Anthony Edwards hails Minnesota teammate as a ‘star’ despite 3-point scoring average

Edwards called fifth-year guard Bones Hyland a “star” after the game, even though he is only averaging 3 points per game this season. The 6’2” guard was taken by the Denver Nuggets in 2021 and hit a career-best 12 points per game in his second year.

Playing 16 minutes against the Suns, he rewarded head coach Chris Finch with a strong performance, scoring 14 points and hitting four three-pointers. If Edwards is correct, the 25-year-old is capable of much more.

Speaking after the game, Edwards said: “That’s my boy. I’ve been a fan of him for the past three years. I’ve watched him work out, he’s worked out with me.

“If you’ve seen him play, you know he’s incredible at basketball. Just a matter of time ‘til he gets out there, and he showed why he belongs tonight.”

Asked what stands out about Hyland’s game to him, Ant-Man replied: “Everything. Sometimes you can just see some people are meant to be a star. I may not know the criteria to being a star. But if I think I do, I think he’s one of them.”

The Timberwolves guard has played well at times in the G-League, but has not found much consistency in the NBA yet.

If he can carve out a steady role with Minnesota this season, that would be huge for them.

Bones Hyland responds to Anthony Edwards’ praise

Even though Edwards is talking up Hyland’s potential, Hyland himself is keeping things in perspective. He said he is grateful for the support Ant-Man has shown him, which goes back to when he was with the Los Angeles Clippers.

The 25-year-old mentioned that he already felt welcomed by Timberwolves players before joining the team. Speaking after his game against the Suns, he said: “[Edwards] has been a big advocate for me, even when I was with the Clippers. 

“If you go back to the game where we played them at home, I was with the Clippers. After the game, I was just talking to all of them, and I could just feel the love. The support that they had for me.

“Ant’s a big advocate. He’s talked to the coaches every day concerning me. He has my back. Even in the summertime, he’s like, ‘we gotta re-sign Bones’.

“That’s just something I appreciate, especially coming from a superstar like Ant. That’s not something he has to do. He’s got other things to worry about,” Hyland concluded.