The Minnesota Timberwolves and the NBA World were stunned with the Anthony Edwards injury news as the All Star will be out of action for about 2 months. Anthony Edwards will undergo an arthroscopic procedure on his ailing right knee. This is a minor setback for a major comeback as the Wolves will be looking for others to step up in his absence. The first test for the Timberwolves without Anthony Edwards will be tonight against the Golden State Warriors and Stephen Curry.

Coming into this game, the Minnesota Timberwolves needed to figure out who was going to take on the role of being the leader. They brought in LaMelo Ball from Charlotte in these very moments if they needed somebody to step up for Anthony Edwards. LaMelo Ball has been electric for the Minnesota Timberwolves early in the season and they needed that type of effort tonight against Golden State. The one issue that has been reoccurring for LaMelo early in the season has been the foul trouble as he hasn’t been able to get into a rhythm of the game. LaMelo started off hitting a couple of great threes. That looked good but once you get into that issue of foul trouble it’s tough to get back into the flow as he finished with 8 points on the night. LaMelo was able to get his teammates involved as he added 8 assists, but had 6 turnovers to add along with that and that’s not a recipe for success. The Warriors were making it tough on LaMelo getting in the passing lanes but he will grow from this as this was the first game without Anthony Edwards.

Both Jonathan Kuminga and Jaden McDaniels stepped up in big ways tonight for the Minnesota Timberwolves when they needed people to step up. Jonathan Kuminga finish with 20 points on the night and was able to get to a spot against his old teammates. Jaden McDaniels had 19 points on the night, but it felt like he could’ve had more if he was able to exploit that mismatch against Stephen Curry playing defense on him. There were times where McDaniels was open, but the ball just didn’t get to them, and those were lost opportunities that could’ve been maximized for the Timberwolves to make the most of every possession. It’s looking like these two guys are going to need to play huge minutes until Anthony Edward gets back and that’s exactly what it looked like tonight. Jaden McDaniels had a tough night as he had to guard Stephen Curry and he had to create offense for the Timberwolves as the number one priority which he hasn’t seen or done in a while. It’s tough to ask somebody to guard the best shooter in the world and be able to score on the other end when your team really needs it but if somebody can do it, McDaniels is that guy.

Ayo Dosunmu was inserted into the starting lineup with Edwards out for an extended period of time. Ayo looked good finishing with 17 points but he didn’t get to unlock his game completely as he flourishes more off rebounds and putting pressure on the defense. Ayo being in the starting lineup helped Minnesota but that meant that someone had to step up off the bench and that someone was Terrence Shannon Jr. We were wondering who would step up and it was TJ Shannon as he came with some energy and aggressiveness that Minnesota needed when they made their come back in the 2nd half. Shannon Jr has what it takes to make a huge impact on this team and he showed with the opportunity he can shine bright. Tonight he had 19 points off the bench and was putting pressure on the Warriors defenders all night long. The Wolves might of lost tonight but Shannon Jr showed he can fill that void on the 2nd unit to produce at an elite level. Joan Beringer had an impactful night as well while Rudy struggled which usually never happens. Joan had 7 points, 9 rebounds, and 2 assists compared to Gobert’s 1 point and 4 rebounds. Beringer brought that energy and has a motor that doesn’t stop and once that 1-2 punch with him and Gobert is consistent every night they will be special to watch.

Stephen Curry put on the show tonight finishing with 44 points with 6 three-pointers made. It seemed like anything that he put up was going in and there was nothing that the Timberwolves defenders could do about it. Curry looked like he was playing back in 2014 when he was at the peak of his prime and that’s exactly what the Golden State Warriors wanted to see from him tonight against Minnesota. That’s no knock against the greatest shooter of all time. It’s just the fact that his age is getting up there, but he still can put up 40 points when he needs to just like tonight and it was special to watch. It didn’t matter who was in his face at times. It looked like it was just Steph Curry in the basketball hoop. The Warriors created a lot of confusion for the Minnesota Timberwolves when it came to people going over and under screens for Steph Curry tonight, and they spelled trouble as soon as he saw one go through the hoop. Yaxel Lendeborg is going to be special for Golden State as he’s been putting up big numbers already in his rookie campaign tonight he had 26 points and 8  rebounds. He will be a huge part of the future in Golden State in tonight he put on display that he’s not scared of anybody when it comes to playing the game of basketball as he was a complete dog in the paint.

The Minnesota Timberwolves on the two game, losing streak, and the Golden State Warriors got their second win of the season in a game that Stephen Curry reminded everybody that he still got what it takes to put his team on his back.

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