How Anthony Edwards shot the Timberwolves back into Game 4, then helped win it

The Timberwolves trailed by at the start of the fourth quarter of Meeting on Sunday at Target Center It s human nature at that point for a star athlete to feel as though he necessities to start forcing the issue to shoot his gang back into the championship And that s exactly what Anthony Edwards did to help send Minnesota back to Los Angeles with a - series lead in their first-round playoff series against the Lakers For all the justified talk about how Edwards made the right plays in the final insufficient minutes to secure Sunday s supremacy he got Minnesota back into the competition thanks to old habits that delivered a spurt of sensational results Just seconds into the fourth quarter Edwards rose up from feet to bury a lengthy triple The next time down again down points he stopped and popped over a pair of Lakers defenders to hit another three There were no passes delivered past half court on that Timberwolves possession The same was true the next time down when Edwards dribbled at the top of the floor before wading his way into the paint and missing a contested attempt Anthony Edwards of the Minnesota Timberwolves reacts against the Los Angeles Lakers in the third quarter of Championship Three of the First Round of the NBA Playoffs at Target Center on April in Minneapolis Minnesota David Berding Getty Images Minnesota went away from Edwards to start the next possession But after Julius Randle drew a foul Edwards got the ball back on the ensuing out-of-bounds play He dribbled for seconds before tossing a grenade to Donte DiVincenzo at the end of the shot clock With just more than minutes to play and the Wolves down nine Edwards again attacked from the top of the floor this time hitting the shot he identified in the middle of the paint The next time down he dribbled the ball up the floor took a couple dribbles at Lakers guard Austin Reaves then stepped back to bury a triple to bring Minnesota within four with still more than minutes to play Those four-plus minutes featured the same hero ball that at times sank the Wolves throughout the season But man were they ever swimming this time Until the well ran dry Edwards attempted another triple over a double association that misfired with and a half minutes to play Minnesota scored just seven points over a six-minute span in the frame Timberwolves coach Chris Finch mentioned Edwards has grown leaps and bounds when it comes to finding others in late-game situations and not forcing the issue But I literally thought there were times we could ve revealed each other a little bit better Finch stated After Naz Reid scored five-straight points Edwards again came down the floor isolated up top and took a tough triple try that hit off the iron But a foul was called on Luka Doncic for hitting Edwards wrist and he buried all three free throws The next time down with just under minutes to go and the Wolves up by one Edwards dribbled down the floor ran toward the baseline and took a tough -foot stepback jumper just seconds into the shot clock that hit off the front iron Now Finch was upset As soon as the shot missed the coach turned toward his bench threw his arms up and yelled Why Hero ball had served Minnesota well to get back into the encounter just as it had in numerous memorable stretches in the past But once the hot hand cools you have to shift back to better basketball It s awesome to be a group s home-run hitter but sometimes you have to hit for contact Edwards hasn t dependably grasped that concept He did Sunday That mid-range jumper was his last field goal attempt of the encounter The next time down the floor Edwards pressed the blitzing defense and beat the two defenders to the baseline to draw a third Lakers body Just as was the affair in Championship when he hit Reid for an open triple Edwards knew one of his teammates would be open on the wing This time it was Donte DiVincenzo who attacked the Reaves closeout and got to the bucket for an and- layup Two trips later the Lakers again blitzed Edwards who made the simple pass to a nearby Reid Reid got into the lane and dumped it off to Jaden McDaniels who completed an easy and- flush to put Minnesota on top for good He just took over in the second half Had it going Finch commented Super aggressive and I think there was only one really bad shot that he took in the last sparse minutes But other than that I thought he did a great job While Hero Ball carries a negative connotation Minnesota doesn t want to wholly discourage Edwards He has to have the leash to deliver the special runs like he had at the beginning of the fourth quarter to make a comeback doable However those runs often don t win you games but rather put you in a position to do so by executing down the stretch Edwards is beginning to understand how to fill both roles You could see it in his eyes that he was going to make the play He was going to bring us home Finch explained Now he s hitting way more doubles and singles and those plays are timely He s still being aggressive for himself committing the defense I think he has an understanding where the defense is going to be when he starts and when he ends his play The results are showing He s been real meticulous with what he s doing late in the games He s taking his time really sizing up the defense understanding where guys are going to be on the court taking what s there and available Wolves guard Mike Conley announced He had the three going there for a little bit then he started getting downhill making plays So just happy with him being able to seek out different matchups and take advantage Minnesota Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards goes up to shoot as Los Angeles Lakers forward Dorian Finney-Smith center left defends during the second half of Championship of an NBA basketball first-round playoff series Sunday April in Minneapolis AP Photo Abbie Parr Related Articles Dane Mizutani Was that Anthony Edwards taking the torch from LeBron James Another comeback for the Timberwolves this 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