“Anthony Edwards needs to step up” – Stephen A. on Lakers vs Timberwolves without Karl-Anthony Towns

“Anthony Edwards needs to step up” – Stephen A. on Lakers vs Timberwolves without Karl-Anthony Towns

Wolves visit the Lakers right here on ESPN t- wolves hovering around the top of the West even without Carl Anthony towns he is set to undergo surgery on that torn meniscus early this upcoming week but Anthony Edwards wow carrying the load on Pace to be the first

Minnesota player ever to average 255 and five for a season the Lakers they’ve looked like a playin team LeBron James is nursing that sore ankle he’s questionable for tonight how about D’Angelo Russell stepping up for La including a season High 44 and their win over the Bucks last Friday the NBA

Countdown crew has more on tonight hey welcome inside our Los Angeles Studios the Lakers and the Timberwolves they tip off this evening and the Timberwolves they sit at the top of the western standings whereas the Lakers are firmly fighting for a place to even stay in the play in but let’s

Say that this does come to fruition we get a first round match up between these two the Lakers are 0 and2 so far against the Timberwolves this season how do you see that series shaking out Ste well that depends if you’re telling me that Carl Anthony towns is going to still be

Injured I’m going to tell you the lak is going to send them home if you tell me that Carl Anthony towns is going to be healthy and back playing for the Minnesota Timberwolves I’m going to pick the Minnesota Timberwolves to beat the Los Angeles Lakers in the first round I

Think he’s a key to that series not only can he score but he contributes to the sides on the front line with Rudy go which is the one thing to offset whatever the Lakers are going to throw in your direction most teams that the a Lakers are able to beat is because they

Can engage in Bully ball yes they’ve been making some three-point shots and what have you Anthony Davis and Lebron James playing like all stars D’Angelo Russell having big nights but in the end their ability to play bully ball is what propels them you can’t do that against

Minnesota you’re not going to beat them and they won’t be able to do that if both call Anthony towns and Rudy go I would love to disagree with my dear friend over here but I’m not not with a word of that because I agree with you

Completely down the line so I’m going to take it to the next step Anthony Edwards thank you okay and the Lakers what do the Lakers have a problem with we saw have a in the perimeter speed and quickness F knows and so that is what he brings in

Abundance he’s averaging 29 Points a game against the Lakers they have no CH chance and and and he now has had the kind of games you know people can look at the fourth quarter he had after the heroic night and say oh he was ofer he

Was ofer with a bum wrist having fallen on the ground and hit his head and most people would have been engaged in Old dnp injuries and Anthony Edwards was out there for his team and the Lakers in a world of trouble if Carl Anthony towns is out there cuz they

Are going to have to negate that and Anthony Edwards can run him up I’m just looking at the Minnesota I’m at the timber Woods defense right anchored by Rudy goldber then you have McDaniels on the wing you have a a vet Mike coner you have Nas Reed coming in off the bench is

Spread throughout and and I think with or without call Anthony towns the the timberwoods will win that Series in six games in my opinion right LeBron James is not going to be 100% or 80% healthy because he’s going to have to fight through pain when he’s

Dealing with with the ankle or the sore foot so I’m looking at the athleticism the Lakers struggle in that area and I don’t really trust D’Angelo Russell like that in the postseason I’m sorry I just don’t oh he has he’s been a no he’s been

A virtual Nosh show there was an APB out for him in the Western Conference finals last year I think the other thing that we have to add is that you know I don’t know if you noticed this mikica but there’s a difference between the Kendrick Perkins with the turtleneck and

The gold chain around his compared to the Kendrick perers with the tie on looking all and like a politician D say somebody look like they running for office I’m just saying chapter of the Lakers and the Timberwolves the third installation and I approve this message

Back to you guys from no LeBron James we have the Lakers facing off uh against the Milwaukee Bucks in the second game of our double header here on ESPN when you look at the matchups CH that the Lakers could potentially dry in those top four seeds in the Western Conference

In a seven game series in the playoffs is there any team that you like the Lakers chances against match what mean question is there I feel like any team other than the Denver Nuggets the Lakers will feel good about because if you look at the OK yeah well the Clippers too the

OKC Thunder right they they have issues interior with the front Court that’s where LeBron James scores his points that’s where ad is right now we just follow the news the last two days of Carl Anthony towns being back you know out so you look at that match up too

They might see that as favorable and I’ll say this as much as the Lakers are locked into the playing right now because you know below them is 10th and there’s like a six game span from there and above them they need to win like

Four games to try to get out of the play into the playoffs I don’t want to play LeBron James in a you know first round series we’ve seen what he does for big games now I am worried about his health right being out tonight that’s going to

Be difficult to see if he’s going to be able to keep it going but the Lakers I don’t think they fear anyone if as long as they have their guys out there maybe except the nuggets and probably a little bit the Clippers I mean everyone fears

The Nuggets yeah as they should right I mean look I think when you look at the Lakers they’re not necessarily constructed as a great regular season team to do that with the players they have over an 82 game schedule is going to be difficult but in the playoffs when

You have Anthony Davis LeBron James and the way that they can play defense when they all are collected and they’re on a string they’re a tough out for anybody but that interior presence with those two guys is very difficult except against the teams you mentioned Denver

Dougas the Minnesota to tber wol yeah I agree with the with the panel here in the sense of I don’t think they fear anybody except for the Denver Nuggets um I also don’t want to play against them fully loaded so if you even have to take

A couple steps back here cuz you know you can’t really climb the ladder in order to be healthy cuz if there’s one thing at the end of the day what you want to be going into these things is healthy you want to be in and you want

To be healthy and after that you know what you roll the bones and you go out there and play but I don’t want to play the that’s the dance they’re playing with LeBron James right now right right this is just normal wear and tear on a 39-year-old ankle that he’s had issues

With the entire season and he’s just got to pick his spots in a game where if you’re not feeling 100% then maybe you give it this game and stay and and be healthy for Sunday against Minnesota but that’s that’s the place where they are cuz they don’t they don’t have any games

To waste here and yet they have to pick their spots withk you the Los Angeles Lakers have the eighth toughest remaining schedule and this stretch which we’ve said has been a home stand all 11 games they have at home with the of the Kings going up north Milwaukee Minnesota Sacramento Golden State that’s

All loading for them so not having LeBron James even though they can weather the storm for one night it’s going to be hard moving forward to try to build some momentum is averaging a career best 26.4 points a night that’s on Pace to be the highest in Timberwolves history so not Kevin

Garnett not Kevin Love Not cat but Anthony Edwards Becky what message did aunt say send last night I think he sent the message that I am more than willing to be the man while they wait this time for cat to heal up and it it’s the desire the Killer Instinct is what I

Have loved to see uh love to see out of ant and at actually at the end of the day when you’re building an organization and you’re have You’re Building these pieces to see this young man kind of turn into the man um and and rise up at

The most important time the most crucial time coming into these playoffs I couldn’t be more excited for the Timberwolves but also ant specifically yeah we see Anthony Edwards raise his game without Carl Anthony towns before we dive into that a little bit Chan just how serious in is this injury for for

Cat Ramona what more can you tell us well look when he had this injury you have a choice it’s a miniscus injury and you can say all right try to play through it and see how it goes and you never know if it can get worse or you

Have a set back and then you have to have surgery or you can have the surgery now and have a pretty good idea that four and six weeks he will be back so that puts you on a timeline right for the start of the playoffs if all goes

Well from the surgery next that’s going to happen early next week and and then when he gets into the rehab cycle see what we’re witnessing right now with Anthony Edwards is I know you guys know the book Call of the Wild right a domestic dog goes crazy in adverse

Circumstances and brings out his best self this is the dog this is the wolf that they’ve been waiting for and I know it’s a tough situation without Carl Anthony towns but how good has he been I think a lot of people were like oh he did this great for one game no actually

In the three games without Carl Anthony towns and Edwards is averaging 37.3 points and no losses now I don’t think it’s going to be those numbers for the foreseeable future the month or some change that keeps coming without cat but still he’s willing to take on that

Assignment of trying to keep the ship afloat and to me that’s the most impressive thing he was questionable coming into this game but knowing Anthony Edwards he he is available to play in this one after rolling that ankle like we saw in the last game but now we’re marching towards the

Postseason the Timberwolves are trying to secure that seating so they can have homecourt advantage through the playoffs just how important is that for them Ramona I think is really important but I also think you I talked to Chris Finch the head coach of the Timberwolves and

He said you know this isn’t ideal for us right now Carl Carlon Town’s obviously a key performer for them over the last of the last decade that he’s been there but they have 60 games from last year where Carl was out to draw on they have a

Lineup with a lot of optionality you have Nas Reed who can also stretch the floor they have Kyle Anderson slow-mo who can give him a different look and play more in that as a point forward if he’s out there so I think as much as

This is not ideal for them at this point in in the season they also are built to handle this and get to the playoffs in good shape yeah Ramona I want to dive into that optionality because missing Carl Anthony towns means you’re missing 22 points per game and a 42% three-point

Shooter so as we dive into the tape and look at what they’re missing it’s really someone that is able to space the floor we’ve all said that he wants to be known as the best big man shooting the ball in the history of basketball while he’s shooting 42% everyone remembers the

Allstar game 50 right but still he has been consistent and what does what does that allow an Edwards to go to work just by simply spacing the floor now who is inserted into the op you know optionality through the rotations it’s Nas Reed right there what does Nas shoot

He shoots 41% from threes half of his shots are threes so as much as they’re missing Carl Anthony towns this team was actually built by the same man who built the Denver Nuggets Tim Connelly and it was built through the lens of Defense their offense is something that they’ve

Seen as a work in progress but it seems like they are built to also withstand something like this based off of their depth on their roster Raz re was really a luxury for them to resign and to extend him and a lot of teams don’t have

That kind of luxury to have that money to go into the into the tax the way they did but this is why you do that this is why you have that like now look we’re talking to the super Co the coach over there at the super team with Las Vegas

Aces optionality for days well you always like your number one and number two options best you got number three over there got number four exactly you know what players players always win the game at the end of the day but I will say this and Chan you hit on it a little

Bit why they I think they’ll be able to withstand this kind of time withell for spee Spee foreign spee spee fore speee done ready for spee foreign foreign Spech foree fore oh oh oh for speee spee Foree for foreign spee spee okay foreign foreign Speech spe

“Anthony Edwards needs to step up” – Stephen A. on Lakers vs. Timberwolves without Karl-Anthony Towns