At every step of his journey — from playing pickup against his big brothers in Atlanta to the AAU circuit to the University of Georgia and, eventually, to the NBA — Anthony Edwards has always been a quick study.
“That’s the crazy thing about it,” Edwards recently explained to Tom Kludt of Vanity Fair. “Like, it might take me a week [to pick something up]. After a week, I got it. I figured it out. Over with.”
On March 4, Karl-Anthony Towns played 21 minutes during a victory over the dismal Trail Blazers — a reduced minutes load that looks ominous in hindsight, but stemmed largely from Towns picking up his third foul just 14 seconds into the second quarter. That win over Portland marked the last time that Towns will see action for Minnesota for a while, after last Thursday’s grim news that the All-Star big man had suffered a torn meniscus in his left knee, requiring surgery that will put him on the shelf for at least a month with a hoped-for return “early in the Western Conference playoffs.”
Tuesday, then, marks a full week since the Wolves lost Towns — their second-leading scorer and rebounder, the rare 7-footer to splash more than 40% of his 3-pointers and a significantly improved defender whose adjustment to playing power forward played a key role in Minnesota becoming the NBA’s best defense. And heading into a massive Tuesday tilt against the Clippers, who are now just two games behind the Wolves in the standings and need a win to knot the season series between them at two games apiece … well, the Wolves could really use Ant being right about that whole “I only need a week to figure stuff out” thing. Because it’s his time now — perhaps the best season in franchise history resting on the cape tied around his shoulders.
For a second there, it didn’t even look like it’d take a week. After twisting his left ankle early in Minnesota’s first outing without Towns, Edwards not only returned to stabilize the wobbling Wolves; he went nuclear. Ant scored 16 points in the final eight minutes on a House of Highlights-cornucopia of double-tough moves, before sealing a 113-111 win over the Pacers with one of the most explosive, athletic and “Holy s***, did you just see that?” chase-down blocks you’re ever going to see:
One of the best 90 second sequences I’ve ever seen from any basketball player ever. Ant Edwards is absolutely incredible. pic.twitter.com/YMpzM198fw
— Daniel Olinger (@dan_olinger) March 8, 2024
“I hit my head, I think, on the rim. It’s hurting real bad,” Edwards said during a walk-off interview that, I think it’s fair to say, most of us might’ve been unable to give if we’d just smacked our head on the rim and nearly fallen to our death. “I saw [Pacers swingman Aaron Nesmith] with the lane, I knew he was going for a layup, and I was just like, ‘I’m finna go get this.’ I ain’t ever jumped that high in my life.”
The scene offered a fairly neat encapsulation of what makes Edwards one of the sport’s most compelling figures, a true superstar in the making. With his team reeling in the aftermath of some brutal news and desperately needing an overwhelming performance, he just … decided to provide one, scoring 29 of his season-high-tying 44 points in the second half. After making the potentially grievous error of missing a free throw that would’ve given Minnesota a three-point lead, he just … decided to correct it, drawing a bead on Nesmith at half-court, launching himself into orbit and saving the day. And then, with the W secured, he had a genial laugh about it all.
There it was, all on display: the gorgeous game and ravenous competitive streak; the infectious irreverence that makes you celebrate his affinity for bank shots and consider investing in digital security solutions and acid orange lows; what the great Britt Robson of MinnPost called a “trampoline in his hamstrings [and a] glint in his grin.”
It was enough to make you believe the Wolves can stay afloat…
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