Anthony Edwards will play in Game 1 Monday night between the Minnesota Timberwolves and San Antonio Spurs.
Head coach Chris Finch confirmed in his pregame news conference that Edwards is in the lineup.
“He’s in,” Finch told reporters.
The news confirmed an earlier report from ESPN’s Shams Charania that Edwards would play barring a pregame setback.
Edwards won’t start
Finch told reporters that Edwards would be on a minutes restriction but didn’t offer further details. The Timberwolves later announced their starting lineup with Terrence Shannon Jr. in place of Edwards, meaning that Edwards will come off the bench.
Early return for Edwards
Edwards had been sidelined with a bone bruise in his left knee that he hyperextended in Game 4 against the Denver Nuggets on April 25. The injury was initially expected to sideline him through at least the start of the second-round series against the Spurs.
But Edwards received medical clearance to play nine days after sustaining the injury. And he got final clearance after going through on-court drills Monday afternoon.
Edwards’ winding status reports
On Sunday afternoon, the Timberwolves upgraded Edwards’ injury status for Monday’s opening game against the Spurs to questionable, a surprise announcement on the heels of a report from Charania that Edwards was targeting a return in Game 3 or Game 4 of the series.
Charania previously reported on “NBA Tip-Off” Sunday that Edwards wasn’t expected to play in Monday’s opener or Game 2, which is Wednesday. Charania reported Edwards was “hopeful that he could push to be back in the lineup potentially for Game 3 or Game 4 at the earliest.” Game 3 is scheduled for Friday in Minnesota. Game 4 will take place on Sunday.
Charania also noted in that report that “Minnesota is going to be conservative” in bringing Edwards back, in part due to inflammation in his right knee that sidelined him for the stretch run of the regular season. But that the equation changed swiftly ahead of Monday’s Game 1 tip.
The bone bruise sidelined Edwards for Games 5 and 6 as the Timberwolves closed out their first-round series against the Nuggets, but he avoided more serious ligament damage. And now, with a spot in the Western Conference finals at stake, Edwards is on track to play in Game 1.
Per The Athletic’s Jon Krawczynski, Edwards was not on the Minnesota sideline for Game 6 against Denver because he was working on his rehab and receiving treatment in hopes of playing against the Spurs if the Timberwolves advanced. Per the report, his knee responded well enough over the weekend to make playing in Game 1 a possibility.
Can Wolves compete with Spurs with Ant back?
Edwards is key to Minnesota’s hopes of competing against a Spurs team featuring MVP finalist Victor Wembanyama that finished the regular season with the NBA’s second-best record.
Edwards made his fourth straight All-Star team this season and averaged a career-high 28.8 points, alongside 5 rebounds, 3.7 assists and 1.4 steals per game. He also posted career highs while shooting 48.9% from the field and 39.9% on 8.4 3-point attempts per game.
The Timberwolves will be without Ayo Dosunmu Monday night. Minnesota downgraded him to out Monday afternoon with a calf injury that sidelined him for Game 6 against Denver.
Dosunmu was key in Edwards’ absence against the Nuggets. He scored a career-high 43 points to lead Minnesota to a Game 4 victory after Edwards left the game with his injury. He started in Game 5 in Edwards’ place and scored 18 points.
