Anthony Edwards drew criticism for how he congratulated the San Antonio Spurs with eight minutes left in Game 6 of the Western Conference Semifinals, but the Minnesota Timberwolves star affirms that there was a reason he did what he did.
Edwards congratulated San Antonio’s players with over half the fourth quarter to go when he was removed from what was a Game 6 blowout (video here). In a new video on his YouTube channel, Edwards admitted he knew he would be too annoyed at the end of the game to congratulate the Spurs.
“Yeah, it’s eight minutes in the game, but we’re not going back in,” Edwards said. “When you win a playoff series, everybody’s celebrating at the end of the game. They’re going to be smiling while I’m pissed off that we just lost.
“I didn’t want to go dap them up at all, but then what would they have been saying about me?”
Anthony Edwards explains why he dapped up the Spurs with 8 minutes left:
— NBA Courtside (@NBA__Courtside) May 23, 2026
“Yeah it’s 8 minutes but we not going back in the game. When you win a playoff series everybody is celebrating at the end of the game. They’ll be smiling while I’m pissed off. I was like ‘let me go ahead… pic.twitter.com/Z8uoL1iY0f
Some viewed Edwards’ move as a type of defeatism. In Edwards’ view, it was the complete opposite. He wanted to get out of there because he knew he’d be angry about his team’s loss.
Edwards’ intense competitiveness is a plus for the Timberwolves, though they are worried it could turn around on them if they don’t win soon. This is just another example of it, whether Edwards’ actions are to people’s liking or not.
