Anthony Edwards says Ricky Rubio is the 'best leader' he's ever been around

When the Timberwolves brought Ricky Rubio back in a trade with Oklahoma City, they did so in part because they wanted Rubio to help mentor Anthony Edwards the way Rubio helped in the development of Donovan Mitchell in Utah and Devin Booker in Phoenix.

Even if Rubio has struggled on the court, it seems the part about him becoming close with Edwards has taken shape.

After the Wolves beat New Orleans 135-105 on Thursday, Edwards spoke about his growing voice in the locker room.

First it came up in a discussion about the Wolves playing better defense after coach Chris Finch installed some new concepts.

"I feel like if my teammates don't buy into this new principle every game then I gotta go into the locker room and cuss a couple people out because if it got us a W, we gotta keep doing it," Edwards said.

Edwards, who had 27 points on 10 of 22 shooting, was then asked if he felt he had a leadership role in the locker room, and that's when he referenced his relationship with Rubio.

"I hope so. I'm trying to get there," Edwards said. "I'm growing and learning every day from Ricky. Just trying to watch what he do. I feel like he's a great leader on our team. If I keep learning from Ricky, I feel like I'll be in a good position."

Edwards then said it was "great" to be able to learn from Rubio and elaborated why Rubio is able to reach him.

"He leads by example and communication. Some leaders, they're going to lead by example. Some of them lead by talking, but Ricky, he does both," Edwards said. "He does it pretty good, if you ask me. I mean, I'm taking bits and pieces from Ricky and he keeps telling me stuff that I don't know and he's helping me grow and learn. He's the best leader I've been around all my life …

"When I make a mistake he's going to talk to me and tell me what I did wrong and how I can fix it. He's always trying to get me involved in the game."

On another note, Edwards said he didn't realize the Wolves were going to drench Finch in water following his first win as an NBA coach.

In a video of the moment the team provided, you can see Edwards realize a little later he was supposed to throw water on Finch, then come over and dump a whole bottle on Finch.