Winners and losers from the first half of Timberwolves’ 2022-23 season

The Minnesota Timberwolves are now officially halfway through the 2022-23 season. This team has experienced a lot of ups and downs and has dealt with more than a few challenging circumstances, but they have continued to battle through it all.

From the moment the Timberwolves’ front office decided to trade for Rudy Gobert in July, Minnesota was entering uncharted territory that was never going to be a perfectly smooth ride. The highs have matched the lows, and the Timberwolves are still working through the growing pains that come with a major change to your team’s rotation.

Of course, injuries have played a major part in those growing pains as well, and Minnesota has been inconvenienced by significant injuries to numerous starters and important rotation players. Chemistry becomes tough to build when your most important players are not able to get enough meaningful reps with one another in real game situations.

This group has shown a lot of resolve and has largely made the most of their circumstances. But some players have definitely done more with what they were given than others. With the team playing their 41st game earlier this week, let’s take a look at the biggest winners and losers from the first half of the Timberwolves’ season.

Here are the biggest winners and losers from the Timberwolves’ season so far:

Winner: Anthony Edwards

You could probably have guessed that Anthony Edwards would have wound up as a winner on this list. Even with Rudy Gobert’s arrival and Karl-Anthony Towns’ continued high-level play, Edwards was expected to be the best player on this team coming into the year.

Not only is Anthony Edwards easily the Timberwolves’ best player, but it is not a stretch to say he is exceeding his preseason expectations. Which is wildly impressive, given that he was expected to make the fabled “third-year leap” that many stars go through.

Edwards is basically averaging career-highs across the board, posting career-bests in points, rebounds, assists, and steals per game, while shooting his best percentage from three-point range and from the field overall. He is doing it all without having missed a game this year, and playing a team-high 36.2 minutes per night.

At just 21 years old, Anthony Edwards is one of the brightest young stars in the NBA. The fact that he is already such a transcendent individual talent at this age is a constant reassurance for Timberwolves fans, and his continued development will significantly boost Minnesota’s chances of winning a championship one day.