After a five-game loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder in the Western Conference Finals, the Minnesota Timberwolves are watching the NBA Finals from home. While the series wasn`t particularly competitive, it highlighted areas for the team to improve upon for the upcoming season to potentially reach this stage again.
The offseason presents significant roster decisions for the Wolves. Nickeil Alexander-Walker is an unrestricted free agent, while Julius Randle and Naz Reid hold player options before potentially becoming free agents next summer. It`s shaping up to be an expensive period for Minnesota as they work to construct a roster that can surpass this season`s performance. Despite falling short of a championship this year, expectations remain high for the next season, and Wolves coach Chris Finch has already outlined what he wants his star player, Anthony Edwards, to improve.
Finch detailed specific areas for Edwards` growth: “For areas of improvement for him, just going to be along the think the game route,” Finch stated. He continued, “I think he`s got to also figure out a bit of a closing package, we have to help him there. What shots and places on the floor can he repeatedly get to. Foul drawing, I think you see right now in the league, you see what gets rewarded. You need to kind of lean into that a little bit, even though it`s not necessarily how he likes to play. But it seems to be effective.”
Part of Finch`s response seems to carry residual frustration from the series against Oklahoma City. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was frequently discussed regarding his free throw attempts, and the officiating appeared to visibly upset the Wolves. While SGA is among the league`s best at getting to the line, the perceived issue, which Finch subtly complains about, isn`t necessarily “foul baiting” – a tactic used by several players – but rather the officials consistently rewarding this behavior.
Although Edwards may not draw fouls precisely like SGA, he still ranked fifth in free throw attempts this past season. A key element of Edwards` game involves driving hard to the basket, naturally initiating contact, often leading to powerful dunks. His approach is not typically focused on methodically trying to earn a foul call in the way Gilgeous-Alexander might, although the ability to draw fouls effectively is a valuable, high-IQ tool in a player`s skillset. Finch`s message appears to be that unless the league makes rule changes this offseason to limit certain foul-drawing tactics, Edwards might need to adapt and incorporate more of these skills if he wants to thrive in the current NBA landscape – effectively, if you can`t beat them, join them.
Jasper Hawthorne