Anthony Edwards has blossomed into an absolute superstar since entering the NBA, helping the Minnesota Timberwolves advance to the Western Conference Finals in back-to-back years.
Edwards has even drawn comparisons to Michael Jordan for his swagger, as he was just 22 years old when he helped Minnesota advance a series away from the NBA Finals.
At 25 years old, now is the time for Edwards to put it all together and show exactly how dominant he can be on the court night in and night out, which could finally help him actually take home the MVP award.
Sometimes he struggles to beat double teams, traps or defenses that load up the paint, but a lot of times he’s had to take those shots out of necessity because of the lack of a true playmaker by his side. Those problems were only accentuated when Karl-Anthony Towns was traded to the New York Knicks, but Edwards managed to improve his 3-point shooting percentages on a higher volume of attempts.
But now he no longer has to be burdened by serving as the Timberwolves’ lead playmaker with LaMelo Ball now in the fold, so that is going to free him up to move off the ball, cut to the rim and get to his spots behind and inside the arc. Simply put, Edwards’ primary focus on offense will now be to score the ball.
Defensively, Edwards will also be well insulated with Jaden McDaniels and Ayo Dosumnu by his side on the perimeter and Rudy Gobert locking down the paint.
Edwards himself is a great 1-on-1 and perimeter defender, so having that help by his side is only going to make the Timberwolves that much more dangerous on that side of the ball.
This Timberwolves team certainly has the makings to be a legitimate threat to the San Antonio Spurs and Oklahoma City Thunder out West, but in order for them to actually beat them, they’re going to need Edwards to take that next leap in his game.
A younger version of Edwards proved he can take down the defending champions in a Game 7 on their home floor and erupt for 40+ points during any given playoff game, but there’ve also been countless times where he’s been gassed simply because of the burden that’s been placed on his shoulders.
With Ball now there to set him up and McDaniels set to take a leap, we could be seeing the best version of Ant-Man arise this season.
