PHOENIX – Newcomer Anthony Edwards scored 42 points, the best of his career, Karl-Anthony Towns, 41 and the Minnesota Timberwolves suddenly look like a respectable NBA basketball team.
The Timberwolves used the dominant Edwards-KAT combination and a fourth period comeback to stun the Phoenix Suns 123-119 on Thursday night. They have won three out of five games since the All-Star break.
At 19 years and 225 days old, Edwards became the third youngest player in NBA history with a 40-point game.
“Our future success starts now,” said Timberwolves coach Chris Finch.
The Timberwolves still have the worst NBA record at 10-31, but have played much better in the past few weeks. Edwards and Towns loaded Minnesota on this one, dumping points all over the ground.
After the game, Edwards gave his shirt to his “blood brother” who was in the game and gave his shoes to some other fans. The 19-year-old was smiling from ear to ear as he left the court.
“We are winning,” he said. “It is always happy when we are winning.”
Edwards, who was number one overall in Georgia last summer, hit 15 out of 31 shots. Towns was even more efficient, making 15 out of 24 shots, including 5 out of 7 points out of 3 points. Juancho Hernangomez dived with 2.5 seconds remaining to seal.
It was only the second time in the history of the Minnesota franchise that two players scored 40 points in the same game.
“Incredibly special,” said Finch. “They played very well. KAT almost has a triple-double. They were carrying us.”
Jevon Carter hit a 3-point basket just before the third quarter bell to give Suns a 91-83 lead. But the Timberwolves kept the game steady and Towns tied for 107 after a 3-point basket with less than five minutes remaining. Towns also added 10 rebounds and eight assists.
Those were the types of performances that the Timberwolves envisioned when they selected Edwards, who has a nice jump and produced some outstanding dunks on Thursday. The 1.8m guard has averaged 30.6 points in his last five games.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.