Anthony Edwards Shines as Timberwolves Beat Celtics
Analyzing the Minnesota Timberwolves' Promising Start to the Season and Playoff Aspirations After Beating the Boston Celtics on Monday.
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Making definitive statements about a team six games into the season is normally a surefire way to set yourself up for disappointment. This is especially true with the Minnesota Timberwolves, historically. We are just six games into an 82-game season, but the Hometown 5 are 4-2 and fourth place in the Western Conference.
Sure, those two losses were road clunkers in a building they seldom win in (Toronto) and an epic collapse (Atlanta). However, they are 4-0 at home, just two games shy of the franchise record for consecutive home wins to begin a season (1998-’99). Two of those victories came against two teams that came into Target Center undefeated — the Nuggets last week and Celtics on Monday — only to have the Wolves serve them their first defeats of the season.
Overcoming Adversity
Stealing games like this has proven difficult for this team in the past. Minnesota won 114-109 in overtime in a game that saw 17 lead changes and 13 ties. The Timberwolves turned the ball over an alarming 24 times but forced 18 of their own while holding the league’s best offense to just 39.1 percent shooting from the field. There were so many moments for this team to let go of the rope against a formidable opponent, but they kept the game within a couple of possessions each time. The biggest leads in this game were eight points (Boston) and seven points (Minnesota), so neither team ran away with this game. A seven or eight-point lead can evaporate in moments in today’s NBA.
"Yeah, we fought through a lot of adversity out there; there was foul trouble, missed free throws, some kinda sloppy play on offense; but we kept guarding, kept staying in there, kept making tough ones. Everything was contested, our defense was really on point,” said coach Chris Finch postgame. “And, obviously, (Anthony Edwards) gets hot at the right time. Jaden McDaniels had an outstanding second half, and Rudy (Gobert) continues to be excellent, playing such a crazy high level for us.”
When Boston entered the second half up three, Minnesota clamped down. The Celtics vaunted offense scored 19 points on 6-for-21 shooting in the quarter while the Timberwolves scored 12 points in the paint and five points in transition. Anthony Edwards and Karl-Anthony Towns chipped in six and seven points, respectively, to give the Wolves a five-point lead into the fourth quarter.
Edwards’ Heroics and McDaniels’ Impact
From there, this felt like a winnable game and it was. The two-man game between Edwards and Jaden McDaniels carried the team when Boston threatened at the end of regulation. In overtime, Edwards scored eight of his 38 points to secure the victory.
"Well, he loves the moment, we know that. But we still gotta get better at closing out that game in regulation with some of our decision-making and ball movement and using the defense against them,” said Finch about Edwards. “But guys who like the moment are sometimes few and far between, and we’re lucky we have him on our team.”
"(Edwards) is one of my favorite guys to watch in the league. As explosive and talented as he is, he continues to get better each and every year,” said Celtics forward Jayson Tatum. “I just like how he competes on both ends of the floor. He made some big plays for his team tonight, especially down the stretch.”
This game was a bit of a masterpiece for Edwards, who finished with 38 points on 15-for-25 shooting, nine boards and seven assists with just three turnovers. Furthermore, the Timberwolves were a +15 with Edwards on the floor. Despite his coach’s and Tatum’s praise for his performance, Edwards was quick to deflect praise to teammate Jaden McDaniels.
Edwards proclaimed McDaniels as a reason for them overcoming adversity. McDaniels connected on two open 3-pointers down the stretch of regulation off Edwards passes. McDaniels finished with 20 points and the chemistry between these two was noticeable.
"You might think I’m trying to be funny but, Jaden McDaniels. I’m not really trying to be funny, I’m like, show me a clip where he got scored on in a one-on-one situation,” said Edwards when asked about facing the league’s best offense with the best defense. “They (isolated) him maybe like ten times in the fourth, and nobody scored on him. He was the reason we won the game. He hit like three or four big shots in the fourth, two in overtime, like, we don’t win the game if he’s not playing."
Edwards is now averaging 28.2 points, 6.7 rebounds and 4.8 assists on 52 percent shooting and 47.2 3-point shooting. The 3-point shooting may trail off, but Edwards is off to a blistering start to the season.
Regardless, the Timberwolves benefitted from great performances from Edwards, McDaniels, Rudy Gobert and Naz Reid. No one is even talking about Towns’ quiet seven points on 3-for-10 shooting because it did not matter. Whether the latter is a problem is a different conversation, but that many big performances and the home atmosphere against that team felt like Minnesota had a home-court advantage.
The Importance of Defending Home Court
Defending home court is a must for a playoff contender. In Minnesota’s last three playoff seasons, they have won 26 (2023), 22 (2022) and 30 (2018) games at Target Center. Now, you do need to supplement those with winnable, non-conference road games like the Raptors game. That 2018 Timberwolves team won 30 home games but was just 13-17 against the East. But winning at home goes a long way.
Seeing the Timberwolves beat the Nuggets and Celtics at Target Center in consecutive weeks feels notable no matter what point in the season it is. Looking back at the beginning of the season, they feel more impactful than those Toronto and Atlanta losses. You could add handling a shorthanded Heat team and dominating an inferior Jazz team at home because it shows them handling games they should win.
With the Timberwolves looking for their third consecutive playoff berth (what is this, the Year 2000?), it feels like the time this core should overlook fewer opponents and start to steal some wins against better teams. Minnesota won’t go undefeated at home, probably, but if they can play consistently at home and cut back on the dumb road losses, they could find themselves in favorable playoff seeding at the end of the year.