In today's NBA playoffs, the Minnesota Timberwolves lost 107-115 at home to the Denver Nuggets, which turned the series to a 2-2 draw. At key moments in the game, the Nuggets showed great strength on both the defensive and offensive ends, forcing the Timberwolves into trouble.
The Timberwolves' Anthony Edwards played well in the game, hitting 16 of 25 shots in 45 minutes, including five of eight three-pointers and 7 of eight free throws, for 44 points, five rebounds, five assists, two steals and one block. Despite his excellent performances, he was ultimately unable to help the team to victory.
After this game, Anthony Edwards has scored 40+ points 4 times in the playoffs before the age of 22 (including the age of 22). This achievement puts him in second place in NBA history, surpassing superstars such as LeBron James, Kevin Durant, and Amare Stoudemire. The only one ahead of him is Luka Doncic, who has scored 40+ points in the playoffs five times before the age of 22.
Here's the ranking of 40+ playoff games for 22 years old and before:
Luka Doncic — 5 times
Anthony Edwards — 4 times
Kevin Durant — 3 times
LeBron James — 3 times
Amare Stoudemire — 3 times
This statistic is yet another testament to Edwards' scoring prowess in the playoffs, and it also gives us a glimpse of his endless possibilities in the future. As a key player for the Timberwolves, Edwards has shown the potential to become an NBA superstar.
While Anthony Edwards showed great scoring ability in the game, the rest of the Timberwolves didn't perform as well on the offensive end. In the whole game, except for Edwards's 16 of 25 shots, the other players made only 23 of 57 shots, and the shooting rate was only 40.4%. That kind of performance left Edwards isolated on the offensive end and unable to get enough support.