Anthony Edwards backs himself to dominate on the court regardless of who he’s going up against, but it turns out he isn’t too fond of playing the Los Angeles Lakers. After the Lakers beat the Minnesota Timberwolves 110-103, Anthony Davis was asked about his heated exchange with Edwards in the third quarter and revealed it was just some healthy competition and that the guard hates playing against them.
“Nah, that’s my guy,” Davis said. “I got the and-1 and just competitive nature… Actually goes back to the Olympics we talking about it. He said we’re the team that he hates playing the most because we don’t let him play. We make him pass the ball.
“I got the and-1 on him, screaming at him and it’s just brotherly love,” Davis continued. “That’s my guy. Call each other twin, same name, and stuff like that. So, it was nothing serious.”
This was the incident that Davis was being asked about. While he was all smiles, Edwards looked about as angry as I’ve ever seen him on the court.
Anthony Davis has words for Ant. 🍿
(via @LADEig)
— Hoop Central (@TheHoopCentral) October 23, 2024
Then in the fourth quarter, Edwards also had a bit of a back-and-forth with Lakers head coach JJ Redick. According to the broadcast, Redick was making some comments about the Timberwolves guard’s footwork.
JJ Redick having words with Ant. 😂
— Hoop Central (@TheHoopCentral) October 23, 2024
Edwards was smiling after this exchange but he wasn’t smiling when the final buzzer sounded. The Lakers had managed to keep the Timberwolves at arm’s length for much of the game and he was unable to do anything to change that.
Edwards finished with 27 points, six rebounds, and three assists in the contest and shot 10-25 from the field and 5-13 from three. Such inefficient nights have become somewhat common for him in this matchup.
Edwards first became an All-Star in 2022-23 and has played eight games against the Lakers since that season. In those meetings, the 23-year-old has averaged 24.4 points, 4.6 rebounds, 4.1 assists, 1.5 steals, and 1.0 blocks per game and has shot 42.7% from the field and 35.8% from beyond the arc.
While Edwards’ averages are still respectable, he does struggle when it comes to efficiency against the Lakers. Davis is one of the reasons why, as he guards the paint ever so well and that causes problems for someone who drives inside as often as the Timberwolves star.
Davis played some great defense in this opening game too but he was even more impressive on offense. The 31-year-old had 36 points, 16 rebounds, four assists, one steal, and three blocks against the Timberwolves. He was unplayable at times and completely dominated the opposing frontcourt.
Prior to this game, Davis had stated he was looking to dominate this season and this was a great start. It’s unreasonable to expect the nine-time All-Star to play this well night in and night out, but if he can play anywhere near this level on a consistent basis, the Lakers might not be a Play-In team as I had expected them to.
As for the Timberwolves, the early signs aren’t great. I wasn’t a fan of their decision to bring in Julius Randle, as their spacing isn’t good with him in there instead of Karl-Anthony Towns. I think they’ve made Edwards’ life a lot harder, but who knows, maybe things will work out over time.
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