Heading into his seventh NBA season, Minnesota Timberwolves star Anthony Edwards is clearly one of the most gifted scorers in the league. His scoring average has increased every year in the league, reaching a career-high 28.8 points per game in 2025–26.
In back-to-back years, 2023–24 and 2024–25, Edwards finished seventh and tied for seventh in MVP voting. Those were his two All-NBA appearances as well, with both coming on the second team. However, he has yet to be a legitimate MVP candidate to date.
Looking at the previous MVP winners, there is one number that Ant-Man clearly needs to increase in order to become one of the top candidates: his assists total. Even with LaMelo Ball, Edwards' playmaking is a key area of growth.
Edwards improving his playmaking will thrust him further into the MVP conversation
Last season, despite often running the show on offense as the Timberwolves mostly did not have a true point guard in the starting lineup, Ant-Man averaged only 3.7 assists per game. That is the second-lowest average of his career, higher only than his rookie-year average.
In today’s era, when so many players are putting up video-game numbers, MVP voters want to see more than just a gaudy scoring average. They want to see a more well-rounded game, as evidenced by a player’s averages. The last MVP winner to average fewer assists than Edwards' 3.7 in 2025-26 was Dirk Nowitzki, who averaged 3.4 in the 2006-07 season, when he won the award. His Dallas Mavericks went 67-15 that regular season, which strongly helped his case to be named Most Valuable Player.
Thankfully, Ant has proven himself to be more of a playmaker in previous years. His career-high of 5.1 assists per game came in 2023–24. Even that assist average has been surpassed by every MVP winner since Nowitzki except one. Joel Embiid averaged 4.2 assists while being named MVP in 2022–23.
The first overall pick in 2020 has also showcased his playmaking abilities more in the playoffs, to much success. Edwards averaged 6.5 assists in the 2024 playoffs and 5.5 in 2025, and both years saw the Wolves reach the conference finals.
Even with LaMelo in the mix, Edwards will still have the ball in his hands plenty. With defenses placing so much focus on the Wolves’ dynamic backcourt, Ant will have opportunities throughout the season to find his open teammates.
If he does so, and the Timberwolves continue to be a winning team, Edwards can become a true MVP candidate for the first time in his career.
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