The Minnesota Timberwolves aren't going down quietly in this Western Conference Finals series despite being heavy underdogs against the Oklahoma City Thunder. After a pair of blowouts in the first two games in Oklahoma City, the Wolves responded with a huge performance in Game 3, winning 143-101 to cut the deficit in half.

As usual for the Timberwolves, Anthony Edwards was the catalyst that got everything going. He scored 12 early points in this one to help his squad get out to a big early lead, and he and the Wolves never looked back.

The superstar wing, fresh off of being named Second Team All-NBA, finished the game with 30 points in just 30 minutes on a hyper-efficient 12-for-17 shooting. He seems to have finally found his rhythm against this elite Oklahoma City defense after a rough Game 1 and has put together two straight solid games.

After the game, Julius Randle sent a warning to the rest of the league as Edwards starts to heat up just at the right time.

“Ant's always locked in,” Randle said. “It can always be that kind of night for him. He's special. There's nothing that anybody can do to slow him down or stop him. We've just gotta continue to help him and play the game smartly and make it easy for him. It's that kind of night for Ant every night. He's that special.”

Related Minnesota Timberwolves NewsArticle continues below
Minnesota Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards (5) reacts after making a three point basket against the Golden State Warriors in the third quarter during game four of the second round for the 2025 NBA Playoffs at Chase Center.
Timberwolves’ Anthony Edwards sends warning after 42-point Thunder blowout
Minnesota Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards (5) shakes hands with forward Jaden McDaniels (3) after making a shot against the San Antonio Spurs in the first half at Target Center.
Anthony Edwards calls out All-Defensive team voters for ‘terrible’ snub

So far in his career, Edwards has proven Randle right in the playoffs time and time again, already leading the Wolves to back-to-back Western Conference Finals at just 23 years old.

While Edwards has clearly grown on the court and honed his skill set to become one of the biggest stars in basketball, he has also become a leader for this Timberwolves squad at such a young age. Randle spoke about Edwards as a leader after the Game 3 win.

“I just think he's very in tune with his teammates and what's going on,” Edwards said. “As great of a player as Ant is and as special as he is on a night to night basis, he's like the definition of selfless. Shortly after (Game 2), he knows I'm hot, like I'm upset, not just cause we lost but I wanna play well and I felt like I didn't help my team out at all. He was the first one, he saw me and he was like ‘bro just shake back, you good, like don't worry about it.' As the flight went on I was able to start smiling with him, laughing again and we're playing cards and all that stuff. He's very mature.”

The Timberwolves will need Edwards to be at his very best both on and off the court over the next four games if they want to shock everyone and knock off the Thunder. All indications are that he is shifting through the gears at the right time.