Minnesota Timberwolves: Best place for Anthony Edwards, and KAT is why

Despite all the controversy surrounding his draft day comments, the Minnesota Timberwolves are the best team for Anthony Edwards, and it’s all thanks to KAT

Oftentimes, when we talk about a player’s fit with a team or vice versa, we talk about the system. For instance, if the team plays a more fast-paced style you don’t want a tall, immobile center (imagine Shaquille O’Neal with the Golden State Warriors). However, when it comes to Anthony Edwards and the Minnesota Timberwolves, it’s a different story.

Occasionally, when we discuss team fit, and what a team will do for a drafted rookie, we’re talking about the maturing, both personally and professionally, of the prospect. This is the case with Anthony Edwards.

If there was anything that Edward’s days at Georgia showed us, it’s that just talent-wise, he would be a benefit to any team that drafted him. However, there were questions surrounding his personality. In a pre-draft interview with ESPN, Edwards came across as being apathetic, closed off, and completely indifferent to the idea of being a top star in the draft. And while that may not be an issue in and of itself, it does raise the issue of his mentality and determination while on the court. If he’s “Just not that into [basketball]” as he claimed in the interview, what’s going to drive him to kick into that third gear when the game gets tight?

However, there’s actually a good, if not somber, reason for this attitude.

At age 14, Edwards’ mother passed away. Later that year, his grandmother died.

The ESPN interview linked above pointed out how Edwards’ mother and grandmother were the adult presence and motivation in his life, and Edwards explained that in a quote, saying, “There are only two people who are going to get my all, but that’s over with.”

Justin Holland, who has worked with Edwards as a trainer since before the number one pick was in high school, thinks that Edwards’ attitude comes from the horrible tragedy he’s been through, and he’s built a wall up to protect himself:

"“It may be for his own sanity, who knows…Maybe that’s how he can keep himself so happy. Once you experience trauma and you understand how to deal with the trauma, and the way you’ve been dealing with the trauma has worked for a certain length of time, it might be best to stay that way.”"

Bubba Edwards, Anthony’s older brother, suggests the same thing:

"“All our life the most supportive and loving people we had was our mom and grandmother. For them both to end up passing, it was just like a strike to the heart. It turns your heart cold.”"

And this is where the Minnesota Timberwolves come in.

It’s fairly well known in NBA circles that Minnesota center Karl-Anthony Towns lost his mother earlier this year due to COVID-19. Since then, Towns has lost six other family members due to the coronavirus pandemic.

“I’ve been through a lot, obviously starting out with my mom,” Towns said in an interview with ESPN last Friday. “Last night I got a call that I lost my uncle. I feel like I’ve been hardened a little bit by life and humbled.”

Edwards and KAT have both experienced loss, but handle it differently

Despite experiencing similar tragedies, Towns and Edwards are responding differently, and this is where the Timberwolves can prove to be the best team for Edwards to be drafted to.

While Edwards responded to tragedy by hardening himself and closing himself off to those who want to help him, Towns says that while the experience has hardened him a little, it’s also humbled him.

Both Towns and Edwards admit that it’s going to be hard to focus on basketball while also dealing with the tragedies that they’ve experienced. However, Towns’ experiences motivated him to reach out to the community and spread his information and story. After the tragedy Towns faced, he began to post stories to his Instagram page detailing his story and what he went through caring for his mother:

"“I didn’t want people to feel the way I felt…I wanted to try to keep them from having the ordeal and the situation I was going through. It just came from a place that I didn’t want people to feel as lonely and upset as I was. I really made that video just to protect others and keep others well-informed, even though I knew it was going to take the most emotionally out of me that I’ve ever been asked to do.”"

Towns’ reaction to his tragedy stems from his maturity, and the team that had been assembled around him helped a lot. Towns said that the team and his teammates, especially new teammate and long-time friend D’Angelo Russell, helped him deal with the tragedy. It’s likely that the team around Edwards will at least attempt to do the same.

If nothing else, having somebody in the Minnesota Timberwolves locker room who has gone through the same things, and who has lost so much just as Edwards has, could help soften the rookie’s walls a little. Having somebody who can sympathize with what Edwards is going through could be a phenomenal asset to the young player as he develops in this league.

At the very least, Towns and Russell–who has also gone through some controversial moments that have attracted a lot of negative attention–can teach the young rookie how to be more media savvy and learn how to say the right thing.

Edwards could have gone to a number of different teams, and if the Minnesota Timberwolves had passed on him due to his apparent attitude problems it could have hindered the young guard’s progress more than helped it.

However, with the guidance of Towns, and the consolation of a team that values culture and togetherness more than anything else, Edwards could shake the negative light of his early career and blossom into a really promising, talented veteran, who would be a valuable aspect to any team.