Anthony Edwards is in elite company after finishing the regular season on Sunday with 2,049 points, 430 rebounds and 405 assists.
At 22 years and 253 days old, Edwards became the fourth-youngest player in NBA history to total 2,000 plus points, 400 plus rebounds and 400 plus assists in a season. The others are legends LeBron James (three times), Michael Jordan and Oscar Robertson.
Edwards finished the season as the only player in franchise history to average 25 plus points, five plus rebounds and five plus assists. His 2,049 points rank second in Wolves history to Karl-Anthony Towns’ 2,061 in 2016-2017.
Edwards’ value was significant defensively, too, helping the Wolves to a second-best franchise record of 56-26. President of basketball operations Tim Connelly told Sports Headliners that Edwards and teammate Jaden McDaniels (23-year-old starting small forward) “are two of the best perimeter defenders in the league.”
The Wolves finished the season No. 1 in scoring defense in the NBA, allowing 106.5 points per game. They also led in defensive field goal percentage, allowing 45 percent. It’s a franchise first for Minnesota to finish a season ranked first in either category.
The defense, which also led the NBA in advanced defensive rating, is led by 7-1 center Rudy Gobert. He’s the favorite to win his fourth NBA Defensive Player of the Year Award and is part of a total team commitment limiting scoring by opponents.
“When you have that many guys committed to playing defense…it’s infused through your team and everybody buys in,” head coach Chris Finch told Sports Headliners.
As the No. three seed in the playoffs, the Wolves will need to play better defensively and offensively against the sixth seeded Suns who swept them during the regular season including an embarrassing 125-106 loss in Minneapolis Sunday. The Wolves, trying to drive the basketball where there were no openings and throwing errant passes, committed a ghastly 19 turnovers leading to 26 points in the first half.
The Suns, 49-33 during the regular season, present matchup problems for Minnesota. Point guard Mike Conley is only 6-foot tall and faces a Phoenix backcourt with 6-6 Devin Booker Beal and 6-4 Bradley Beal. Up front the Suns have 6-11 shot master Kevin Durant who was guarded by the Wolves’ 6-6 Edwards on Sunday.
The Suns have mobile and effective scorers in Beal, Booker, Durant and 6-4 small forward Grayson Allen. That raises questions about whether the Wolves can play Gobert and 7-foot-power forward Karl-Anthony Towns, the Twin Towers, for long stretches defensively.
Offensively, on Sunday the Suns constricted offensive opportunities for Edwards, who averaged 25.9 points per game this season. Double teams and constant attention resulted in just seven field goal attempts and 13 points for Edwards.
The NBA is all about adjustments from game to game and it will be pivotal for the Wolves to not only create more opportunities for Edwards to score but also move the basketball better to present better opportunities for other players.
The Wolves, who were resoundingly defeated by the Suns in all three games this season, have home court advantage in the potential seven-game series starting with Saturday’s opener in Minneapolis. The Suns are about a two-point underdog for Saturday.
The Wolves, who finished 42-40 last season, have a strong Coach of the Year candidate in Finch. Edwards will draw some attention for NBA MVP and power forward Naz Reid is a legit contender for Sixth Man of the Year.
Quoting Kevin O’Connell on QB Hunt and Justin Jefferson
The Vikings have a lot of voices providing input as they evaluate quarterbacks for the upcoming NFL Draft. Head coach Kevin O’Connell offered insight yesterday when asked about a situation where the Vikings could be trying to decide on who to draft when a couple of quarterbacks are almost equally valued by them.:
“Yeah, I mean, luckily, we’ve got a lot of really smart people in this building and between Kwesi’s (GM Adofo-Mensah) staff and our coaching staff, the process has been really good. The quarterback position is one where you may have 10 really smart coaches or personnel folks watch the same cut-up, and you might come away with 10 different opinions on a player.
“That’s why we have to spend a lot of time together. That’s why we spend a lot of time with the players themselves and really envision not only what they’re going to be like as an NFL quarterback, but what are they going to be like as a quarterback for the Minnesota Vikings if we’re able to get one of these guys. …”
Superstar receiver Justin Jefferson didn’t attend yesterday’s first voluntary offseason workout program. That’s not unexpected from an uber talent who is in a year of contract talks.
O’Connell is unsure when Jefferson might participate in workouts, with volunteer days now and mandatory activities ahead. “… I know I’ve had a lot of great dialogue with Justin throughout even the early part of this offseason and leading up. So, you know, my hope is we can get him around the team.
“He’s obviously such a special player, but it goes beyond that. Especially this time of year because of just the energy and the flat-out way he comes in when he’s in this building and he goes to work and how his teammates respond to him.
“So, I want him here as much as we can have him, but also understand that there are a lot of factors involved. And like I said, there’s nobody I love having more around on a daily basis, just because of how he elevates others. Truly a special, special player.”