Although it’s still relatively early in the regular season, Anthony Edwards knows that the Minnesota Timberwolves are at a critical point, and they need to correct their course before it’s too late. After the Timberwolves’ fourth consecutive loss, a 115-104 defeat to the Sacramento Kings, which marked their seventh loss in their last nine games, Edwards did not hold back in his critique of the team’s ongoing struggles.
The young star made it clear that he believes the Timberwolves are underperforming and need to find a way to regain their form.
“We’re soft as hell as a team,” Edwards said bluntly in the postgame interview. “Internally. Not to the other teams, but internally, we’re soft. We can’t talk to each other. It’s just like we’re playing with a bunch of little kids, the whole team. We’ve got to figure it out, man, because we can’t go down this road.”
The Timberwolves entered the 2024-25 season with high expectations after a successful campaign last year. They finished the previous season with a 56-26 record, securing the No. 3 seed in the Western Conference and making a strong run to the Western Conference finals.
With Edwards emerging as a bona fide superstar at just 23 years old, there was plenty of optimism surrounding Minnesota’s chances of building on that success.
However, a major roster shake-up just before the start of the season has thrown the Timberwolves off course. In a surprising move, Minnesota traded Karl-Anthony Towns to the New York Knicks in exchange for Julius Randle and Donte DiVincenzo. The new-look Timberwolves have struggled to find consistency on both sides of the ball, and the chemistry that was so evident last year has been elusive thus far.
One of the key factors in Minnesota’s success last season was their top-ranked defense, which posted a league-best 108.4 defensive rating over 82 games. This year, that defensive efficiency has slipped significantly, with the Timberwolves recording a defensive rating of 112.1 through the first 18 games, dropping them to 12th in the NBA rankings.
The once-stifling defense has been inconsistent, and that was evident during Wednesday night’s loss when the Timberwolves were outscored 29-6 over the final seven minutes by the Kings.
Edwards was visibly frustrated with his team’s lack of resilience, particularly when facing adversity. “We were down, and nobody wanted to say anything,” Edwards said, according to the Star Tribune. “We got up, and everybody was cheering… We get down again, and nobody says anything. That’s the definition of a front-runner. We as a team, including myself, were all front-runners tonight.
“… However many of us there are, all 15, we go into our own shell, and we’re just growing away from each other. It’s obvious. We can see it. I can see it, the team can see it, the coaches can see it. The fans… booing us. That… is crazy, man. We’re getting booed in our home arena.”
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The emotional comments from Edwards reflect the growing frustration within the Timberwolves’ locker room. The expectation was that Minnesota would build on the success of last season and contend for a top spot in the West, but instead, they find themselves in a precarious position with a 7-11 record.
The lack of communication, accountability, and cohesion is holding them back, and Edwards has taken it upon himself to call out the team and demand change.
The Timberwolves have an opportunity to turn things around, but it will require a collective effort. Edwards, as the team’s emerging leader, is clearly trying to light a fire under his teammates, but it remains to be seen if his words will resonate.
The team needs to rediscover the defensive identity that made them so formidable last year and find a way to gel with the new pieces added to the roster.
The slumping Timberwolves will take a break for Thanksgiving before returning to the court on Friday night for a matchup against the Los Angeles Clippers at Target Center.
With the season still young, there is time for Minnesota to correct their path, but the urgency is mounting.
As Edwards made clear, the Timberwolves can’t afford to keep going down this road—they need to make changes, and they need to make them fast.
