Over his nine-year tenure in Minnesota, Karl-Anthony Towns became the franchise leader in 40+ point games in the regular season. However, in just his fifth NBA season, Anthony Edwards has tied KAT’s record following his offensive outburst last night.
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The 23-year-old scored 49 points against the short-handed Chicago Bulls, tallying the 13th 40-point game of his career. After the 127-108 win at Target Center, Edwards joked about gunning for number 14, and Towns’ throne. “KAT, I’m on your a**,” Ant quipped during the locker room interview.
“Nah, that’s dope man. I didn’t know that, so thank you. And hopefully, I can get some more,” the three-time All-Star added.
Anthony Edwards had 49 tonight, which was his 13th 40-point game of his career.
Here's Ant being informed that 13 career 40-point games ties him with KAT for the franchise record. pic.twitter.com/dti1g1hdqI
— Dane Moore (@DaneMooreNBA) February 6, 2025
The shooting guard was on a tear against the Bulls last night. He shot 6 of 14 from three-point range and leveraged his gravity at the arc to repeatedly attack the rim. When he wasn’t finishing the play above the rim, he was drawing contact and getting to the charity stripe.
Ant-Man knocked down 17 of his 18 foul shots, tying his career-high in both free-throws attempted and free-throws made. At the end of the night, he was just 4 points shy of tying his career-high of 53 points. Nonetheless, his 49-point explosion was the third-highest scoring game of his career and it was plenty to tie him with Towns as the franchise’s leading 40-point scorer.
Edwards’ immediate reaction being a playful taunt toward his former teammate also speaks volumes about his relationship with his former teammate. In September 2024, when Towns was traded to New York for Julius Randle and Donte DiVincenzo, Ant reflected more candidly about their partnership.
“I think everybody knows KAT my brother so that definitely hurt,” he said during the Wolves’ media day, adding how “incredible” their relationship was on and off the court. “That’s what we talked about once I landed. We talked on the phone through messages. We were just talking to each other about everything. How it started… And he sent me a picture of him at the gym at like three in the morning. So that was kind of funny,” Edwards shared.
When the Georgia Bulldog was drafted to Minnesota in 2020, KAT was already the franchise’s established cornerstone. But as Ant quickly proved his mettle as a two-way star, the Timberwolves began running more of their offense through him. For many veterans, a situation like this could quickly become ugly. After all, egos often clash when a new star emerges on a team.
This was not the case in Minnesota though. Towns proved his maturity time and time again by accepting fewer touches and reimagining his role around the offensive skillset of Edwards. His commitment to the team was further proven by the leaps he took on the defensive end.
Of course, the Timberwolves would still decide to part ways with their long-time #32, but it makes sense that Ant and KAT share a respectful relationship. It wouldn’t be surprising if Towns congratulates the youngster when he inevitably overtakes him with his 14th 40-point game.
Notably, Edwards’ recent outing also tied him with Kevin Garnett as the players with the second-most 30-point games in Timberwolves history. He’s also just one 50-point game away from tying KAT as the franchise leader in that category. As Chris Finch continues to build around the former #1 pick, Ant will surely end his career leading the Timberwolves in every scoring record.
