Anthony Edwards posterized Chet Holmgren. (Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
This week, we learned that the 3-point shooting event will not be part of the All-Star weekend; Sacramento has signed free agent Markelle Fultz to deal with its PG situation; and Kyrie Irving delivered a huge performance that Dallas desperately needed. Some other Fantasy basketball stories we’re following include…
Minnesota Seeking Last Season’s Form
After winning 56 games in 2023-24, the Minnesota Timberwolves didn’t exactly bust out of the gate this season, so small wonder the team’s 8-10 start elicited such a reaction from star Anthony Edwards, who is known for being quite outspoken — sometimes to a fault.
However, things have turned around for Minnesota since then (23-15), and after an impressive win over OKC on Thursday, it’s moved to six games over .500 heading into the break and is keeping pace with the Clippers for the final automatic playoff spot in the West. The win over the Thunder was even more eye opening given that Edwards – despite a recent offensive surge — was held to just 23 points.
In the previous four games, he had scored at least 28, including three straight with 41 or more, so yes, he’s been red hot. Okay, so Edwards managed just five total buckets and shot poorly from downtown, but Tuesday wasn’t all bad. He did sink double digit free throws for the fourth time in five games, plus he did this…
Edwards’ touches have risen steadily over the last few weeks, and although he’s not shooting as well as he did last season, his scoring has risen again as it has every season he’s been in the league. When Minnesota took this dude first overall in 2020, we knew he was extremely athletic and strong, and was busting with potential. The biggest knock on him was that he lacked leadership skills, and the whole shooting his mouth off from time to time has backed that up, but there’s little to argue about when it comes to his performance. In fact, just four players have more points per game than Edwards this season, so small wonder Adidas just launched this new pair of shoes.
Trae Young On Fire in February
After slumping to 36 wins last season (and missing the playoffs for the first time since 2019-20), the Atlanta Hawks hit the break with 26 already, good enough for eighth place in the East, just a game behind Orlando and only three back of the last automatic playoff spot.
Atlanta has been losing ground on sixth place Detroit in the last couple of weeks, but fortunately, none of the teams competing for play-in slots have gained any traction. Maybe they’re doing better in eBasketball? You can check that out on FanDuel.
As usual, Trae Young is the man for the Hawks, leading the team in scoring and assists. He did everything in his power to will Atlanta to a win Wednesday, but it ultimately lost in a triple overtime thriller. Still, Young was studly with a massive double-double of 38 points and 19 dimes. It was a big time bounce back effort after he was held to just 19 points and eight helpers on Monday.
Young’s PT is up in February, and he’s responding with his most productive month of the season, more than justifying his All-Star invite. For the third straight season, his touches have dropped (not surprising considering he’s never shot it worse), but his boards have bounced back and he’s never looked better as a distributor with a career-best and NBA-leading 11.5 assists per game.
Young has had a pretty damned good career so far, sometimes even elite, but what if he had another star to play with? Some believe he’d take it to a whole new level.
Waiver Wire Pick of the Week
Kessler Edwards, SF, Dallas Mavericks (ESPN: 0.7 per cent; CBS: 2 per cent): Three and a half years ago, we recommended Edwards while he was a rookie with Brooklyn, and it was a solid choice as he cranked up the offense that month before slowly fading and then finishing strong. He’s struggled to gain traction since and has bounced around a bit, but suddenly has a chance to offer some short-term value with Dallas missing several key bigs. Edwards finds himself starting as a tremendously undersized centre, but that still means opportunity and on Thursday, he just missed a double-double while adding three treys and three assists. He’s only on a two-way deal with the Mavs and he’s never a been a player to get a lot of touches, but this is his 15 minutes, so take advantage while you can.
RotoRob Tune of the Day
American jazz flautist Bobbi Humphrey was born Barbara Ann Humphrey. In 1973, she released her third album, Blacks and Blues, which contained the hidden gem “Chicago, Damn,” a tune that helped usher in my love for jazz funk.