10 Things the Minnesota Timberwolves Cannot Live Without

Feb 7, 2023 - 2:00 PM

A week ago, Minnesota Timberwolves All-Star star guard, Anthony Edwards, became the latest celebrity to be featured on GQ Sports 10 Essentials video segment. These six-minute video highlights various items that they “can’t live without.” Ant is the latest of three current Wolves players to show off their favorite things (D’Angelo Russell was on the Brooklyn Nets at the time of his video).

Check out their individual video segments below:

Anthony Edwards (2023)

1. Yeezy slides
2. Ant Jr.
3. Chester’s Hot Fries
4. Bowling ball
5. Photo of mom
6. Chain
7. Deck of cards
8. Speaker
9. Mercedes Benz
10. Fitted hats

Karl-Anthony Towns (2020)

1. The Prophet
2. Laptop
3. Xbox
4. Cologne
5. Jewelry
6. Mac the Teddy Bear
7. Beats headphones
8. Beats pill
9. Phone(s)
10. Wallet

D’Angelo Russell (2018)

1. Hoodie
2. Book
3. Tom Ford cologne
4. Jordans
5. Sunglasses
6. Hat
7. Angel cologne
8. Laptop
9. Bag
10. Deck of cards

Aren’t these the most personal and revealing lists? Maybe not, but lists are still always fun. It has been quite a rollercoaster season filled with both positive and negative storylines. Let’s focus on the fun stuff of this season, so here are...

10 Things the Wolves Cannot Live Without

Photo by David Berding/Getty Images

1. Ant’s Potential

It’s pretty simple. The Wolves are going to go as far as Ant can take them. He has been the most stabilizing force for Minnesota in a rocky season, to say the least. It feels like every three months, we see a new wrinkle to his game. Playmaking. Isolation defense. Mid-range game. Post game. It feels like we are running out of boxes for Ant to check. In the meantime, the Timberwolves are here for the ride.

Photo by David Sherman/NBAE via Getty Images

2. KAT’s Loyalty

Karl-Anthony Towns is diligently working towards a return after being out for the past two months due to injury. When he does, he’ll restart the integration process to yet another iteration of the Wolves. From the “Young Wolves” core with Wiggins & LaVine, to the “Timberbulls” era with Thibs & Jimmy, to even the “Bahama Wolves,” Towns has been the lone carryover. His dedication to the franchise has proven invaluable, as superstars such as Kawhi Leonard, James Harden (twice), or Kyrie Irving (thrice) have proven less dedication to their teams. Towns is currently second all-time in total Win Shares (68.3) for the Timberwolves and if things go his way, it’s not unrealistic that he one day eclipses the Kevin Garnett’s franchise record (139.8).

Photo by Sam Forencich/NBAE via Getty Images

3. Slow Mo’s Versatility

Some players think the game beautifully. Some players play the game beautifully. Kyle Anderson does both. His cerebral play has been one of the consistent bright spots all year. The most astounding part of his play is that he does multiple productive things on both ends of the court. There was a stretch where he was assigned as the primary defender on Nikola Jokić while operating as the primary initiator on offense. Just 48 hours later, he had to handle Damian Lillard on defense while getting minutes at the center position. Did I mention he has the highest 3P% on the team? Dude can literally do it all.

Photo by David Dow/NBAE via Getty Images

4. Big Mac’s Defense

The ascension of Jaden McDaniels’ defensive ability is one that has been well documented. I still recall when Chris Paul was complimentary of his defense last season. He has been a human torture chamber for opposing guards and wings, routinely making them look terrible on the court and in the box score. But don’t take it from me. Take it from smarter guys like Jake Paynting on Numbers Crunch.

Photo by Jason Miller/Getty Images

5. TP’s Leadership

A huge void was left in the “Leadership” department after the Rudy Gobert trade. The heart and soul of the 2021-2022 Timberwolves team was without a doubt, Patrick Beverley. A real question mark moving forward would be who would fill that hole. The real answer was probably going to be “By committee,” but Taurean Prince has certainly risen to the occasion. He has been a connective tissue in the locker room and provided invaluable consistency on the court. TP has quickly become both a fan and teammate favorite.

Photo by David Berding/Getty Images

6. Naz Reid’s Energy

Naz Reid is damn near a celebrity in the state of Minnesota. The rest of the world is finally catching up in 2023. There has been plenty of chatter about Naz’s future and whether or not it will be in a Timberwolves uniform. In the meantime, he has continued to ball out as his number continues to be called in a season where the Wolves two all-NBA centers have missed time. Naz is capable of galvanizing the crowd with thunderous dunks and ankle breaking dribble moves. He has been critical to keeping the Wolves in playoff contention.

Photo by Soobum Im/Getty Images

7. D’Lo’s Gravity

There has been a lot made of D’Angelo Russell’s season so far. Murmurs of discontent in Minnesota stemming from unsuccessful contract extension negotiations. His usual effort or lack thereof on the defensive end. Despite all of that, it cannot be argued that he is having a career year shooting the ball on a contract year. His eFG% (.562) and TS% (.600) are at an all-time high. Even his WS/48 (.103) is at a career-high. D’Lo has single-handedly willed the Wolves to a number of victories and his gravity has been more important than ever.

Photo by Stephen Maturen/Getty Images

8. JMac’s Pace

Of the regular rotation players, Jordan McLaughlin leads the Wolves in pace (109.03). It’s one of those statistics that meet the eye test, as he’s a classic “0.5 second mindset” player. JMac comes in, knows the assignment, and does it efficiently. His activity gets his team going by injecting energy and speed on the court. Prior to his calf injury in December, he was arguably one of the most important pieces on the roster. JMac’s return couldn’t have come soon enough.

Photo by Soobum Im/Getty Images

9. Rudy’s Rebounding

We’ve heard it all season. “Worst trade of all-time.” “Rudy makes life difficult for Ant.” The rationale for adding Rudy was to shore up the defense and rebounding areas and would you believe it? The Wolves are currently 11th in DEFRTG while Rudy ranks 4th in REB% (min. 15 mpg) This comes in just year one of the Rudy experiment. There’s still work to be done, but having a top 4 rebounder (11.6) in the league really helps.

Photo by David Sherman/NBAE via Getty Images

10. Ant’s Vibes

Men lie, women lie, the vibes don’t. I think that’s how the saying goes. There were legitimate concerns about how the immaculate Wolves Back vibes would survive this season. They went from lovably intense energy guys like Patrick Beverley and Jarred Vanderbilt, to guys who are much less popular around the league like Rudy Gobert and Austin Rivers. But if there’s one athlete in the NBA that could maintain any semblance of “cool” through these change, it’s Anthony Edwards. He continues to emit swag that permeates throughout the franchise. Wolves have a rough loss? Ant’s going to drop 30-points with a few poster dunks to get the team going the next game. Another player popped up on the Wolves injury report? Ant’s all positivity on GQ Sports talking about about Ant Jr. and Chester’s Flamin’ Hot Fries. His impact on the Timberwolves extends way beyond the basketball court.