NBA Draft Review: Eight Thoughts on Anthony Edwards

Like Draft Night 2009, Ricky Rubio seems to be the hot topic among Timberwolves fans in 2020. That’s not a hit. Rubio has been a fan favorite for a long time and there hasn’t been much fans have been excited about since his departure.

Something lost in all this euphoria is the fact that the Timberwolves had the first overall pick in the draft. As we know, the team chose Georgia point guard Anthony Edwards; it is far from safe, but it is still worth talking about. If that feeling in the pit of your stomach when you think of Edwards as a Timberwolf is nervousness or excitement, you’re feeling something.

The questions surrounding it are extremely valid …

“Will he shoot?”

“Can you defend yourself?”

“Do you even like basketball?”

Shooting and defense are things teams can teach, up to a point, but a player who lacks effort is worrying because that depends solely on them. No veteran assistant coach or mentor is specifically in charge of simply motivating any player. It is up to each player to participate night after night, and not everyone is up for that kind of challenge. While I am cautiously optimistic about Edwards for these reasons, I am eager to see what he does. At 6’5 ”and 230 pounds, he has the physical tools to play defense. His footwork on the lane is pretty good and he seems like a decent player.

The first pick in the 2020 NBA Draft last Wednesday night left me with several thoughts about the pick, so let’s break down the most important ones:

My second season as a credited member of the media was Wiggins’ rookie year. During the roughly 5.5 years since then until the team changed him, I was there for many of their post-game interviews and press days. When people compare the two players for their effort issues, it doesn’t quite add up to me. I can’t claim to know Edwards or Wiggins personally, but their public-facing personalities seem very, very different.

Wiggins was always respectful, but very soft-spoken. Their responses were long enough to answer your question, which is fine. Like Edwards, Wiggins says the right things but rarely endorses those words. Who knows if Edwards will do it, but he’s young enough and should be motivated. Edwards ‘personality seems a bit more daring and natural than Wiggins’.

This is not a blow to any of the players as a person. While they may share a common red flag, it is important to remember that they are different people. While both players are young, Edwards has even more time to improve his reputation.

Photo by Jim Poorten / NBAE via Getty Images

Edwards watches basketball, but not casually

Earlier this week, Edwards made headlines for saying “can’t watch basketball” and continued to rave about his enjoyment of soccer. It’s easy to be surprised by these comments, but the more you read the article and watch him break down his own movie, you see what he means.

In a breakdown of the movie with ESPN, you can see how Edwards can recall various scan reports from the top of his head. Identify why what he did was good or bad and what he could have done differently. You don’t learn these things without spending your time watching movies. If you just mean that you’d rather watch Thursday Night Football over Inside the NBA on Thursday, that’s fine.

Despite not watching much basketball for fun, Edwards clearly impressed the top brass of the Timberwolves during private practice, as this shows. latest (and best) reports from our own Jon Krawczynski:

For now, those are just possibilities, the kind of illusion at best that permeates draft rooms across the league this time of year. But more than anything Edwards did in that practice gym during the individual visit, it was a decision he made that really caught Rosas’ attention. When training began, Edwards’ trainer included some shooting exercises with mixed mid-range jumpers.

“He stops training and says to the coach, ‘Minnesota’s system is different. We’re not taking those pictures today, ‘”Rosas said. “That was just him, spontaneously. Understand what we are doing here. Rate what we are doing. That is what excites us. He is a young boy who needs a lot of support, needs a lot of development and needs more experience. But he is an incredibly intelligent young man who understands what is happening and is willing to work to be a very special player in this league. “

Edwards also likes basketball

I am aware that these last two thoughts are not comforting reactions to a team’s draft pick. It is quite possible that they will be proven wrong over time.

One thing was clear from Edwards’ post-draft interviews: He has been in the gym working on his game. a lot. He said that once the quarantine came, he could fully focus on basketball. One area Edwards said he has worked on is his ability to catch and shoot.

Tom Crean, his college coach, added that while Edwards can’t sit quietly and watch basketball for hours on end, you’ll likely find him in the gym for hours working on his game. Of all the players Crean has coached throughout his career, he says Edwards was one of the few who would return to the gym after games.

Obviously the proof will be in the pudding here. It is clear when someone has or has not done the necessary work. Hopefully, the extra time Edwards has had the past eight months to work on his game will become apparent over time.

One of Edwards’ heroes is Jimmy Butler, who once spent a month carrying a soccer ball around and even played ball with Kyle Rudolph at US Bank Stadium when he arrived in Minnesota. No one questions Butler’s dedication because we see his effort and we know he is working on his game. However, when people think you prefer to play soccer and you don’t care, it’s going to take time to get over that reputation.

Edwards’ honesty is appreciated but …

One amazing thing about the draft process is how often Edwards admits that he hasn’t always realized his potential because his level of effort has been inconsistent. On Wednesday he told the assembled media that he knows the importance of giving everything every time he is on the court and that is what the greats do.

Honesty and self-awareness are nice, but it’s surprising that your media coach hasn’t instilled in you not to casually confess that you don’t always try. The reputation is already there and repeating it doesn’t seem to help the player or even the team. Instead, talking about the things you do to disprove those negative beliefs could be beneficial.

Edwards actually wants be in Minnesota

This may come as a surprise, but most of these prospects didn’t grow up watching Kevin Love in a Timberwolves uniform dreaming of playing at Target Center. However, many gamers warm (no pun intended) with the city once they have lived here for a while.

This is not the case with Edwards, who stated many times that he is ready to enter the building and get to work. Edwards specifically mentioned Karl-Anthony Towns, D’Angelo Russell, Josh Okogie, Malik Beasley, Jarrett Culver and Ricky Rubio as reasons for his enthusiasm.

It appears that Rosas and Ryan Saunders courted Edwards in the interview process, likening the meetings to college recruiting. The team laid out their vision for Edwards year after year and what they thought he could do. Being able to visualize the team’s plan energized and motivated him even more, he said.

Edwards enters with less pressure

Typically, the first overall pick bears the burden of being the face of the franchise. That won’t be the case for Edwards with Towns and even Russell in Minnesota. There’s no question that Edwards will continue to have high expectations that, fairly or unfairly, he will come up with his draft spot. As long as he and the team improve as the season progresses, it is likely to be a successful season for the team.

Can Edwards play forward?

It was the summer before Derrick Williams’ second NBA season. Williams was telling anyone who would listen that he was going to play No. 3 or forward next season. Then-coach Rick Adelman was asked on television what he thought of Williams playing in # 3 next season.

Adelman’s response? Something like “How should I know if you’ve never played the position before?” In a way that sounded like “I don’t know why he’s so confident in this when he’s never done it and it seems like a bad idea.”

Bringing this back to Edwards, he felt confident he could play 1-3 if necessary. I didn’t see enough Bulldogs basketball to know where Edwards played on the wing, but that’s college, and the NBA will be a different story, at least immediately.

Edwards definitely led the offense when the team’s starting point guard went to the bench, but Adelman may have left another relevant nugget of wisdom for Edwards who already wants to branch out. Adelman was adamant in Williams’ rookie year in not moving him too much and playing him primarily in a position to focus his development.

Wolves can do the same with Edwards and build confidence in one role before advancing to another.

Edwards can imagine a good match with Towns and Russell

You almost always want to select the best available player rather than fit. The Timberwolves were lucky to select a player who could both be the top pick overall. This could save the team (and the fan base) a lot of pain.

Edwards spoke enthusiastically about his relationship between Towns and Russell. He says his time in Georgia taught him to play off the ball, a skill he will likely need in Minnesota. Crean made this a point of emphasis from day one and it can certainly pay off for his former recruit.

He’s already imagining pick ‘n’ roll and pick ‘n’ pop plays with Russell and working as a cutter with Towns. This is a great thing, as there can never be too many ball handlers. Being able to play off the ball reduces the chance of the Timberwolves getting stuck in the backcourt.

We won’t have to wait long to see Edwards

Hope is never more abundant than on media day or after the draft. It’s wise not to get carried away with sweet-sounding dates that aren’t much more than lip service. The good news is that we will see Edwards on the court sooner rather than later with training camp starting in less than two weeks.

Certainly there are red flags with Edwards, but there are also many reasons why I like the choice. While it sounds strange to say about a No. 1 overall pick, Edwards was really the home run swing in the 2020 draft.