The Minnesota Timberwolves were down at halftime during their Game 4 tilt with the Steph Curry-less Golden State Warriors in their Western Conference Semifinals series. After getting dominated on the glass in the first half, Edwards delivered a halftime speech that sparked his team to a 117-110 win to go up 3-1 in the series.
“I told them, ‘We only got two wins,'” Edwards said of his speech after the game, according to ESPN. “I’ve never seen a series end 2-1. I told them we have to get two more wins and right now we’re playing like we already got four wins.
“We had to figure it out because if we would have kept playing like that, we would have lost tonight.”
Timberwolves head coach Chris Finch also noted the impact Edwards had during halftime.
“He was one of the guys that was most vocal at halftime,” Finch said. “[He] realized what was going on out there and we needed to be better. It started with him, really, and setting the tone.”
Edwards’ teammate Julius Randle was not shy in his praise of Edwards and the impact he has on the floor.
“I know it starts with us, but it’s Ant,” Randle said. “Ant’s the brightest star in the room … He has that ‘it’ factor. For me, I always try to tell him to go be great.”
With the Wolves ascending, there’s no reason to think they can’t get over the hump this seaons after falling to the Dallas Mavericks in the Western Conference Semifinals last season.
About Qwame Skinner
Qwame Skinner has loved both writing and sports his entire life. In addition to his sports coverage at Comeback Media, Qwame writes novels, and his debut; The First Casualty, an adult fantasy, is out now.