MINNEAPOLIS — Anthony Edwards was able to get buckets for the Timberwolves on Tuesday night.
The problem for the Wolves was it seemed nobody else felt like doing so.
The Wolves had one of their limpest offensive efforts of late in a 117-94 loss to the 76ers, with Edwards getting almost no help from his teammates in terms of scoring.
Joel Embiid took advantage of the Wolves turning him into a jump shooter with 39 points, seven rebounds and four assists. As James Harden rested, Tyrese Maxey played a commendable second fiddle to Embiid with 27 points. Anyone who tried to play second fiddle for the Wolves was out of tune.
Edwards had 32 points but no other starter had more than seven as the Wolves shot 40% from the field. Embiid had 22 in the third quarter while the Wolves had 23 as a team. The Wolves were down by 13 at the half and never got within double digits again.
The question for the Wolves going forward is how often will these nights occur, especially with no return timetable for Karl-Anthony Towns. As currently constructed, the Wolves are lacking a true prime second scoring option alongside Edwards until Towns returns. They were able to make up for that with good defense and ball movement that led to enough shots falling for three consecutive wins. That win streak came to a crashing halt.
Taurean Prince was the Wolves' second-leading scorer with 13 while Tobias Harris had 10 points, 14 rebounds for Philadelphia, which played for the second time in two nights.