Anthony Edwards and his Minnesota Timberwolves team entered Game 1 against the OKC Thunder with a significant rest advantage. His team had five days of rest, compared to a solitary day for the top seeds. Clearly, the Wolves had the upper hand, and they showed it during the first half of game 1. The Wolves ran up a sizeable lead, eventually reaching the locker room at halftime with a 48-44 lead on the road.
However, OKC raised its defensive energy significantly in the second half. They stifled Anthony Edwards by putting Alex Caruso on the Wolves’ talisman. Caruso was able to navigate all the screens and picks thrown his way by the Wolves’ schemes superbly. His defensive impact was such that Edwards did not score a single point in the fourth quarter. The Wolves only scored 40 points in the second half and lost.
A large part of the blame for their offensive slowdown can be attributed to Edwards’ inability to get separation. Without the head of their snake acting the way they hoped, the Wolves’ offense sputtered, and they were unable to generate open shots. Edwards ended the game with 18 points, shooting 5-13 from the floor. He was one of only two Timberwolves to score in double digits against the stifling OKC defense.
Skip Bayless found the opportunity to get some trash talk for Edwards off his chest in the aftermath of this game. The former ESPN and FS1 analyst took to his podcast platform and laid into Edwards for his subpar offense. Labeling him a fourth-quarter choker, Bayless invented a new nickname intended as a slight for Edwards. Known to his teammates and fans as ‘Ant Man’, Bayless flipped the name into ‘Can’t Man’.
This was real simple in the second half. Oklahoma City trailed by four at halftime, and all of a sudden SGA went MVP on the Timberwolves. While Ant Man, right on schedule, turned into Can’t Man. He just can’t. Second halves, fourth quarters, playoffs, I told you going into this – way too often. In big playoff game fourth quarters he has been Can’t Man. What happened in the second half tonight? SGA scored 20 in the second half, Ant Man scored 5 points.
Skip Bayless argued
Is Skip Bayless going too hard on Anthony Edwards?
Anthony Edwards was really great in the Wolves’ series against the Lakers. Tipped as the biggest mismatch of the series by Magic Johnson, Edwards took advantage of the Lakers’ flimsy guard defense well. However, he hasn’t exactly set the world on fire with his performances in the six games since that series. Edwards was expected to carry the Timberwolves’ offense, and he completely lost the plot in Game 1.
One criticism of Edwards that has been consistent throughout his career is his lack of processing speed. Edwards has always been an athletic mismatch for whoever has guarded him in his NBA career. However, he doesn’t have the unpredictability or the playmaking vision that truly legendary NBA players possess. He can often be caught making bad decisions while handling the ball. His handle is also quite suspect for a top player.
Edwards undoubtedly needs to start stamping his superior athletic talent against the OKC Thunder guards for his team to have a chance in this series. Without him putting his defenders on the back foot, the rest of the Wolves don’t get the breathing room or the space to get open shots. Edwards needs to do better as a player on the drive as well as while going iso against his defenders.
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