Anthony Edwards has never been one to shy away from voicing his opinions, no matter how blunt. After the Minnesota Timberwolves fell to the Golden State Warriors, Edwards lashed out at the referees during his postgame remarks, calling their performance into question.
Following the game, Edwards minced no words as he vented in the locker room, specifically targeting two of the officials. “They’re f— terrible. All of them,” Edwards said. “Besides the woman. But the other two dudes, terrible. Excuses for the reason they call a foul, a reason they don’t call a foul. They don’t want to talk back to my coach, they don’t want to talk back to me. I said one thing to the ref, and he gave me a tech. M— told one of my teammates if I had said, ‘Y’all calling a bad foul,’ he would have given me a tech.”
“They’re just sensitive and they’re terrible,” he continued. “They never give us the [benefit of the doubt], they penalize me and [Julius Randle] for being stronger every night, don’t get no calls. That’s how I feel about the officials. Every game that we play.”
Despite the Timberwolves’ struggles, Edwards posted a stat line of 19 points on 6-of-20 shooting, along with seven rebounds and five assists. However, he also recorded four personal fouls and went to the free-throw line four times. Despite the Warriors were called for 23 fouls compared to the Timberwolves’ 18, Edwards argued that the officiating consistently worked against his team.
Anthony Edwards #5 of the Minnesota Timberwolves reacts after receiving a technical foul in the first quarter against the Golden State Warriors at Chase Center. (Lachlan Cunningham/Getty Images)
Bad calls a season-long issue, Edwards claims
Edwards didn’t limit his frustrations to this single game, claiming that officiating has been a persistent problem for the Timberwolves all season. However, he singled out the Warriors matchup as particularly egregious.
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“Hell yeah, it’s been consistent all year, but tonight was bad,” Edwards said. “They was giving ticky-tack fouls and we weren’t getting nothing. That’s just how I feel about the officials. The two dudes, not the woman.”
“I get penalized for being stronger than my opponent,” he continued. “So they give them the benefit of the doubt. They bump me the same way they bump everybody else, and I never get the calls. I don’t know what’s got to go down, but something’s gotta happen, because that s— is terrible.”
Will Edwards face discipline?
Given his pointed comments about the officiating, Edwards is likely to face a fine from the NBA. This wouldn’t be his first penalty this season. In November, Edwards was fined $35,000 for flipping off a fan during the Timberwolves’ win over the Sacramento Kings. A few weeks later, he was fined $25,000 for using “profane language” during a postgame interview.
With his latest outburst, Edwards may once again find himself lighter in the wallet—but his message to the league and its officials was loud and clear.
