Anthony Edwards was the catalyst in leading the Timberwolves to the Western Conference Finals. However, in the Timberwolves’ Game 1 loss (88-114) to the Thunder, it did not seem like Edwards was the best player on this Timberwolves team. He had 18 points in the first three quarters and failed to score a single point in the fourth quarter as their 10-point deficit to the Thunder blew up to 26 points by the end of the game.
Edwards finished the game with 18 points, 9 rebounds, and 3 assists, going 5 of 13 from the field and 3 of 8 from the three-point line. Coming into this game, Edwards averaged 26.5 points, 8.0 rebounds, and 5.9 assists in his previous 10 games of the Playoffs. Therefore, Edwards knew he did not perform up to his usual standard and spoke to the media about it after the game.
While answering a question about the Thunder’s suffocating style of play down the stretch, Edwards hinted his frustration with his performance and said, “I definitely got to shoot more. I only took 13 f**king shots. I’ll say, probably just get off the ball a little more, play without the ball. I think that would be the answer because playing on the ball, they’re just going to double and sit in the gaps all day. So I got to go watch some film and pick it apart. We’ll figure it out.”
The Real Reason Why The Timberwolves Lost Game 1 Versus The Thunder In WCF
While Anthony Edwards’ struggles may be the reason the Timberwolves couldn’t come back from a 10-point deficit at the end of the third quarter, he’s not the reason they were in this position in the first place. It’s their over-reliance on the three-point shot to generate offense that put them in this hole in the first place.
The Timberwolves shot 15 of 51 (29.4%) from beyond the arc as a team. Donte DiVincenzo (3 of 12), Nickeil Alexander-Walker (2 of 9), Naz Reid (0 of 7) and Mike Conley (1 of 5), all shot below 30% from three. This was despite Julius Randle’s hot start from three, he only took six three-point attempts in the whole game after having made five in the first half itself.
The Timberwolves only drained 138 of their 402 attempts from beyond the arc in these playoffs (34.3%). Yet they beat both the Warriors and the Lakers on their road to the WCF in five games each series. Will the Timberwolves be able to find a way once again despite their struggles? Or will this be their Achilles’ heel in a defeat to the Thunder?
