Chris Finch made it clear after the Minnesota Timberwolves’ Game 1 loss.
“It starts with Ant,” he said of superstar Anthony Edwards, faulting the 23-year-old for being visibly discouraged after missing some early shots.
If the Timberwolves are going to even this series with the Golden State Warriors, Edwards needs to do more in our NBA picks tonight.
Tip-off comes at 8:30 p.m. ET on Thursday, May 8.
Anthony Edwards player prop picks
- Best bet
Anthony Edwards Over 7.5 rebounds
(-110 at bet365) - SGP pick
Anthony Edwards Over 7.5 rebounds
Anthony Edwards Under 7.5 1Q points
Anthony Edwards Over 3.5 threes
(+600 at bet365)
Click on each pick to jump to the full analysis.
Anthony Edwards best bet
Anthony Edwards Over 7.5 rebounds (-110 at bet365)
Those who sit in the 200-level of Target Center know that Anthony Edwards never overlapped with Andrew Wiggins on the Minnesota Timberwolves roster, but the comparisons between the two are still logical. Edwards stepped into the No. 2 scorer role behind Karl-Anthony Towns the season after Wiggins was traded from it.
One of the many criticisms of Wiggins was how poorly he filled a stat sheet in Minnesota. His final full season with the Timberwolves — his fifth season in the NBA — featured 18.1 points per game on 41.2% shooting, a bad enough indicator right there, while collecting just 4.8 rebounds per game and dishing out 2.5 assists per game. Nights when Wiggins struggled to score were nights when he did not impact the game in any way.
One of the many praises of Edwards is how well he fills a stat sheet in Minnesota. Even in Tuesday night’s debacle against the Golden State Warriors, it had to be noted that the fifth-year guard grabbed 14 rebounds amid his shooting woes, adding three steals for good measure. Nights when Edwards struggles to score are nights when he finds other ways to impact the game.
Edwards has shot miserably in two straight games now, going 1-for-16 from deep, but he has trusted his athleticism and snagged double-digit rebounds in each game. His poor shooting discourages him, hence Finch’s scolding on Tuesday night, but Edwards still defends and rebounds when offensively discouraged.
That may sound like a backhanded compliment. It is not meant as one. It is outright praise.
Edwards has averaged 9.3 rebounds this postseason, clearing this prop in all but one game. His overall impact on the game is the most reliable piece of his game these days, something Timberwolves fans know not to take for granted because of his predecessor.
Anthony Edwards same-game parlay
Anthony Edwards Over 7.5 rebounds
Anthony Edwards Under 7.5 1Q points
Anthony Edwards Over 3.5 threes
Edwards is not the only one struggling to score for Minnesota. The Timberwolves have gone 12-for-76 from downtown in the last two games. To be clear, that is 15.8%.
The Wolves' superstar still managed eight assists in Game 5 in Los Angeles, but his two in Game 1 against the Warriors were at least lowered by the overall wretched shooting. Until the team as a whole finds its rhythm, some doubt in Edwards’s assists market makes sense.
However, he will still look for his teammates early. A usual Timberwolves’ approach the last two seasons has been for Edwards to get his team going early before he takes over in the second half.
That is intentional.
With the overall offensive struggles, getting the rest of Minnesota involved early should carry even more weight. Edwards should pass the ball early, not shoot it.
But eventually, he will shoot it.
Let’s not overreact to Game 1’s 1-of-5 from deep. The five attempts spoke to Finch’s criticism of his superstar getting discouraged.
Edwards went 10-for-20 from deep in Target Center in the first round. Do not expect the best shooter in the NBA to be so limited again in Game 2.
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