Minnesota had a chance to pull out a much-needed win on a night it didn’t play very well at home Thursday against Chicago. But it didn’t get enough from its best player, so instead the Timberwolves fell, 120-115, to the Bulls for the team’s fourth-straight defeat. Anthony Edwards has been supe rhuman with his shot making at the ends of games for much of the season. The rate at which he hit such consequential shots wasn’t sustainable. So a dip like the one he’s experienced the last two games — Edwards is 2 for 10 in clutch-time minutes in Minnesota’s last two losses to Utah and Chicago — isn’t all that surprising. Minnesota Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards reacts toward a referee during the first half of an NBA basketball game against the Chicago Bulls, Thursday, Jan. 22, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr) It was bound to happen eventually. But the misses didn’t need to coincide with some of the mental lapses Edwards endured in the 70 seconds of Thursday’s loss. With Minnesota leading by four and 1 minute, 10 seconds to play, Edwards got lackadaisical in his off-ball defense while guarding Chicago’s most potent scorer, Coby White. Josh Giddey hit White in the corner, and Edwards didn’t deliver a meaningful contest as White buried a triple to pull Chicago within one. “He just stopped short,” Wolves coach Chris Finch said. “He’s got to get all the way out there with a better contest.” Edwards credited the pass from Giddey, noting he didn’t expect the corner feed. “So my reaction … I was stuck in quicksand when he caught the ball. It felt like it,” Edwards said. “So, I couldn’t really get a contest. I know I’mma get cussed out about that one (in the film session).” On Minnesota’s ensuing offensive possession, Edwards simply dropped a pass from Julius Randle, which led to a Bulls steal. Then, on a Chicago sideline in-bounds play, Edwards didn’t commit to helping off an action, which gave Tre Jones an easy path to the rim for the go-ahead bucket. “Coach drew up a good play and they bit on (the action),” Jones said, “so I was able to get into the lane and get a layup to go.” “I just got to play better in a game like tonight,” Edwards said. He largely lamented his shooting performance. The superstar’s 20 points came on a 9-for-25 showing from the field. Edwards is always quick to gauge an evening based on his offensive output. But it was Minnesota’s defense that again did the Wolves in. Outside of a strong first few minutes Thursday, the Timberwolves slipped back into their poor defensive form that cost them games in San Antonio and then, most notably, Utah. T That the embarrassing loss to the tanking Jazz didn’t awaken Minnesota on the defensive end is a bit alarming. Again against Chicago, Minnesota failed to contain the ball off the bounce and didn’t rotate well when it was forced to help after being beat at the point of attack. “We have no defensive personality right now,” Finch said. That’s a problem. Because, when the Wolves are at their best, that’s their defining trait. Edwards is frequently at the center of those efforts. When he’s dialed in, Minnesota is tough to beat. The 24-year-old guard is the Wolves’ lightning bolt, the man capable of supercharging the team performance and reversing the current rough course Minnesota is charting. Wolves forward Julius Randle said “a lot of effort” is required for Minnesota to the elite form it’d appeared to capture just a week ago. “We know what we have to do to be better in (the energy) department,” Randle said. “It’s a long season. There’s going to be ups and downs. A week ago we could’ve looked like the best team in basketball, and this week we can look like the worst. We just gotta find a way to find a consistency. Whatever we gotta do to recover, get our mind right, our energy right, our focus right, we gotta do it. It’s coming to hurt us. We do it sometimes and then we take our foot off the gas. We gotta find a way to find that energy consistently and play a full 48.” If Edwards can lead the charge on that front, everyone else tends to fall in line. He didn’t do so Thursday, and his team suffered in kind. “If I play halfway like myself (against Chicago), we win the game,” Edwards said. “So I don’t really blame nobody but myself.” Related Articles In Chicago, Tre Jones blossoms into player Timberwolves could target in trade talks Some Timberwolves’ season-ticket renewal price hikes spike north of 30% Chris Finch usually sticks with struggling Timberwolves’ vets. Will he do the same with Mike Conley? Timberwolves season-ticket renewal prices are rising. Here’s why Timberwolves give up double-digit fourth-quarter lead, lose to Jazz ...read more read less