SALT LAKE CITY – Anthony Edwards has had a few highlight-reel dunks during his career. He had more unsuccessful attempts and he even got injured several times during the highlight play.
With the Wolves lacking size Monday night due to injuries sidelining their top three centers, Edwards took it upon himself to play above the rim, soaring over and over Utah’s John Collins to can -to be the best highlight of his career. Technically, it might not have been a dunk, because Edwards just threw the ball with such force through the hoop.
It was all part of another masterpiece from Edwards, who led the short-handed Wolves to a 114-104 victory over the Jazz.
Edwards finished with 32 points, including 25 in the second half after the Wolves lost Naz Reid to a head injury. Edwards also added seven rebounds and seven assists.
The Wolves were already at centers Karl-Anthony Towns (knee), Rudy Gobert (rib) and lost Reid to that head injury late in the first half after Reid scored 17 points. The Wolves therefore opted for a small formation coming out of halftime featuring Kyle Anderson in the center. They turned a six-point halftime deficit into a four-point lead as Edwards started with 12 points in the third quarter. He went up for the dunk over Collins, who came out to be evaluated for a concussion, at 5 minutes, 29 seconds. Edwards left the field momentarily after appearing to injure his left hand on the play, but remained in the game.
They needed all his efforts against a Utah team that received some reinforcements absent from Saturday’s meeting, such as Lauri Markkanen (22 points) and Collins (11 points). Behind Edwards, the Wolves built a small lead in the fourth quarter and gave up on the defensive end after a slow start. A three from Edwards capped a 12-1 run that gave the Wolves a 100-91 lead, their largest of the night. Edwards then hit back-to-back buckets from midrange to put the Wolves ahead 107-99.
Jordan McLaughlin added 11 off the bench and was 3-for-3 from three-point range. Nickeil Alexander-Walker had 13.
The Wolves stumbled while the Jazz, who saw the return of Markkanen and John Collins to the lineup, managed to have a lot of beauty offensively. The Wolves committed seven turnovers in the first, which led to 10 points for Utah. The Wolves were also a little sluggish defensively as Utah opened a 37-25 lead after one thanks to 61% shooting.
The Wolves came back with a unit of Mike Conley, McLaughin, Anderson, Alexander-Walker and Reid in the second. They played a big role in a 20-6 Wolves run that helped them tie the game. A fadeaway by Jaden McDaniels knotted it at 46 before the Jazz took a 58-52 halftime lead. The Edwards broke out again in the second half.
[Bullet] Gobert spoke to the media before the game and said he would try to make his return “soon.”
“Right now the pain level is getting better day by day, but it’s still not enough for me to be able to be myself and help the team,” Gobert said. “Which is never fun, but I hope it’s just a matter of days.”
Gobet was also asked if he would miss a playoff game for the birth of his child, who is expected to arrive later this spring. He said he would.
“It was clear to me from the beginning.”
