Welcome back Ant-Man! After missing six consecutive outings with right knee inflammation, Anthony Edwards returned to the floor in Monday night’s victory for the Minnesota Timberwolves over the Dallas Mavericks. He unexpectedly came off the bench, but he saw 22:37 of game action in the 30-point win.
Unfortunately for Minnesota, Ant’s return coincides with the news that Jaden McDaniels is week-to-week with a left knee ailment. His absence puts more of an onus on Edwards to bring the defensive intensity, something we saw in his first game back.
Ant ‘s defense will be key without McDaniels
To no one’s surprise, the Timberwolves had their offensive struggles with their superstar out of the lineup. Where they excelled, and a large reason they were able to go 4-2 without Edwards, was their work on the defensive end. They had an elite defensive rating of 102.4 over that time, best in the NBA.
Now, without McDaniels, Minnesota is missing its best perimeter defender. Time for Ant-Man to step up. Through one game, he proved to be up to the task. Chris Finch appreciates the effort, and he had this to say after the game,
"Ant was awesome, man. His defense was outstanding. Just let the game come to him. Stayed aggressive. Made quicker decisions. And things looked kind of easy for him as a result."
Yes, the performance came against a Mavericks team that is out of playoff contention. Still, it was positive to see Edwards so engaged on both ends, not showing any signs of rust as the postseason nears. He didn’t force the action, spent more time off the ball, and really honed in on the defensive side.
The Timberwolves need more of that from Ant as the team is down to just seven regular season games remaining. Minnesota sits a half-game over the Houston Rockets for fifth in the West, a team they play on April 10, which will determine the tiebreaker. The Wolves are 1.5 games behind the Denver Nuggets for fourth. Denver already owns the tiebreaker, so it will be difficult for Minnesota to pass them and have home-court advantage in the opening round of the playoffs.
The McDaniels news isn’t timely. It’s unclear if he will be ready for the start of the postseason. It shouldn’t surprise, anyone though, if a proud competitor like Edwards takes on the extra responsibility, particularly on the defensive end, with the 2023-24 All-Defensive wing out of the lineup.