Timberwolves control their own destiny with Anthony Edwards

Look alive Wolves Nation, the 2023-24 NBA season is coming in hot (wake me up when September ends?)! With the vast majority of pieces on the NBA chess board already set, this season’s storylines are already beginning to take hold. With Minnesota Timberwolves star shooting guard Anthony Edwards impersonating Captain America in the 2023 FIBA World Cup tournament, the 22-year-old supernova’s stock has never been higher nationally.

Just as Timberwolves fans finally got their chance to revel in a local player grasping the global limelight, they were left betrayed when a clip of former fan favorite guard Patrick Beverly emerged on the Twittersphere.

And so began a revolt in Timberwolves fandom against a player that previously was deeply cherished on 1st Ave. This was only the beginning.

Exposure, or melodrama?

This was news that wasn’t news at all. It was an NBA offseason drama that burst into flames from the spark of random speculation. It had as much impact on current events as a new episode of The Kardashians. It was a conclusion that completely ignored the facts of Portland Trail Blazer PG Damian Lillard or Milwaukee Bucks PG Giannis Antetokounmpo.

This was the soft underbelly of the NBA, a sports league that has 30 teams but whose own promotions limit the star-making power of media and national exposure to bigger markets where more stuff can be sold. One slip of the tongue by a former Timberwolves player shone a spotlight on a topic that nobody wanted to discuss.