scalpel-style terminator", while Edwards is the "new generation of offense and defense benchmark that combines violent aesthetics and defensive oppression."