With six minutes and 15 seconds left in the second quarter Tuesday night, the Minnesota Timberwolves trailed the LA Clippers by 21 points, down 53-32. The Wolves, just 1-2 since losing 2024 All-Star MVP Karl-Anthony Towns for (at least) the remainder of the regular season due to a torn meniscuscould have gone to bed.
But Anthony Edwards wasn’t having that.
The best-known Ant Man this side of Paul Rudd immediately responded to that deficit with a bucket on the next possession, part of a second-quarter scoring spree that led to 12 of his 14 points during of the period – while helping out on another bucket. and missed the shot that led to another tip-in to create more offense — fueling a 23-10 run to allow Minnesota to trail by just eight points before halftime.
In perhaps the most telling sign of what was to come, one of his three even led to Clippers star Paul George posting a “sad Michael Cera gif” in the background:
:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25333827/2079835042.jpg)
Photo by Harry How/Getty Images
But Edwards wasn’t done. He scored 37 points in the game to go with 8 assists and 4 rebounds, the Wolves beating the Clippers 63-37 in the second half. The Edwards-fueled surge helped them build their own 20-point lead before winning by “only” 18, 118-100, driving Los Angeles from their home and demoralizing their fans.
A fan wearing a Clippers cap in section 110 took off his hat after Mike Conley’s final layup and ran up the stairs toward the concourse, shouting, “Terrible! Shit!” It was tough for the fans tonight.
– Justin Russo (@FlyByKnite) March 13, 2024
The game’s highlights are as sensational as you’d expect from one of the NBA’s most electric young guards…
…but Edwards still hadn’t finished flushing the toilet toilet enthusiast Steve Ballmer’s team on national television. He saved his final fry for postgame, telling TNT reporter Stephanie Ready that all he saw there was “a bunch of mismatches.”
Now, to be as fair as possible, the Clippers lost Kawhi Leonard mid-game to back spasms. made him leave the arena in the first trimester. But the Clippers built much of their lead after that point, making it still a pretty bad collapse, at home, against a team they could have. to be expected to face during the 4-5 match of the first round of NBA Playoffs if both teams drop a spot in the standings amid their current injury problems.
Suffice it to say, if this game happens, Anthony Edwards will be more confident than ever, and it will be up to the Clippers to try to change that if they don’t want their final series to take place in the building formerly known as from Staples Center. being yet another first round loss.