There has been a big adjustment period to begin the season for the Minnesota Timberwolves. After trading for Julius Randle and Donte DiVincenzo, a lot of what made this team so successful a season ago has had to be re-figured.
A squad that was once the top defensive force in the association was all of a sudden forced to change their tactics and work on incorporating new players. It has led to some unexpected struggles in certain areas for the Timberwolves, and we still do not know what this team's best lineup will end up being.
We do know one thing: Minnesota has struggled to contain their opposition in the open court. The Wolves are still in the bottom third of the league in opponent transition points per game at 16.4 as of this writing. That is one part of their overall lackluster defensive effort that will need to be cleaned up in short order.
Minnesota struggling on defense is no secret, either. Anthony Edwards spoke up about his team's troubles on that side of the basketball when asked by Timberwolves podcaster Dane Moore after the win in Chicago on Thursday.
Asked Anthony Edwards how he would assess the Wolves defense thus far this season. pic.twitter.com/yPhiZ5AcAo
— Dane Moore (@DaneMooreNBA) November 8, 2024
Edwards: "We're terrible" on defense
"We're terrible," Edwards said bluntly. "We're terrible until we get down. When we get down, that's when everybody wants to play defense. But if we play from the beginning, we'll be the (expletive) best team. Because we've got the guys. Myself, Jaden, Rudy, Donte, Nickeil, Julius, like all these (expletive) can guard. We've just got to do it from the jump, from the beginning of the game."
Ant makes a solid point in that the Wolves have the individual talent to still thrive at that end of the court. A collection of strong individual defenders should lead to a high defensive ceiling, and now the matter will just be getting everyone committed on the mental side of things. Thankfully, it seems Edwards is more than ready to take responsibility for his hand in the struggles as well.
"I don't know if we're tight, or cold, or what it is," he said. "Because I have no excuse. I don't know why I don't play defense early in the game. I'm a part of it too. We all just got to be better early. Soon as the jump ball, we fixing to lock y'all down. Once we get there, we'll win some games."
As usual, Edwards makes himself even more likable by being self-aware and lumping himself into the team's struggles. He knows that he is contributing to the issue, but also remains confident they can pull things together and reach their potential once again.