In the moments that he is stepping into clutch shots and rescuing his team from the seeming abyss, as Anthony Edwards did Tuesday with a game-tying three-pointer in the closing seconds against Memphis, it is easy to forget that one of the Wolves' best and most important players is still just 20 years old.
Anthony Edwards embodies all of the Timberwolves' playoff highs and lows
Minnesota's 20-year-old budding star has had great moments and forgettable ones, mirroring his team's fortunes against Memphis.
April 27, 2022 at 5:37PM
But then on the next play, it's very easy to remember.
Edwards gambled on the Grizzlies' final possession and lost. Ja Morant ended up with a layup, and the Wolves ended up on the wrong end of a 111-109 final score after losing a double-digit fourth quarter lead.
"I had already had my mind made up that I was going to try to steal it," Edwards said after the loss, which left the Wolves in a 3-2 series hole. "Dumb mistake. It's over though. Can't do nothing about it."
Even the commendable honesty of that answer is a reminder of Edwards' youth. He is a microcosm of this series, a bundling of extreme highs and lows that I talked about on Wednesday's Daily Delivery podcast.
In Tuesday's game, Edwards knocked down some big shots, none bigger than the corner three-pointer that tied the game 109-109 for a moment.
He was also part of an offense that too often settled for long jump shots all night, particularly in crunch time.
And on Tuesday, while Edwards did finish with 22 points, he had just one rebound (an offensive one), zero assists, zero steals and zero blocks in 35 minutes while Memphis stole the game with hustle, rebounds and grit.
The Wolves absolutely needed a lot more from Edwards on Tuesday, but here's the question: Is it too much to ask for more, at least for now?
The Wolves cannot act like they've been there before because a lot of them haven't. There is no reservoir of playoff knowledge to guide them when things fall apart.
Tuesday was the fifth game of the series and the fifth career playoff game for Edwards, Jaden McDaniels, Naz Reid and Jordan McLaughlin. Jarred Vanderbilt had five previous minutes of playoff experience. Karl-Anthony Towns and D'Angelo Russell each had five games.
Edwards hasn't looked scared or outwardly overmatched by the moment so far, which is great news for the Wolves going forward. Maybe in two years, Edwards will be the Wolves' version of Morant.
But the playoffs are just different, and some things need to be earned and learned.
The Wolves and their underage star are finding that out the hard way.
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