Anthony Edwards is a fantastic player. At 24 years old, his résumé is incredibly impressive, and he's a top-five-level player. And in no way is Ant-Man close to the Minnesota Timberwolves' biggest problem. I want to make that clear.
Nevertheless, Ant isn't a perfect player, and he still has clear flaws. This includes both defensive engagement and playmaking. While the former is fixable come playoff time, as Edwards has shown to be a great defender when he wants to be, the latter could end up being further exposed in the playoffs.
In recent games, we've seen teams load up on Edwards and force him to playmake. We saw this against the Los Angeles Lakers and the Oklahoma City Thunder. Ant shot 8-for-32 from the field and committed eight turnovers to nine assists in these games. In fairness, Edwards receives an immense amount of double teams on a nightly basis.
It's unclear if Edwards can be a lead facilitator on a championship team
The Timberwolves have counted on Edwards to play more of a facilitator role this season, and it's yielded mixed results. During the playoffs, it's fair to wonder if Edwards can make the right reads enough to help the Wolves reach their full upside. He often struggles passing out of double teams and setting up his teammates.
There's no denying that Ant is a natural scorer, not a natural facilitator. While raw assists aren't everything, Edwards' assist numbers have declined in each of the past two seasons. On the season, he's averaging just 3.7 assists and has only notched more than five assists eight times. Furthermore, he ranks in the seventh percentile for assist-to-usage ratio per Cleaning the Glass.
Edwards can often beat double teams with his elite scoring abilities. However, it's fair to wonder if that will translate to the playoffs, elite defenses can zero in on Ant and force him to playmake. With Julius Randle, Donte DiVincenzo, Jaden McDaniels, Ayo Dosunmu, and Bones Hyland, the Wolves have some level of ball handling and playmaking outside of Ant.
Regardless, most of the Timberwolves' offense revolves around Edwards and Randle. And for a team with championship aspirations, this might not be enough stable playmaking and ball handling. The Timberwolves commit the third-most fourth quarter turnovers, which is indicative of a larger playmaking issue.
Much has been made about the Wolves' need for a true point guard. I've waffled on this, but am moving back to the side of this being a real need in the offseason. Pairing Ant next to a more natural playmaker would benefit Edwards as a scorer and would give the Timberwolves some much-needed extra stability.
Ant-Man is still just 24, so maybe his playmaking takes a massive leap. However, right now it looks like he'd benefit from playing next to a true PG.
The playoffs are where the rubber will meet the road for the Timberwolves in multiple ways, and one of these will be if Ant is ready to be a true primary facilitator on a championship-level team.