Anthony Edwards has a defining moment for Wolves: 'You don't want to pass the ball' - The Athletic

Edwards took matters into his own hands on Thursday and led the Minnesota Clippers to victory.

LOS ANGELES - Anthony Edwards' eyes were not angry, but clear.

He just hit the latest impossible shot in a season full of them.The clock ticked down, and with two pit bulls on the grill, Edwards ducked his head to head to the corner.It's a place on the court you never want to be, unless you're Anthony Edwards, with legendary defenders like Kris Dunn and Derrick Jones Jr. of the LA Clippers breathing down your neck.

Once in no-man's land, he shouldered Dunn to set up his patented step back, then towered away from Jones and unleashed a free kick that he had no business with.

When he ran out of food at the rim, giving the Minnesota Timberwolves a 92-88 lead with 42.9 seconds left in a game they couldn't lose, Edwards walked right up to coach Chris Finch and left a fiery message.On the previous possession, Finch went to Edwards to move the ball when he drew a foul, an 11-foot jumper that went off the rim.

On the way to the night – no one besides Edwards and Donte DiVincenzo could stand a chance – Edwards made the unilateral decision to decide the fate of the Wolves.

At that point, the Timberwolves weren't the team of Finch or Tim Connelly or Mark Lowry and Alex Rodriguez.At that point, there was no collaboration, no vote to see which was the right path, in a brutal, slow, physical battle against the shorthanded Clippers.

At that time, this was a dictatorship.Edwards was the one who called the shots and pulled them off.

"I tried to shoot it every time I touched it," Edwards said."Some people say I should have passed, but I'm fine. I think we have a better chance to win when I shoot it."

When Edwards shouted towards Finch, it could have been seen as a protest, a tear in the superstar's clothes.However, to know Edwards is to understand that this is not a pitch to deny Finch's authority.Now 24 years old, it was new for him to win the Kobe Bryant trophy awarded to MVP of the All-Star Game here at the Intuit Dome, citing his mentor as saying he no longer worries about the shortcomings of the recent crisis period.

In his sixth season in the league, he has demonstrated a mastery of the moment that rivals anyone in the NBA.Now he has a plan and there is no one to stop him.

"Coach and I have the best relationship," Edwards said with a smile after scoring 31 points in a 94-88 victory."He's right most of the time - 98 percent of the time. He told me to pass the ball tonight and I should have passed it, but instead I shot the ball and it went into the net. The basketball gods were on my side."

Finch didn't bat an eye at the exchange, dismissing a question about it because he didn't even remember it.This speaks to the competitive nature of the two men.It was a minute-long blast from Edwards, and Finch was so focused on finishing the game that it didn't even register with him.

"He has incredible confidence," Finch said."He's fearless at this point. You'd be surprised a lot of guys don't have that. ... The main thing is he has some reps now that he knows he can get. I think before he's even more impressive, and that just helps him calm down the game, read the floor and play under control."

In some ways, both Finch and Edwards are right.Finch is understandably frustrated that Edwards is pushing to move the ball more and the Clippers are making the Timberwolves an ISO heavy offense.

As Finch said, they are at their worst when the ball sticks.Weighed down by Julius Randle's horrific 1 of 10 night, the Wolves shot 43 percent.Before Edwards' game-sealer he was 7 of 25 from 3-point range, outscored 30-19 in the third quarter and had just 23 assists against 13 turnovers.

With Kawhi Leonard, Darius Garland and John Collins, the Clippers were even worse.They shot 40.5 percent from the field, 22 percent from 3 and turned it over 19 times.There was no way this game was going to be as tight as it was.

However, the Timberwolves have a crazy habit of "fighting in the game," as Finch described it, even when facing an inept team or a team buried in the stands.

You can see it in the body language of their two stars, starting with Edwards and Randle.Both rest on defense and turn the offensive line into a series of isolated possessions, an aesthetically unappealing brand of basketball that makes the opponent believe they can win.

This is the 4th game in a row with the team missing at least 2 players.Like the previous three, Thursday's game was close to a consolation until the end.

Edwards is right about that too.On nights like this, when the ball stops moving and nothing seems to be going right, it's understandable that he takes matters into his own hands.If no one else could grab him by the throat, Edwards would do it himself.It didn't matter that he was 2 of 8 in the fourth quarter before that big shot.

"The play before, Finchy, when I took the midranger over two (defenders), he said, 'Pass the ball,'" Edwards said in his Amazon Prime postgame interview. "I told him, 'You don't want him to pass the ball.You want me to shoot her.'"

His eyes sparkled as he said this.Edwards knows when Finch's anger hits him.He also knew that Finch had feelings when he was angry.The two teamed up for just the first 31 games of Edwards' career, and there was a direct discussion of the two-way relationship in their relationship.

Edwards made 12 of 24 shots and met the Clippers' aggressive, strong defense with his energy.While Randle has been out for more than two weeks, Jaden McDaniels and Naz Reed have resolved their differences.Until Ayo Dosumu fully adapts to the new system, Edwards will have to shoulder everything.

"Confidence is half the battle in basketball, if it's 75 percent of the battle," Dosunmu said."Anytime he's shooting, I think he's going to go in."

He worked tirelessly with Wolves assistant Chris Hines on a finishing package that would make him unstoppable.And that's what happened most of the time this season.The higher the difficulty level, the better for him now.

"I'm looking forward to a competitive, two-man (stroke)," he said."I like those kinds of shots. I do those shots all the time."

What separates him from many other people is his endless faith in his ability to save.It's more than confidence.Refusal to even consider the possibility of failure.When the time came, he didn't think the gun wouldn't fall.

"I'm never worried about shots not going in, because the work I've put in, the hours I've put in the gym, I feel like it's always going in," Edwards said."My shot, I work on these positions with C-Hines almost every day, after practice at night. There's no way I'm not going.

There is also danger.One of Edwards' superpowers early in his career was his ability to share the spotlight with his teammates.They believe in him and follow him into battle because he instills faith in them.When the world focuses on him, he usually deflects attention, hyping up his teammates and emphasizing their importance.

Things have changed a bit in the past few weeks.The Timberwolves (37-23) are not playing well.They are up against an opponent they should be able to handle easily.

Edwards grabbed the steering wheel as the car swerved dangerously close to the cliff.Impressive how the stars do and put it all on your shoulders.At the same time, it risks alienating some less vocal colleagues.

The good news is that he helps the team win when they look for traffic.The Wolves are 5-1 in their last six games, 10-4 in their last 14 games and remain in third place in the West behind the Houston Rockets with a big game on Sunday against the fourth-ranked Denver Nuggets.It was ugly, hard… and successful, which is definitely better than the alternative.

Perhaps Kyle Anderson, who is returning to Minnesota after being traded from the Memphis Grizzlies, will help things with his ball handling and defensive versatility.Maybe Randle will come back and be the dominant offensive playmaker in the first two rounds of last year's playoffs.

Maybe McDaniels will look more like the player he was in Portland on Tuesday.Perhaps Finch will find the right buttons to push with lineup combinations and rotations like he has every other season in Minnesota.

Until that happens, Edwards may have to move from Kumbaya to Kobe.If that means the Wolves get a win at home in the first round, so be it.