INDIANAPOLIS — Anthony Edwards glanced down at the box score following the Timberwolves' 129-120 victory over the Pacers, and the first thing that caught his eye was his free-throw shooting: 4-for-7.
"Damn. 4-for-7 from the free-throw line. Could've had a 40-ball," Edwards said. "It's all good, though. Got the win."
That the Wolves did, and Edwards was a large reason why. Shooting, leaping and driving on what he says is a freshly-recovered left knee, Edwards refused to let the Wolves give away Sunday's game, though they tried to at various points.
He scored 37 points, had five rebounds, four assists, four steals and never let the Pacers retake the lead in the second half even after Indiana cut an 18-point Wolves lead to two.
The bounce he had was evident, and he said the bounce in his personality is back after playing through the left knee tendinopathy for the past six weeks.
"When I was dealing with that month and a half, I was super depressed, talking to my girl, just … mad at the world," Edwards said. "Now I'm back to 100%, I'm back to being a happy kid again."
Edwards' big day began after the starters had a slow stretch to begin the game. The Wolves fell behind 27-17, with Edwards coming out early to rest so he could play with the second unit later in the quarter.
That group played the best basketball of the afternoon for the Wolves. They turned that 10-point deficit into a 56-44 lead in the second. Edwards attacked the rim on seemingly every possession, and it got him and his teammates rolling. That stretch included one of Edwards' typically thunderous dunks as Indiana's Buddy Hield just tried to get out of the way. That, Edwards said, was evidence of how good he's feeling.
