- Joined
- May 8, 2002
- Posts
- 1,263,408
- Reaction score
- 59
All the Timberwolves – as in, every healthy player on the roster – posed for a photo over the weekend in front of the Eiffel Tower in France.
The photo is circulating social media after players posted it in the midst of their trip abroad to visit and work with starting center Rudy Gobert as part of an athlete-led initiative to spend time alongside and build chemistry with one another this offseason.
Good on Anthony Edwards, who stuck true to his word from 11 months prior.
It was Timberwolves Media Day in 2025 when Edwards on two separate occasions – first in a sit down game of Uno with team broadcaster Michael Grady, and again in front of the press for his podium interview – lamented the group’s lack of offseason connectivity.
He noted he had a summer camp a year ago, as did now former teammate Naz Reid. But neither even informed the other about the events.
It didn’t sit right with the Wolves’ superstar.
Edwards urged Reid to let him know the next time a camp took place, adding he was “going to come.”
“That’s where it starts. I think it starts in the summertime,” Edwards said last fall. “It’s just things guys don’t know because we’re not used to winning. I think winning starts with being together, and it starts in the summertime, man. We’ve got to be together. We’ve got to be a team.”
And not just one that attempts to mesh on the fly, as Minnesota has in recent seasons. Edwards has led that charge on countless instances. He calls it out when the Wolves aren’t playing as a team and puts in the work via conversations and actions to get the team on the proper course.
But it’s one thing to do that when you’re in the practice facility and on the road together for nine consecutive months. It’s another to use your free time to further those efforts.
For instance, after the 2022-23 campaign, Edwards suggested he would head to France that offseason to work with Gobert. It never happened.
Players have to be intentional about aligning schedules during the finite offseason. You have to value the time and what it can produce.
“The most important thing that I’ve learned, the teams that go deep in the playoffs, they’re together. Like, they really care about each other,” Edwards said last September. “It’s easy to say, ‘We brothers,’ and act like it. … We can’t wait until the All-Star break to try to become a team.”
The timing of last year’s quote felt off at the time. Edwards was discussing what needed to change when it was too late to do anything about it for last season. But it’s almost as if he was reiterating to himself what had to be different moving forward.
Actions are now matching words.
Which marks another major step forward in the maturation of Minnesota’s superstar and, now, unrivaled leader. There is no veteran like Mike Conley on this roster, nor a Joe Ingles or Kyle Anderson. The 25-year-old Edwards is leading the charge not just on the court, but in all aspects of team building.
That’s a taller task heading into this specific season. There’s an acclimation process and meshing period that will be required as Minnesota integrates a new star point guard in LaMelo Ball who will not only bring a different style of play, but also create a domino effect that puts others in positions that have different on-court obligations from what they’ve been asked to do in the past.
Those transitions are smoother once a foundation is laid.
Edwards is applying past lessons to inform present decisions. Which was the whole idea in the first place when Minnesota acquired Gobert four years ago. Edwards would grow up in a winning environment and not only develop positive habits, but also value culture and identify required areas of growth.
This trip is another clear sign he knows how to lead, and is willing to do so – at exactly the time the franchise most needed him.
Continue reading...
The photo is circulating social media after players posted it in the midst of their trip abroad to visit and work with starting center Rudy Gobert as part of an athlete-led initiative to spend time alongside and build chemistry with one another this offseason.
Good on Anthony Edwards, who stuck true to his word from 11 months prior.
It was Timberwolves Media Day in 2025 when Edwards on two separate occasions – first in a sit down game of Uno with team broadcaster Michael Grady, and again in front of the press for his podium interview – lamented the group’s lack of offseason connectivity.
He noted he had a summer camp a year ago, as did now former teammate Naz Reid. But neither even informed the other about the events.
It didn’t sit right with the Wolves’ superstar.
Edwards urged Reid to let him know the next time a camp took place, adding he was “going to come.”
“That’s where it starts. I think it starts in the summertime,” Edwards said last fall. “It’s just things guys don’t know because we’re not used to winning. I think winning starts with being together, and it starts in the summertime, man. We’ve got to be together. We’ve got to be a team.”
And not just one that attempts to mesh on the fly, as Minnesota has in recent seasons. Edwards has led that charge on countless instances. He calls it out when the Wolves aren’t playing as a team and puts in the work via conversations and actions to get the team on the proper course.
But it’s one thing to do that when you’re in the practice facility and on the road together for nine consecutive months. It’s another to use your free time to further those efforts.
For instance, after the 2022-23 campaign, Edwards suggested he would head to France that offseason to work with Gobert. It never happened.
Players have to be intentional about aligning schedules during the finite offseason. You have to value the time and what it can produce.
“The most important thing that I’ve learned, the teams that go deep in the playoffs, they’re together. Like, they really care about each other,” Edwards said last September. “It’s easy to say, ‘We brothers,’ and act like it. … We can’t wait until the All-Star break to try to become a team.”
The timing of last year’s quote felt off at the time. Edwards was discussing what needed to change when it was too late to do anything about it for last season. But it’s almost as if he was reiterating to himself what had to be different moving forward.
Actions are now matching words.
Which marks another major step forward in the maturation of Minnesota’s superstar and, now, unrivaled leader. There is no veteran like Mike Conley on this roster, nor a Joe Ingles or Kyle Anderson. The 25-year-old Edwards is leading the charge not just on the court, but in all aspects of team building.
That’s a taller task heading into this specific season. There’s an acclimation process and meshing period that will be required as Minnesota integrates a new star point guard in LaMelo Ball who will not only bring a different style of play, but also create a domino effect that puts others in positions that have different on-court obligations from what they’ve been asked to do in the past.
Those transitions are smoother once a foundation is laid.
Edwards is applying past lessons to inform present decisions. Which was the whole idea in the first place when Minnesota acquired Gobert four years ago. Edwards would grow up in a winning environment and not only develop positive habits, but also value culture and identify required areas of growth.
This trip is another clear sign he knows how to lead, and is willing to do so – at exactly the time the franchise most needed him.
Related Articles
- Timberwolves announce streaming partner for next season. How much will it cost?
- LeBron James is heading to the Philadelphia 76ers. What does that mean for the Timberwolves?
- Why the Timberwolves believe in LaMelo Ball, and vice versa
- Timberwolves unsure of where they stand with LeBron, but here’s their pitch
- Timberwolves sign rookie Isaiah Evans to four-year deal
Continue reading...
