Anthony Edwards sent some shockwaves through NBA discourse last week when he shared his opinion on the NBA of the 1990s with The Wall Street Journal.

"They say it was tougher back then than it is now, but I don't think anybody had skill back then," Edwards told Lane Florsheim. "[Michael Jordan] was the only one that really had skill, you know what I mean? So that's why when they saw Kobe [Bryant], they were like, 'Oh, my God.' But now everybody has skill."

That, of course, ruffled some feathers.

Speaking at an event with Stephen A. Smith, Magic Johnson said, "I never respond to a guy who's never won a championship."

Kevin Garnett chimed in, too.

"If I'm being honest, bro, I don't think anybody in this generation could have played, like, 20 years ago," Garnett told Paul Pierce on Ticket and the Truth. "If I'm being 100."

It's not hard to see why some of those legends are offended by Edwards' comment, but it's not like their side is totally innocent here. For years, plenty of the league's retired players (though not necessarily Magic or KG) have ridiculed the current stars with comments that are similar to the one above from KG.

The fact of the matter is that the commentary on both sides of this argument is wrong. The truth, as is often the case, is somewhere in the middle.

Yes, rule changes and star-friendly officiating have made scoring easier in today's game. But that doesn't mean today's players couldn't thrive in earlier eras. They'd adapt. And the well-rounded games of modern stars would not only help them do that, they'd make them stand out.

NBA players, generally speaking are more skilled than they were in previous eras. Basketball is far from the only human activity in which the participants improved over time, and that trend has made today's NBA more talent- and skill-rich than it's ever been. Most current players have to be able to dribble, pass and shoot at a high level to survive, and that even includes centers.

Of course, that doesn't mean that the league was devoid of skill in earlier eras, either. In fact, if you spend any amount of time looking for skill in the 90s, you'll find it. You'll find lots of it. And that's a step Edwards apparently skipped.

"I didn't watch it back in the day, so I can't speak on it," Edwards told Florsheim.

Well, fortunately, I did. As a 90s kid, I watched tons of NBA basketball. And simply watching that era is the most important step in determining who it's most skilled players were.

That's the foundation of the rankings below, but plenty of numbers (both advanced and basic) were consulted, too. Shooting and passing measures were particularly important, since those are the game's two most important skills.

So, without further ado, and with a hat tip to Ant, here are the 10 most skilled players of the 1990s.

Tough Omissions

Again, contrary to Edwards' take, there are scores of highly skilled players from the '90s. Even for a subjective list, it's hard to narrow this down to 10 names. And there are several who didn't make the final cut but still at least deserve a mention.

Karl Malone was an elite scorer who helped John Stockton generate his all-timer production. Scottie Pippen was an underrated point forward who may have been the most versatile defender ever. Chris Mullin was a dead-eye shooter and solid secondary playmaker. Heck, Larry Bird played three post-prime seasons in the 90s (1990 through 1992) and drew some consideration from those alone. And there's Tim Hardaway, whose signature dribble move is still known as the "killer crossover" to this day.

Chris Webber, Arvydas Sabonis, Clyde Drexler, Gary Payton, Toni Kukoč and Grant Hill all need to be included, too.

But none of the above were quite skilled enough to make the following top 10.

10. Anfernee Hardaway

There's always a bit of a balancing act between peak and longevity when compiling historical rankings for the NBA. And injuries certainly had their say in shortening Anfernee Hardaway's career.

But the healthiest portion was confined to the decade in question, and Penny was one of its most dynamic scorers and playmakers.

From the start of his second season (which included an NBA Finals appearance) through the end of his sixth, Hardaway averaged 19.9 points, 6.3 assists, 1.8 steals and 1.1 threes. And in his second and third seasons, specifically, he was one of the league's most efficient scorers.

Beyond the numbers, Hardaway played with a combination of size, athleticism and vision that often made him look like some kind of terrifying combination of Jordan and Magic. Had he stayed healthy (his career was first derailed in 1997-98), he'd likely be even higher here.

9. Kevin Johnson

It feels like Kevin Johnson has somehow become an almost-forgotten superstar from this era.

He was in the decade's top 20 in box plus/minus (and several of the players ahead of him dominated more with size than skill). He averaged 18.8 points and 9.3 assists in the 90s. In a five-year peak from 1990 through 1994, those numbers crept up to 20.4 points and 10.1 assists.

And he controlled games in a way that would look pretty foreign to the modern NBA fan.

In the time sampled for this exercise, Johnson put up just 0.8 threes per game. And yet, he had an above-average true shooting percentage in each and every one of the 90s seasons he played.

He was a relentless, purposeful driver who seemingly got the rim whenever he wanted. Once he was there, he could finish over just about anyone (including Hakeem Olajuwon).

And though he was never known for his outside jump shot, he could still rise up and damage opponents from the mid-range.

With his combination of passing, scoring and, during the early 1990s, ball hawking, KJ was able to sneak in above the worthy contenders in the "tough omissions" slide.

8. David Robinson

We generally relate David Robinson's dominance to his length and athleticism, and those were certainly crucial attributes for most of his Hall of Fame career.

But we've seen a number of 7-footers who can get up and down the floor like a gazelle, dominate the glass and score right at the rim.

Getting to genuinely bonkers numbers like the 25.6 points, 11.8 rebounds, 3.6 blocks, 3.1 assists and 1.7 steals that Robinson averaged over his first seven seasons takes a lot more than raw physical tools.

Robinson wasn't an initiator like some of today's centers, but he could handle the ball in transition. His footwork as a pick-and-roller was elite. He had a turnaround short- to mid-range jumper out of the post that kept defenders honest.

And though it hasn't really been mentioned to this point in the exercise, good defense obviously requires some skill, too. And Robinson combined his athleticism with excellent anticipation and timing as both a rim protector and ball hawk in passing lanes.

7. Reggie Miller

One of the objectives of this exercise, generally speaking, was to find players with a variety of skills. Robinson could dominate as a scorer and defender. Some of the players yet to come were among the league's best as both shooters and passers.

With Reggie Miller, though his length sometimes came in handy on defense and he did have some decent playmaking years, his spot in the top 10 has more to do with shooting than anything else.

It just so happens that Miller specialized in the most important skill in basketball, and he was years ahead of the curve as an outside shooter.

By the time he retired in 2005, Miller had attempted 820 threes in the playoffs. Only two players (Pippen and Robert Horry) had even eclipsed 600 attempts to that point in history. And Miller obviously wasn't some irrationally confident chucker, either.

In the regular season, his career three-point percentage (39.5) was 4.9 points clear of the league average. He had above-average effective field-goal percentages in each of his 18 seasons.

And for those who weren't around to watch, it's not like Miller was limiting himself to wide-open catch-and-shoot opportunities generated by his point guards.

Miller is one of the best in NBA history at off-ball movement. His motor never stopped. And he could go from a full-speed cut to a catch to a lightning-quick release unlike just about anyone we'd ever seen pre-Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson and Ray Allen.

Miller was one of the earliest pioneers for today's high-octane, pace-and-space game, and he more than earned his spot here.

6. Charles Barkley

Edwards was born after Charles Barkley retired. He and plenty of today's NBA fans never had the chance to see Barkley play live. Many probably know him more as a television personality than a perennial All-Star.

But as loud as Barkley has been throughout his media career, his game may have been even louder.

From 1990 through 1996, he averaged 24.2 points, 11.3 rebounds, 4.2 assists and 1.7 steals. And despite shooting just 28.4 percent from three over that span, his true shooting percentage was above average in each of those seasons and way above average in one.

Basketball Reference's points added takes a player's points per attempt minus the league average and then multiplies that number by the player's total attempts in a given period. In 1989-90, his 374.5 topped the league. Getting there with a 21.7 three-point percentage (on 1.2 attempts per game) is genuinely bonkers.

Inside the line, Barkley was unstoppable, and that wasn't simply because of his size. In fact, at a listed height of 6'6", Barkley was famously undersized for a power forward. He piled up his points with a solid mid-range game, excellent, decisive handles for a 4 and a variety of finishes around the rim.

But his inclusion here isn't entirely about scoring. Barkley was also a good slash-and-kick playmaker for his position. And though rebounding has as much to do with desire as anything, there's plenty of skill involved there, too. Barkley was one of the best we've ever seen at boxing out, timing misses and getting to the ball at its high point.

Yes, he was also a freakish athlete for a player of his size and shape (hence, Zion Williamson being compared to him early in his career), but Barkley was also one of the game's most skilled bigs and an early example of one who could legitimately play point forward.

5. Mark Price

Like KJ, Mark Price has sort of been forgotten by the modern NBA fan, but there's a reason Isiah Thomas once compared Stephen Curry to him. And unlike KJ, Price's production is a lot tougher to attribute to traditional athleticism.

Instead, Price was capable of taking games over with an elite combination of outside shooting ability, playmaking and ball-handling.

He once famously leveraged that skill into a 30-point, 13-assist, three-steal performance in a win over Michael Jordan (who had 23 points that night). And that wasn't too wild an outlier.

Over the first five seasons of the 90s, Price averaged 18.0 points, 8.2 assists and 1.6 threes, while shooting 40.0 percent from deep and 91.9 percent from the free-throw line.

By the time his career was over, he was the all-time leader in free-throw percentage (and is now third on that list behind Stephen Curry and Steve Nash).

With all due respect to the players detailed so far (and with apologies to Price for what could be construed as a knock on his physical ability), he represents the spirit of this exercise better than all of the above.

Price made multiple All-Star teams and finished in the top 10 in MVP voting four times thanks almost entirely to skill.

4. Hakeem Olajuwon

A two-time champion in the 90s, Hakeem Olajuwon obviously had some physical advantages that most of the others on this list didn't. As the old saying goes, you can't teach height, and Olajuwon was listed at an even seven feet tall.

He's still a worthy inclusion in this top five, though, thanks in large part to his ability to do things at that height that we've rarely seen before or since his career.

Most know about the legendary "dream shake," but that was far from Olajuwon's only effective post move. He could put the ball in the hoop with a reliable turnaround jumper. He could lose defenders with old-school up-and-unders. And he was a solid passer out of the post on the rare occasions defenses shut him down there.

In his two postseasons that ended with championships, he averaged 30.9 points, 10.7 rebounds and 4.4 assists, while shooting 52.6 percent from the field.

But, as is the case with Robinson, this discussion obviously isn't limited to the offensive side of the floor.

Olajuwon was a ferocious and effective rim protector. He led the league in blocks per game three times in the 90s. He eclipsed four blocks per game three times. And he didn't get to those numbers on physical gifts alone. Timing and instincts are crucial for shot-blockers, and few across history checked those boxes quite like Olajuwon.

3. John Stockton

Fans sometimes conflate or confuse skill with flash, and while John Stockton had plenty of flashy drives and passes over the course of his legendary career, the foundation of his game was the fundamentals.

Few, if any, players across NBA history were as sound with the game's most basic skills as Stockton.

Two- or one-handed bounce passes, ball-handling, jump shooting, reading the floor, navigating screens (as a ball-handler or defender) and passing all seemed like second nature for him.

And the combination of all of the above led to a truly bonkers stat line.

In the 90s, Stockton was fourth in box plus/minus (behind only Jordan, Magic and Robinson), with averages of 14.9 points, 11.9 assists and 2.3 steals. He also made 54.5 percent of his two-point attempts and 39.9 percent of his threes in the decade.

2. Magic Johnson

We identify Magic as more of an '80s player than a '90s one, but he logged almost 7,000 regular-season minutes in the decade in question, and he led the Los Angeles Lakers to the 1991 NBA Finals.

And though this version was far from prime Magic, he was still second among '90s players in box plus/minus. And in his 190 games in that decade, he averaged 19.8 points, 11.1 assists and 1.1 threes, while shooting 35.6 percent from deep.

Those numbers were the product of one of the most distinctive combinations of size and skill in NBA history. And by the time we reached the '90s, Magic was more reliant on those two traits than he was earlier in his career (when he was more athletically explosive).

He played with what seemed like an almost preternatural sense of where the other nine players were on the floor (and perhaps more importantly, where they would be). He was a master at delivering passes on time and on target. His handle was absurd for a 6'9" player. He could play from the post or the perimeter. And by this point in his career, he'd even developed a reliable outside shot.

Magic didn't play near as much in the '90s as some of the others detailed here, but he made the most of his time in this decade.

1. Michael Jordan

If Edwards had said Jordan was the most skilled (rather than the only skilled) player of his era, his comments would've been a lot tougher to tear apart.

The GOAT was an absurd athlete (relative to any era), but he didn't go 6-0 in the Finals and lead the league in scoring in seven of the 10 '90s seasons on athleticism alone.

It was the combination of that attribute with every skill in the game that made Jordan what he was.

Three-pointers weren't as prevalent in the '90s, but Jordan could shoot, particularly from the mid-range. He could handle the ball. He was an underrated distributor (he eclipsed six assists per game in two 90s seasons). He was an absolute menace in passing lanes and could take over a game as a perimeter defender.

In a game that has been completely dominated by bigs for most of its history, a shooting guard who possessed every skill at a high level (to put it mildly) put together an all-time resume that still hasn't been matched to this day.