Anthony Edwards said Monday night he "didn't have that pep in his step."
Edwards had just 16 points on 6-for-16 shooting.
But his lack of pep could apply to just about anybody on the Timberwolves Monday night in their 112-103 loss to the Thunder.
The Wolves had acquitted themselves well following the All-Star Break winning games against New Orleans, Portland and Phoenix and being competitive even when they lost. Monday felt like a step back. In a ragged game for both teams, the Wolves couldn't figure it out offensively as they shot 41%, with Karl-Anthony Towns going for 33 points but requiring 28 shot attempts to get there.
The Thunder pulled it together early in the fourth quarter to bury the Wolves with a barrage of threes (they shot 21 of 37 on the night) and 31 points from Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. The Wolves would make a late run, but they had too much inconsistency for which to compensate earlier in the night.
"We was playing sluggish. We was playing slow," Edwards said. "We couldn't find a spark. We were trying to but we couldn't find it."
Edwards wasn't on the floor late to try and give them a lift, as coach Chris Finch opted to run with a group that helped the Wolves cut an 18-point deficit down to six with under a minute left. That group included Towns, Ricky Rubio, Josh Okogie, Jaylen Nowell and Juancho Hernangomez. Edwards had been part of the crew that allowed Oklahoma City to gain the 18-point lead earlier in the quarter thanks in part to a 13-0 run.
When asked if he was OK with sitting out those final minutes, Edwards said: "No, I wasn't. I wasn't."