The Oklahoma City Thunder dismantled the Minnesota Timberwolves in Game 5 by 30 points (124-94) as they proceeded to the NBA Finals after beating them 4-1 in the series. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, while averaging 10.2 free throw attempts per game in this series, won the Magic Johnson Western Conference Finals MVP Award.
His free-throw shooting has come under scrutiny after the NBA world was baffled by his ability to draw fouls and get to the free-throw line. Following the Timberwolves’ embarrassing exit from the Playoffs, their head coach, Chris Finch, spoke to the media about Anthony Edwards’ developmental arc and the lessons he needs to learn from this experience in the Playoffs.
“I think for areas of improvement for him is just going to be along I think the game route, really. I think he’s got to also kind of figure out a bit of a closing package, and we have to help him there. You know what shots and places on the floor can he repeatedly get to.”
He also spoke about how Edwards needs to learn how to draw more fouls, seemingly as a subtle shot at the reigning MVP, Gilgeous-Alexander.
“Foul drawing. I think you see right now in the league, like you know, you see what gets rewarded, and you know you need to kind of lean into that a little bit. Even though it’s not necessarily how he likes to play but it seems to be effective, so I think it’s a little bit more about a kind of grey matter than it is any kind of you know, of course, adding some skill is always important.”
In comparison, Edwards averaged 6.3 free-throw attempts per game in the regular season, as opposed to Gilgeous-Alexander’s 8.8 attempts. They approximately maintained similar averages in the postseason.
Two years ago, in 2022-23, Gilgeous-Alexander averaged 10.9 free-throw attempts per game, nearly twice of Edwards’ attempts per game. Once Gilgeous-Alexander took this leap from averaging seven free throws a game to over nine, his scoring jumped from mid-20s to consistently 30 points per game.
If Edwards figures out how to draw fouls like Gilgeous-Alexander, his offensive skill set will become several times more lethal, and the Timberwolves could break their Western Conference Finals curse (losing two years in a row) next season to become genuine title contenders.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander Ends Anthony Edwards’ Dream Playoff Run
Anthony Edwards led the Timberwolves to one of their strongest Playoff starts in recent history. They ended both their Playoff series in five games while beating teams with the likes of LeBron James (Lakers) and Stephen Curry (Warriors), players whom Edwards grew up watching.
Therefore, the Timberwolves were widely the favorites to win this series, seeing Edwards and Randle’s momentum. They also made it to the Western Conference Finals last season but fell short to the Mavericks. So, experts and legends like Magic Johnson favored them to win due to their experience at this stage. However, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and the Thunder had other plans. Gilgeous-Alexander averaged 31.4 points, 8.2 assists, and 5.2 rebounds in this five-game series to end the Timberwolves’ championship ambitions.
