The Timberwolves fell 104-84 to the Clippers in November of 2021, dropping Minnesota to 3-5 on the young season.
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Anthony Edwards went 7 for 22 from the field that evening, including 3 for 12 from 3-point range. One of the League’s most dynamic players wasn’t playing as such. He didn’t attack the rim, or put any pressure on the defense.
After the loss, Edwards publicly lamented the lack of foul calls he received when attacking the paint, then bemoaned the lack of teammates getting to the rim, as well.
“If I ain’t going, then all the coaches looking at me like, ‘Go to the rim!’ ” Edwards said. “I’m like, ‘I’m the only one going to the rim.’ I get it, man. I have fun with it. I don’t know, man. I just try to have fun, bruh.”
Five days later, Edwards scored 48 points against Golden State on a night where he attempted 12 free throws. Minnesota didn’t win, but the team hit its stride shortly thereafter, sparking a 46-win, breakout season.
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It was after that performance that Edwards admitted his comments following the Clippers’ loss made him sound “like a loser.” Problem is, he sounded the same way following Thursday night’s loss to Boston — more than three years later.
It was another loss, yes, as the Wolves continue to flounder around .500. But Minnesota put together a few strong stretches of play. Like in the third quarter, when the Wolves outscored the defending champs by five by shooting 57 percent from the field while committing just two turnovers.
Edwards tallied five assists in the frame while attempting just one shot. He used the defensive attention against the Celtics to generate good shots for his team. The approach earned universal praise from his coach and teammates.
And yet Edwards wasn’t happy.
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“That was a good brand of basketball,” Edwards said of the third quarter, “but it’s not how I want to play, of course. I’m only 23, I don’t want to be just passing the ball all night, you feel me.”
Loud and clear. Yikes.
“I thought he did a good job of when they put two on him, he got off of it, created some good ball movement for us,” head coach Chris Finch said. “It was just kind of how they were playing us. That’s just how it’s going to have to be, so he’s got to trust it. … I thought he picked his spots real well. I don’t think he forced anything.”
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Naz Reid said Edwards has been doing “all the things some people say he couldn’t do” with playmaking and getting off the ball. And, on Thursday, his teammates were making the Celtics pay. It was real progress for Minnesota against a look that has befuddled Edwards — and the Wolves at large — for much of the season.
Thursday’s offensive showing was Minnesota’s second-best of the season, with the Wolves scoring 1.34 points per possession.
Yet Edwards, who has scored 20 points or fewer in six of his last eight games, said it’s “super hard” to remain engaged when his offense is being taken away by the opponent’s schemes.
“I don’t want to look like I’m not trying, or not as good as I am, because I am,” Edwards said. “But I can’t show it because I’m getting double-teamed.”
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He seemed especially frustrated being limited individually by elite teams such as Oklahoma City and Boston the past two games while Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Jayson Tatum starred for their respective teams. He mentioned Pistons guard Cade Cunningham ahead of Minnesota’s bout Saturday in Detroit.
That reeks of putting personal performance over team results.
Sure, there have been numerous times this season where Edwards’ teammates haven’t come through when they’ve had open shots generated for them. And the Wolves’ often don’t have enough shooting on the floor to achieve proper floor spacing. But none of that was an issue on Thursday, an evening when the Wolves knocked down shots at a high clip and actually achieved a decent offensive rhythm.
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Edwards’ words Thursday were a stark contrast to his comments from a month ago, when Edwards said, “People don’t understand how much I love to pass it to my teammates and them get a dunk or hit the shot.”
“If I hit a shot, I know I’m super happy, and if they hit a shot, they’re super happy. And I’m super happy for them,” Edwards told reporters after a win over the Warriors. “I’ve always been like that, so I think that brings more joy than me scoring — my teammates getting stuff off. That’s exciting, and it makes it easier for me.”
That’s the mentality of a winning superstar who understands that utilizing teammates is the best way to release pressure and open up scoring opportunities. You make the right play enough times, the defense has no choice but to shift strategies and reveal more opportunities for you, personally. A month ago, Edwards knew that.
The guy talking Thursday night sounded more like someone who’d rather score 40 points in a blowout loss in a Wizards jersey.
That’s not who Edwards is as a player, so it’s likely Edwards will experience an epiphany in the coming weeks and realize, again, the fault in his current thought process. He’s still just 23 years old. Moments of immaturity are understandable.
But the organization’s hope when trading for Rudy Gobert more than two years ago was that the success to come, such as last season’s run to the Western Conference Finals, would expedite Edwards’ development.
Yet here we see Edwards struggling with the same defensive looks Denver and Dallas presented in the latter stages of last year’s postseason run, in which the Wolves star shot sub-40 percent from the floor over his last eight playoff games, while turning the ball over left and right.
Personal growth needs to occur, and at the moment, the guard appears to be taking a step back. Time will tell if this is the precursor to taking two more forward.
“It definitely frustrates me a little bit,” Edwards said. “Them doubling me is like, ‘What is going on?’ We’re trying to figure it out, man.”
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This story was written by one of our partner news agencies. Forum Communications Company uses content from agencies such as Reuters, Kaiser Health News, Tribune News Service and others to provide a wider range of news to our readers. Learn more about the news services FCC uses here.
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