The Timberwolves lost 103-116 to the Thunder tonight at Oklahoma’s Paycom Center. Anthony Edwards finished the game with 19 points, six rebounds, five assists, one steal, and one block while going 6-17 from the field (35.3 FG%) and 2-5 from beyond the arc (40.0 3P%).
Nearly 10 months after the Western Conference Finals last year, Anthony Edwards has still not found an answer to the Thunder’s defensive resilience on the road, as he resonated with similar sentiments tonight as he did after the Wolves’ Game 1 loss (88-114) to the Thunder in that series.
Following the game, Edwards spoke to the media and recalled his words from last season, when he first called the Thunder an “AAU defense.” He took some responsibility for tonight’s loss and revealed how the Thunder’s defensive strategy contributed to his struggles.
“Turning it over. Offensive rebounds. I had too many turnovers myself, and I didn’t make enough shots. So, I don’t really think it got nothing to do with my team. It’s more so myself. Yeah, I had too many turnovers and not enough made shots. It’s just that simple,” said Edwards when asked what the Thunder did to cause consistent turnovers and make the game difficult for them down the stretch.
“They do a pretty good job of just like I said, it’s AAU defense. So yeah, they do a pretty good job of it. They were on like one accord. But yeah, we know what to expect. So that’s on us. That’s on me. I know what they’re going to do as far as defensively. So that’s on me, turning the ball over.”
Edwards had six of the 22 total turnovers that the Timberwolves had in this game. An inopportune moment for Edwards to skid on a night where Shai Gilgeous-Alexander struggled to barely keep his 20-point game streak alive.
The Timberwolves lost 4-1 to the Thunder in the WCF last season. In two of the three games played in Oklahoma in that series, Edwards scored below 20 points (18 points in Game 1 and 19 points in Game 5).
“Yeah, it was hard to process. It was different every time. Heavy in the gaps, sometimes trapped the ball screen, sometimes don’t, sometimes just run and jump,” said Edwards after Game 1 of the 2025 WCF.
“It’s kind of similar to AAU. They remind me of an AAU defensive team, just run and jump, fly around. It’s pretty good. Good to get it out of our system in Game 1. We’ll be ready for it in Game 2.”
The team’s struggles seem to have carried into this season as the Timberwolves have lost on both occasions they faced the Thunder on the road. The Wolves have lost all five of their last five road games in Oklahoma, including last season’s playoff series.
Therefore, it is safe to say that since last year’s postseason, Anthony Edwards and the Timberwolves have no answer for the Thunder on the road.
According to Edwards, beyond his ineffective shot-making and turnovers, it was also the Thunder’s defense that contributed to his off-night. Calling them an AAU defense could also certainly be interpreted as a shot at the defending champions, since AAU teams play a much lower level of basketball.
The Thunder’s defensive strategies have repeatedly come under scrutiny. From individual players like Lu Dort getting criticized or Devin Booker calling out the team’s defense as a whole, they have certainly caught their opponents’ best players off guard on numerous occasions with their defensive approach.
Many have alleged that Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is an artist of drawing fouls on the offensive end. But do you think they get away with questionable approaches on the defensive end as well? Let us know what you think in the comments section.
