Anthony Edwards announced his arrival before the ball even went in. Ten days after hyperextending his left knee, the Minnesota Timberwolves guard made an unexpected playoff return Monday night, hitting a three-pointer and then turning to the San Antonio bench with a declaration: "I'm back! I'm back!"
The Timberwolves won 104-102 in Game 1 of the Western Conference semi-finals, handing the Spurs just their second loss in 17 home series openers. Edwards finished with 18 points, 11 of them in the fourth quarter, after missing significant time with a bone bruise in addition to the hyperextension suffered during Denver's opening-round series.
Edwards was initially expected to sit out at least the first two games in San Antonio, but accelerated his recovery work to get on the floor for the opener. Minnesota coach Chris Finch cleared him roughly 90 minutes before tipoff with a simple verdict: "He's in."
"He loves to play the game," Finch said. "We dodged a bullet when it happened. He's done an incredible job. Our medical staff has done an unbelievable job of getting him to this point."
The guard credited the Timberwolves' medical operations team with turning things around quickly. Edwards spent his early recovery days working through pain in the pool, running, doing band work, and building up resistance. "I think I got the best physical therapist in the world," he said.
Edwards was motivated partly by Minnesota's first-round victory. "I don't think me coming back was because of nothing they got going on," he explained. "It was more so I want to be out there with my brothers. Yeah, just that simple."
The Spurs countered with a historic defensive performance. Victor Wembanyama set an NBA playoff record with 12 blocked shots while adding 11 points and 15 rebounds. Despite the dominant individual effort, Wembanyama acknowledged the team fell short overall. "We have to be better," he said. "It shows up on the stat sheet."
San Antonio guard Dylan Harper praised Edwards' ability to contribute right away. "That's kind of who he is," Harper said. "Superstar in this league. He's going to come back and have games like that even though he hasn't played for a little bit."
Knicks Demolish 76ers in Eastern Conference Opener
The New York Knicks delivered a historic shellacking to Philadelphia on the same night, winning 137-98 in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference semi-finals. Jalen Brunson erupted for 35 points, with 27 coming in the first half alone, as New York shot 63 percent from the field and built a 40-point lead.
The offensive dominance continued an extraordinary playoff stretch. After trailing Atlanta 2-1 in the first round, the Knicks have won four straight games by a combined 135 points. They are now the first team since detailed play-by-play tracking began in 1996-97 to lead three consecutive playoff games by at least 30 points.
OG Anunoby provided elite shooting, going 7-for-8 for 18 points. Karl-Anthony Towns and Mikal Bridges chipped in 17 points each, with Towns also distributing six assists in just 20 minutes of action. The Knicks have become the first team in NBA history to win three straight postseason games by at least 25 points.
Game 2 is scheduled for Wednesday night before the series shifts to Philadelphia. 76ers star Joel Embiid has already begun lobbying his own fans to hold onto their tickets as the Knicks continue their roll.
Author James Rodriguez: "Edwards playing through pain to announce himself against a Spurs team with historic defense sets the tone for a wild conference semi-final, while the Knicks are simply on another level right now."
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