Timberwolves are 3-0 since Anthony Edwards dressing down

Just 48 hours after blowing out the Lakers 109-80, the Timberwolves did the same to the Clippers in a 108-80 victory on Wednesday night. The two wins are part of a 3-0 streak that began after Anthony Edwards called his teammates "a bunch of little kids" and "front-runners" for blowing a 12-point fourth-quarter lead to the Kings last Wednesday.

While it's too early to suggest the Timberwolves (11-10) have turned a corner, Edwards' dressing down may have worked wonders. During their three-game win streak, the Timberwolves lead the league in points differential (+19.3) and defensive rating (86.6) and are starting to resemble the team that reached the Western Conference Finals last year.

When Edwards put his team on blast, he wondered where the defensive identity — its strong suit last season — had disappeared. Since the pep talk, Minnesota has held teams to a league-best 38.7 paint points per game and third-fewest transition points (10.3). 

Most of the credit goes to Rudy Gobert's rim protection and Julius Randle's willingness to switch to smaller matchups. Since Gobert remains in drop coverage versus most teams, the Timberwolves had some issues guarding the perimeter but seem to have ironed out those issues. 

Timberwolves head coach Chris Finch has also got Donte DiVincenzo more involved as a playmaking guard, especially when his shot isn't falling. DiVincenzo leads all Timberwolves with 5.3 assists and is attempting only 5.0 threes per game (down from his 6.6 season average ) during the three-game winning streak. He has been more careful about his shot selection while still draining 46.7 percent of his threes after his early season struggles.

There's a lot to like about the Timberwolves of the last three games. Before Edwards' dressing down, they had lost four in a row and seven in nine. They will now try to build on their 3-0 winning streak in a pair of away games against the Warriors on Friday and Sunday.