Minnesota Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards has been ruled out of Thursday’s matchup against the Detroit Pistons, the team announced after initially listing him as questionable.
Edwards is sidelined by patellofemoral pain syndrome in his right knee and an illness, preventing him from meeting the NBA’s 65-game minimum needed for consideration in major postseason awards.
The 24-year-old was tracking toward a third straight All-NBA selection. Over 59 games, he is averaging a career-high 29.3 points along with 5.1 rebounds, 3.7 assists and 1.4 steals, while shooting .493 from the field, .404 from three and .797 at the foul line.
Minnesota has six games remaining. Even if Edwards plays in each, he would finish at 65 appearances only on paper; one early-season outing lasted three minutes and does not count toward the league’s threshold.
The Timberwolves enter Thursday at 46-29, holding the No. 6 seed in the Western Conference—comfortably ahead of No. 7 Phoenix and within reach of No. 4 Denver and No. 5 Houston.
With Edwards unavailable, guard Ayo Dosunmu is expected to see increased minutes after posting a triple-double—18 points, 15 rebounds and 12 assists—in Monday’s victory at Dallas.
Source: Hoops Wire
