Since returning to relative health from the league’s recent COVID-19 spike, the Minnesota Timberwolves are looking like the team we all hoped they’d be. Having won seven of their last 10 games, the team is continuing to prove that they have a legitimate chance of finishing the regular season as a top-six seed out West.
This has been one of the most exciting years in recent memory for Minnesota fans. Karl-Anthony Towns is showing yet again that he is one of the league’s most offensively-gifted bigs. D’Angelo Russell seems to have figured out a solid middle-ground for finding open looks for himself and his teammates. And in his second year, Anthony Edwards has put on full display that he is more than the athletic rim attacker many believed him to be before he got drafted.
With only 113 career games under his belt, Edwards is already a top-25 scorer. With his James Harden-esque skill set and the build of an NFL player, Ant’s got a bright future ahead of him. But in Edwards’s mind, his future is more than just bright. It’s damn near blinding. And after finishing with 40 points during last night’s 109-107 victory against the Portland Trailblazers, the second-year guard confidently stated that he already has his eyes set on next year’s MVP award.
But Edwards has a long way to go before he can join the MVP conversation. To even be a member of the MVP race is an award in itself. And with no current All-Star or All-NBA selections, saying that he’s preparing to be one of the league’s premier players sooner rather than later seems a bit overconfident. But this is Edwards we’re talking about here.
A couple of weeks ago, I wrote about the 20-year-old guard potentially having another remarkable run as we approach the latter half of the season. But what exactly needs to happen? At the time, I was unsure. Edwards is already taking the most shot attempts for the Wolves. And I’m not sure increasing the minutes of a player who averages 35 per contest would be of much help. But with the improvement of one single aspect of his game, Ant’s claim for being a third-year MVP could seem a bit more sensible.
He needs to crash the glass on defense.
It’s no secret that the Wolves struggle to secure defensive rebounds. Currently ranked 28th amongst teams in DREB, it’s been a team-wide issue this year. And with poor rebounding efforts comes a ton of second-chance scoring opportunities for Minnesota’s opponents. It has to grind Chris Finch’s gears because he’s a pace-and-space aficionado. Grabbing defensive rebounds does more than just give the Wolves more possessions. And when Edwards is the one securing the boards, it allows him to immediately put the ball on the floor and score in transition.
For Ant, a player who is 6’4″, averaging 4.1 defensive boards doesn’t seem all that bad. But compared to other players in the association, it is. Take a look at some of the players currently averaging more defensive rebounds than Edwards right now:
- Stephen Curry (4.4 DREB)
- Devin Booker (4.5 DREB)
- James Harden (7.1 DREB)
- Luka Doncic (8.0 DREB)
What do you notice about this list? Sure, it consists of some of the NBA’s top-tier talents. But taking a closer look, one can see that each of the four players listed above aren’t exactly known as “freak” athletes. That’s why Ant’s lack of rebounding is so concerning. For a player of his stature who can get up the floor faster than most players in the league, there is no reason for him not to be snatching more of his opponents’ misses.
Think back to Russell Westbrook’s MVP-caliber days of 2017 with the Oklahoma City Thunder. Sure, he may have done a bit of stat-chasing to finish games with triple-doubles. But by being the first player to have the ball after the opposing team’s miss, Russ was able to quickly dribble past his opponents down the length of the court and finish at the cup. That’s where Ant needs to improve.
Ant is a freight train in transition. When given a head of steam, few players in today’s game can keep him from getting to the rack. And sure, Edwards is a fine player in a halfcourt setting. But just look at where A1 ranks in terms of players points per game from transition:
- Giannis Antetokounmpo
- LeBron James
- Devin Booker
- Ja Morant
- Josh Hart (WTF, right?!)
- Anthony Edwards
Only 41% of Ant’s total shots come within 10 feet of the basket. For reference, Morant takes 48% of his shots within 10 feet. An easy way for him to increase the number of high-percentage looks at the basket? Crash the glass on defense and push the tempo in transition. And with only KAT and Jarred Vanderbilt being reliable rebounders, Ant should have no problem with hitting the glass hard.
Edwards is a good player. Sometimes it’s easy to forget that he’s the same age as most current college sophomores – because he’s that good. But I think Edwards wants to be more than just good. He’s got that sort of thing about him that makes you believe he wants to be great.
Sure, having his sights set on being in the MVP race next year may be a bit of wishful thinking. He needs to progress as a basketball player overall. And with a bit more emphasis on defensive rebounding and transition offense, we may be talking about Ant in a much different light at this time next year. We may be talking about Edwards, one of the NBA’s best rebounding guards and a potential MVP candidate.
