3 reasons why Minnesota Timberwolves would outperform Team USA

Team USA will not take home the 2023 FIBA World Cup, despite the constant heroics of Minnesota Timberwolves shooting guard Anthony Edwards. That is not to say that Edwards led the team in scoring in each game. But it does mean that Anthony Edwards made a direct and measurable impact on the outcome of each game throughout the tournament.

This was a mishmash of challenges that thwarted Team USA’s ability to match up against international teams. In the double-elimination tournament, Team USA lost two games. The first loss came at the hands of Team Lithuania by a score of 110 to 104. The second loss came in the semifinal round at the hands of Team Germany by a score of 113 to 111.

The first loss for Team USA happened despite the incredible effort of Anthony Edwards and his 35-point scoring outburst.

Team USA’s frontcourt was particularly ineffective, as the combined impact of  Team USA power forwards and centers translated into the stat line of Timberwolves’ average state line while playing for Team Dominican Republic:

TEAM USA vs. Team Lithuania

Player                               Pts    Rebs  FG%   3P%      Asts   Stls  Blks
Jaren Jackson Jr.                3         1      33%      0%        3          1      0
Bobby Portis Jr.                 7         5      75%      0%        2          0      0
Paolo Banchero                6         2      75%      0%        2          1      0
Walker Kessler                  2         1    100%     0%        0          0      1
Totals                                 21        9     63.6%   0%        7          2      1

And then again, when facing Team Germany, the entire cast of centers and power forwards fell silent once more:

TEAM USA

Player                               Pts    Rebs  FG%   3P%      Asts   Stls  Blks
Jaren Jackson Jr.                8         3     50%      0%         0          1      0
Bobby Portis Jr.                 5         2   100%  100%        0          1      0
Paolo Banchero                6         2      25%      0%         3          0     1
Walker Kessler                  Did not play
Totals                                 19        7     50%    100%       3          2      1

The loss pushed the two-loss Team USA into the consolation round to face Team Canada for third place.

But that opens the door to some speculative comparisons, does it not? After all, if Anthony Edwards is the common denominator between both rosters, how much better or worse would the Minnesota Timberwolves compete against international teams?

While we may never truly ‘know,’ that answer, we can theorize what the answer should be. Let’s take a look at what I mean: