Anthony Edwards ends the year with a stroke

Minnesota is definitely having a weird season. There is no doubt that it is Wolves would happily do without this new episode, which is a blow to the group’s spirit of cohesion and the propriety expected of a leader of his caliberAnthony Edwards. In the kind of “no” game any team can experience in the season, Minnesota trailed by 29 points with just over seven minutes left last night in Atlanta.

Chris Finch logically took a time out to end the struggles of his starters and entrusted the “second unit” with the task of finishing the match. It’s just that Anthony Edwards obviously took it badly and couldn’t support his coach’s decision. After voicing his displeasure, the Wolves full-back simply decided to return to the dressing room with more than seven minutes left to play…

A ruined homecoming

To make matters worse, the player avoided the media after the match, leaving Chris Finch alone to face the explanations. The Minnesota coach avoided the topic with one sentence: “Of course he was frustrated with the team’s performance, and rightly so, but he has to stay on the pitch and support his team-mates., he failed.

The case of Anthony Edwards is obviously delicate: no player would allow himself to directly criticize the attitude of his leader. And for good reason, if Minnesota has a record of 21 wins and 13 losses, it is largely thanks to him. And tonight, he scored 30 points on 10/18 shooting in 33 minutes.

His frustration was undoubtedly magnified tenfold by the context: In Atlanta, where he was born, he invited friends and family—including his grandfather—for this special occasion.

The Cold Wrath of Rudy Gobert

Only Rudy Gobert dared to put his foot down, questioning the commitment of the players and the ambition of the team. Asked about his frustration at being benched long before the end of the match, the French pivot admitted that the starters played poorly and that the substitutes deserved more playing time.

Otherwise, it is hard to say that the Wolves showed a united attitude, ready to play their season every night. The loss in Atlanta last night provided another illustration of this.

“It’s up to us to look in the mirror, work on this and come back and ask ourselves, ‘What can I do for my teammates? Help them be more successful, on both ends of the court and even off the court? What can I do to contribute to a win? Things that you might not see on the scoreboard, that my friends or family might not see well, but that might not help the team?’ Winning teams have that. Do we want that? I don’t know”, he admitted.

“I think we have an incredible opportunity… But something has to happen (…). I wouldn’t say it adds to the frustration, but it makes us wonder, ‘Do we care?’ when we play the first quarter like tonight. Are we just… cool. We make a lot of money, play basketball, do our thing and go home happy. That’s what makes the difference between a team playing for the title and a team full of talent but not achieving anything… I don’t know” concludes the Frenchman.

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